Bo Diddley RIP
The pioneer of rock and roll has passed away. He most memorably said, "I’m sick and tired of everyone talking about Elvis. It was me and Chuck Berry that started rock 'n roll". Bo Diddley died yesterday (June 2nd) aged 79.
His trademark sound was widely copied by nearly everyone going: Elvis, the Stones, the Beatles, the Yardbirds and most British 60s R’n‘B and he widely felt hard done by and that there was little public recognition for his efforts.
Born in Mississippi, he moved to Chicago in 1955 and earned himself a record deal with a then little known label called Chess. He claimed throughout his career that his hits never earned him any royalties and commented wryly that, “a dude with a pencil is worse than a cat with a machine gun.”
He remained popular with rock musicians, touring with the Stones in the 1960s in England and opening for the Clash’s 1979 tour of the States. In 1998 he received a lifetime achievement award at the Grammys, has been inducted into the Mississippi and Florida musical hall of fames and even served as Deputy Sheriff in Valencia County, New Mexico, where he lived in much of his later life.
Mick Jagger said on Bo Diddley’s passing, "He was a wonderful, original musician who was an enormous force in music and was a big influence on The Rolling Stones," said Jagger. "He was very generous to us in our early years and we learned a lot from him. We will never see his like again."
Below are some videos of some of Bo Diddley’s most famous hits, 'Who do You Love?', 'Hey Bo Diddley' and 'You Can't Judge a Book by a Cover'.
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