Born Ellas Bates on Dec. 30, 1928, in McComb, Miss., rock pioneer Bo Diddley has died at age 79 of heart failure at his home in Archer, Florida.
Known for his homemade square guitar, dark glasses and black hat, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee received a lifetime achievement award in 1999 from the Grammys. (Also, as Tal Almog rightly points out his two largest contributions to pop culture are his appearances in Nike’s “Bo Knows” campaign in the 1980’s alongside athlete Bo Jackson and his duet with Bono in U2’s “Rattle & Hum” - OK, fine that was BB King, but whatever. You get the point…)
The moniker ‘Bo Diddley’ came from other youngsters when he was growing up in Chicago, he said in a 1999 interview.
“I don’t know where the kids got it, but the kids in grammar school gave me that name,” he said, adding that he liked it so it became his stage name. Other times, he gave somewhat differing stories on where he got the name. Some experts believe a possible source for the name is a one-string instrument used in traditional blues music called a diddley bow.
His first single, “Bo Diddley,” introduced record buyers in 1955 to his signature rhythm: bomp ba-bomp bomp, bomp bomp, often summarized as “shave and a haircut, two bits.” The B side, “I’m a Man,” with its slightly humorous take on macho pride, also became a rock standard.
Diddley’s other major songs included, “Say Man,” “You Can’t Judge a Book by Its Cover,” “Shave and a Haircut,” “Uncle John,” “Who Do You Love?” and “The Mule.”
Diddley’s influence was felt on both sides of the Atlantic. Buddy Holly borrowed the bomp ba-bomp bomp, bomp bomp rhythm for his song “Not Fade Away.”
The Rolling Stones’ bluesy remake of that Holly song gave them their first chart single in the United States, in 1964. The following year, another British band, the Yardbirds, had a Top 20 hit in the U.S. with their version of “I’m a Man.”
Diddley was also one of the pioneers of the electric guitar, adding reverb and tremelo effects. He even rigged some of his guitars himself.
