Bo Diddley In History

Bo Diddley In History

Who has honored Bo Diddley, who passed away June 2?  He created a surreal calypso-stomp, which might have become an entire genre, like Salsa.

Everything was impeccable about Bo Diddley, including his name, suggestive of the Bo tree in Bodh Gaya where Buddha achieved enlightenment -- plus the term "diddly squat," which means "nothing."  Ultimately, Buddha did achieve nothing by squatting under the Bo tree: a Nothing greater than all the somethings of this world.

Also, Bo played a boxlike guitar, resembling a Japanese shamisen.

Bo Diddley's lyrics were also elegant:

Tombstone hand and a graveyard mind;

Just 22 and I don't mind dying.

Who do you love?

Who do you love?

Only The Quicksilver Messenger Service, the psychedelic San Francisco band, recognized Bo's achievement.  Their extended fantasy on "Who Do You Love?" (which was actually in six parts: "Who Do You Love (Part 1)", "When You Love," "Where You Love," "How You Love," "Which Do You Love" and "Who Do You Love (Part 2)") was a success when performed, but a failure on record, where it becomes tedious, meandering and extremely WHITE.

Today, thousands of bands follow the gentle harmonic pathway paved by The Beatles, but no one pursues Bo Diddley's jangling insights.  Why?  Bo's method requires syncopated rage, which few musicians possess.  Punks have rage but no syncopation, and vibraphone players are rhythmic but rageless.

Poets, at least, must admire Bo Diddley, for lines like:

Bo Diddley caught a nanny goat,

To make his pretty baby a Sunday coat.

Bo Diddley caught a bearcat,

To make his pretty baby a Sunday hat.

from the self-extolling "Bo Diddley" (1955).  (Bo penned a number of such autobiographical songs: "Hey! Bo Diddley," " Bo Diddley Is A Gunslinger," "Diddley Daddy," "Bo Meets The Monster," "Story Of Bo Diddley," "Run Diddley Daddy," "Bo Diddley's Dog," "Bo's Waltz," "Bo's Beat," etc.)  (It's hard to imagine Bob Dylan writing a song called "Bob Dylan's Dog.")