He died. We all die. Bo Diddley lived his music and played until he dropped. I hope I can play until I drop. Wish I'd have seen him in concert.

Good call rockthief; I just saw the news on my internet homepage. He was a pioneer whose music inspired tons of great acts like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Fleetwood Mac. His influence on how to play an electric guitar is immeasurable and though he will be dearly missed, he will be significantly remembered.

I have a couple old Bo Diddley lps and a best-of on cd. I still have Have Guitar, Will Travel on my want list along with his surf cd (though it's hated by surf purists, it's still a must-have, and everytime I see a copy it's priced very high).

The Bo Diddley beat is probably the most well known and most copied (or stolen) in the last fifty-some years. The man was an originator and a great musician. RIP Bo the gunslinger.

quote:

Originally posted by crazed:
The Bo Diddley beat is probably the most well known and most copied (or stolen) in the last fifty-some years. The man was an originator and a great musician. RIP Bo the gunslinger.

Yeah, I remember discussing this in a jazz class—since jazz and rock are closely related and since Diddley got it from a Gene Autry tune. It was hard for the professor to put an exact title on it since it's kind of like a combination of styles; thus why it's called "the Bo Diddley beat." But you are right that it has been copied many, many times.

Another interesting aspect of his music was that his songs rarely had chord changes. At first this was unusual but it allowed for the rhythms to come front and center.

He sure was an innovator, RIP.

Like Chuck, Fats, Ike, Bo WAS rocknroll. Fuck, I loved that bastard.

someone tell me about that guitar of his - the thing was a rectangle!

Part of the reason why he had such a unique sound was because of the tone he could create on his guitar. As far as I know, he was goofing off on stage and landed awkwardly while playing a Gibson. Supposedly, he later changed it partly because of this.

This new design, which he nicknamed "The Twang Machine" created an innovated sound that was, well, twangy.

When I think of Bo I think of a pioneer in rock guitar. He was among some of the first to demonstrate the guitar as an instrument of rythm as well as melody.

Agreed, Bo was cool. And if any of you out there are feeling the need to listen to some of his stuff but don't own it, please don't drop a cent on a new cd. Diddley owned no rights and received little royalties from any of his records or live performances and frequently complained about being ripped off by his record contract. His story is the perfect example of what is wrong with the record industry and makes a strong case for illegal filesharing. So all of you "support the artist!" arguers can head to your favorite filesharing source (if you need help, just ask!) and feel no guilt about downloading.