I got a sad telephone call early this morning : « the great Bo Diddley passed on last night »…
Bo Diddley died of heart failure on Monday, at his home in Archer, Florida.
He was 79.

Who in the hell was Bo Diddley, and why Radio Shic and I are devoting an issue, a musical tribute to him ?
Bo Diddley was simply one of the great brothas who helped to invent that art & then multi-billion dollar/year industry known as Rock’n'Roll.

If you don't know anything about Bo Diddley or only know of him as an « old black man with a funny looking guitar and a black hat », then this would be a good time to educate yourself. Ellas McDaniel, aka Bo Diddley, aka the Originator, aka the Black Gladiator was and will always be one of the greatests musical talents ever. Not only is Bo Diddley one of the inventors of Rock and his legendary "Bo Diddley Beat" (which got common roots with the Gnawa rhythms from south west Marocco !), but it is inconciveable that the music we call FUNK or the music we call RAP could ever have come really into existance without him ! Former boxer from Chicago blues scene, known as one of the founding fathers of rock & roll, with big influence on, among others, the Rolling Stones ("Not Fade Away"!), The Pretty Things (they took their name from a Diddley song), Bob Seeger or The Clash ("Cops & Robbers"), Diddley Daddy was born to entertain.


His famous Bo Diddley beat, his trademark square guitars, his pioneering use of female musicians and his exciting and highly idiosyncratic performances over 5 decades form part of his lasting legacy.
Rest In Peace, brotha.

Tribute playlist to early Elias McDaniel's : Listen here!: tribute to bo diddley

1- Bo Diddley (1955)
2- DiddyWahDiddy (1955)
3- Cops and Robbers (1956)
4- Hush your Mouth ! (1958)
5- Bo Diddley is Loose (1961)
6- Road Runner (instru) (1959)
7- You Can't Judge a Book by its Cover (1962)