Born in McComb, Mississippi as Ellas Otha Bates, he was adopted and raised by his mother's cousin, Gussie McDaniel, whose surname he assumed, becoming Ellas McDaniel. The family moved to Chicago when he was seven. He took violin lessons as a youth, but was inspired to become a guitarist after seeing John Lee Hooker.

He worked as a carpenter and mechanic, but also began a musical career playing on street corners with friends, including Jerome Green (c. 1934-1973), as a band called the Hipsters (later the Langley Avenue Jive Cats). During the summer of 1943-44, he played for tips at the Maxwell Street market in a band with Earl Hooker.

In 1951, he landed a regular spot at the 708 Club on Chicago's South Side, with a repertoire influenced by Louis Jordan, John Lee Hooker, and Muddy Waters. He adopted the stage name, Bo Diddley, which is probably a southern black slang phrase meaning "nothing at all", as in "he ain't bo diddley". Another source says it was his nickname as a teenage Golden Gloves boxer. The nickname is also linked to the diddley bow, a two-stringed instrument that was used in the south by black musicians working in the fields.

In late 1954, he teamed up with harmonica player Billy Boy Arnold, drummer Clifton James and bass player Roosevelt Jackson, and recorded demos of "I'm A Man" and "Bo Diddley". They re-recorded the songs at Chess Studios with a backing ensemble comprising Otis Spann (piano), Lester Davenport (harmonica), Frank Kirkland (drums) and Jerome Green (maracas). The record was released in March 1955, and the A-side, "Bo Diddley", became a #1 R&B hit.

He was famous for writing songs with no chord changes, where the rhythm provided the drive and excitement. The rhythm, of course, was based on what is now known as "the Bo Diddley beat." If you've never heard of it, here's a rough example. Say the following quickly, but only the bolded and italicized parts:

One and two and three and four and one and two and three and four and

This is a variation on a Cuban clave, and it could be argued the the Bo Diddley beat is just a clave with a couple of accents (the italicized beats) thrown in. What Bo Diddley did was to take that Latin beat and incorporate it into rhythm & blues, from which it made its way into rock 'n' roll.

I grew up listening to Top 40 radio in the later part of the Sixties (except for times when I was turning my back on it to concentrate on classical -- but that's another story). I never heard of Bo Diddley before I went to college and started getting some exposure to R&B and early rock 'n' roll. I later learned how much of an influence he had on rock music; he was covered by bands from the Rolling Stones to the Doors to Tom Petty to Bruce Springsteen. If it wasn't for Bo Diddley we would never have had songs from Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders ("The Game Of Love"), The Who ("Magic Bus") and The Strangeloves ("I Want Candy"), among many others. Few rock acts have escaped his influence, directly or indirectly.

Lately I've been writing songs. Some are good, some are okay, some never get past the "why did I bother with that" stage. The best ones seem to come at me full on, like I just need to transcribe them from wherever they spring up from. The other day when I heard the news I sat down at my computer and started tapping out a Bo Diddley beat on the desk. Moments later this song came out. I posted it on LiveJournal and got some very positive comments about it (one commenter said it "made me dance and cry at the same time"). So, to offer a break from All What's-Her-Name, All The Time coverage, I thought I'd share this with you.

This song is ©2008 under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license. That basically means you can pass it around, sing it, play it (if you can figure out how), modify it or whatever you like, as long as:

1. You give me credit for it;

2. You distribute any changes under the same Creative Commons license; and

3. You don't do anything commercial with it (like record it on a CD you're selling). (If you want to do this, of course, let's talk)

This song doesn't have a formal tune yet. I imagine it as being done to the tune of something like "Bo Diddley" (the R&B hit mentioned above), with traces of George Thorogood's version of "Who Do You Love," another Bo Diddley hit. Unfortunately I can't get it to sound good on the banjo; but then the banjo is not really known for its use in R&B.

I heard the man on the radio say
Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley passed away
Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley died today

Bo Diddley went to the by-and-by
Looked St Peter right in the eye
Peter said "Bo Diddley, where you been?"
"Gone to hell and back again."

"Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley, who'd you see?"
"I saw the Devil and the Devil saw me."
"Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley, what did he say?"
"Devil said, welcome to the judgment day."

"Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley, what'd you do?"
"I played the Devil a song or two.
Played it high, played it low,
Played it as loud as loud could go.
Played a song for the poor damned souls
And they got up and danced on the burning coals.

(instrumental bridge)

"Devil said, 'Bo, you're one cool cat
But you can't stay in Hell if you play like that."

Peter gave Bo Diddley a great big grin,
Opened the gate and said, "Come on in,
And let the heavenly dance begin."

So if you go to Heaven you're sure to meet
A man with golden slippers on his coal black feet
Playin a harp with a Bo Diddley beat.

I heard the man on the radio say
Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley passed away
Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley died today
He's gone but his music is here to stay.