Biography of Bo Diddley

Born Ellas McDaniel in McComb, MS, Bo Diddley -- as he later came to be known -- came north to Chicago as a child in the '30s and, by the early '50s, he was an amateur boxer and aspiring musician. In 1955, with the beat of rock & roll gradually sweeping through the charts and the record industry, Bo Diddley burst on the scene with his debut single for Chess Records, "Bo Diddley"/"I'm a man.""Bo Diddley" was the most utterly rudimentary, delightfully hypnotic piece of rock & roll ever to reach the charts, a rhythmic chant played to a shave-and-haircut-two-bits beat that became Bo Diddley's trademark. "I'm a Man" owed a certain amount to Muddy Waters's "Mannish Boy" (which was recorded at around the same time -- and Waters does share cowriting credit with McDaniel on "I'm a Man"), but it had a more pronounced and driving beat and a denser production that quickly established it as a rock classic in its own right. The song was subsequently covered very successfully by The Yardbirds, among other acts. Bo Diddley's fame grew by leaps and bounds, and among those who came to see him perform was none other than Elvis Presley. Bo Diddley's stage act (which, in addition to his incredibly powerful original back-up band, also later included his half-sister "The Duchess" on guitar) was loud, raunchy, and one of the most overpowering sounds ever to come out of rock & roll, and he found his sound being imitated by everyone from Johnny Otis ("Willie and the Hand Jive") to The Strangeloves ("I Want Candy").Although his own hits were relatively few in number ("You Can't Judge a Book by It's Cover," "Say Man"), Bo Diddley's songs were covered by dozens of top acts. Even more important was his influence over groups like The Rolling Stones, whose basic original sound was built on the beat and texture of Bo Diddley's music. (Brian Jones was a complete Bo Diddley devotee, and one of the few practitioners of the beat that The Bo-master himself admired and approved of). Unfortunately, as with almost all Chess artists, Bo Diddley's albums are a mixed bag, containing -- except for the magnificent and unimitable concert album, Bo Diddley's Beach Party, recorded live at Myrtle Beach, SC, in 1962 -- some percentage of filler. During the mid '60s, with the growth of Black militancy, Bo Diddley's sound fell out of favor with Black audiences, while White audiences had moved on into realms of psychedelia. By the early '70s, however, he was once again a favorite on the oldies circuit, and he still has a devoted following of musicians and thousands of fans who can turn out for a show. ~ Bruce Eder