Bo Diddley

Ellas Otha Bates (December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rock & blues vocalist, guitarist and songwriter (usually as Ellas McDaniel). He was also known as The Originator because of his key role in the transition from the blues to rock, influencing a host of acts, including Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, The Velvet Underground, The Who, The Yardbirds, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Eric Clapton, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles, among others. He introduced more insistent, driving rhythms and a hard-edged electric guitar sound on a wide-ranging catalog of songs, along with African rhythms and a signature beat (a simple five-accent clave rhythm) that remains a cornerstone of rock and pop. Accordingly, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and received Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation and a Grammy Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. He was known in particular for his technical innovations, including his trademark rectangular guitar.

Links To Peel
In 1997, Bo Diddley was one of four artists chosen by Peel to write about in a Sunday newspaper article as an important musical influence (others included The Fall).

Peel was a fan of traditional blues rock music, including artists such as Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, but the DJ described the effect of hearing Bo Diddley and other musicians on Kat's Karavan while driving in his car in America in the early 1960s as "galvanising" (Margrave Of The Marshes, p189, Corgi, 2005). An LP by Diddley was one of the first four albums Peel bought while living in Dallas.. He later admitted regretting that he never saw Bo Diddley live in his prime.

Other Shows Played
(The following list was compiled only from the database of this site and Lorcan's Tracklistings Archive and is certainly incomplete. Please add further details if known.)

1972 1979 1980 1981 1983 1984 1986 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 Others
 * 18 February 1972: Mumblin' Guitar / Put The Shoes On Willy / I Said Shut Up Woman
 * 05 February 1979: I'm A Man (reprocessed stereo)
 * 15 March 1979: Road Runner (LP - unknown source)
 * 21 May 1979: Crackin' Up
 * 24 March 1980: Hey Bo Diddley
 * 24 March 1980: Road Runner
 * 26 March 1980: Before You Accuse Me (unknown source)
 * 26 May 1980: Who Do You Love? (unknown release)
 * 03 June 1980: Put The Shoes On Willie (LP – Bo Diddley & Company) Checker
 * 19 May 1981: Hush Your Mouth (Single) Checker
 * 01 June 1981: Unknown
 * 23 July 1981: I'm Looking For A Woman (2xLP - Chess Masters) Chess/PRT
 * 31 August 1981: Looking For A Woman
 * Karl's Tape 17 - April May 1983: Road Runner
 * 17 December 1984: Say Man
 * 03 December 1986: Hong Kong, Mississippi (LP - Is A ... Lover) Checker
 * 24 December 1989 (BBC Radio East Anglia): 'Live My Life (LP-Bo Diddley In The Spotlight)' (Chess) (JP: 'I'd love to be able to play guitar like Bo Diddley, in fact, I'd like to be able to play guitar like anybody at all. Somebody did give me a guitar in fact, a couple of years ago, for my birthday, well a year and a half ago, along with a little practice amp, but our William took the practice amp for his keyboards in his bedroom and I've not seen it since. Then some other person, unnamed because they wouldn't own up to it, broke one of the strings. So it sits in my room and remains unplayed. Perhaps this'll be the year when I become a guitar hero, who can possibly say.')
 * 08 May 1990: I'm Looking For A Woman
 * 13 June 1990: Bo's Guitar (album - Diddley Daddy) Chess
 * 11 May 1991: Put The Shoes On Willie
 * 25 September 1992: 'Pretty Thing (LP-The Sound of Bo Diddley: Greatest Hits)' (World Music)
 * 28 November 1992: Say Man Back Again (LP - Have Guitar Will Travel) (JP: "Very possibly the most politically incorrect record of all time.")
 * 04 September 1993: ‘Blues Blues (CD - Bo’s Blues)’ (Ace)
 * 10 December 1993 (BFBS): I Can Tell (JP: 'There are two great regrets I have in my life. One, when I was about 13 years old, and I was on holiday in North Wales, desperately in love with this girl called Suzette, and she and her mate came to my room in the middle of the night, and suggested that we went bathing in the nude. And I was too scared to go, and I've regretted that, ever since then really. And the other great regret is that I never saw Bo Diddley perform live in his prime.')
 * 20 May 1995: Little Girl (Various Artists CD - House Rockin' Blues) Ace (JP: ‘Well now there’s some flavour for your ear if you like.’)
 * 28 December 1996: 'Bo Diddley (Compilation CD-Fritz the Cat & Heavy Traffic)' (ZYX)
 * 11 January 1997: 'Say Man (CD-The Ultimate Collection)' (Universal)
 * 01 July 1997: Mona
 * 16 October 1997: Don't Let It Go (LP - Go Bo Diddley) London
 * 1997 And Still Going Strong: 'Say Man (CD-The Ultimate Collection)' (Universal)
 * 10 March 1998: 'Cracking Up' (LP 'Go Bo Diddley' ) London Records
 * 07 April 1999: Mumblin' Guitar (LP - Have Guitar Will Travel) Checker
 * 17 November 1999: 'Crackin' Up (LP-Go Bo Diddley)' (London)
 * 20 January 2000: 'Pills (7 inch)' (Checker)
 * 30 May 2000: Diddley Daddy (v/a 15xCD set 'The Chess Story') CHESS
 * 13 February 2001: Crackin' Up (7") London
 * 02 August 2001: Don't Let It Go (LP - Bo Diddley Rides Again / In The Spotlight) Beat Goes On
 * 07 August 2001: Oh Yea (LP - Bo Diddley Rides Again / In The Spotlight) Beat Goes On
 * 20 September 2001: Don't Let It Go (Hold On To What You Got) (LP - Bo Diddley Rides Again)
 * 13 November 2001: Blues Blues (LP – Bo’s Blues) Ace
 * 12 December 2001 (Radio Mafia): 'Blues Blues (CD-Bo's Blues)' (Ace)
 * 28 November 2002: 'Don't Let It Go (LP - Bo Diddley Rides Again)' (B.G.O.)
 * 04 November 2003: 'Mumblin' Guitar (LP - 'Bo Diddley Rides Again)' (BGO)
 * 11 March 2004: 'Crackin Up (LP - 'Go Bo Diddley')' (London)
 * Radio Luxembourg Tracklistings 4: Before You Accuse Me (LP - Got My Own Bag Of Tricks) Chess (a guess) (released 1972)
 * Radio Luxembourg Tracklistings 4: Road Runner (LP - Got My Own Bag Of Tricks) Chess (released 1972)
 * Radio Luxembourg Tracklistings 5: Bo’s Guitar (LP – Go Bo Diddley) Checker (released 1959)