We Don't Have Diddley

Yesterday, Bo Diddley died at age 79.

In a world where we grieve the passing of people who are famous for either having little or no talent, we are faced with the loss of a giant. A pioneer. A force of nature.

Besides coming up with the oft-imitated but rarely duplicated Bo Diddley beat, he created or popularized so many other iconic elements. The audacious square guitar. The ever-present hat [this photo is a rare pre-hat shot]. The self-referential lyrics. He seemingly invented himself and then mythologized himself.

And he pulled it off.

We live in this strange age where the architects of the great fabric of rock and roll have either died way too young, or are seemingly immortal. Well, I suppose this proves that they are indeed mortal.

I for one am glad to have lived in the time of Bo. The time of Jerry Lee, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, the Everly Brothers. The founders, the creators, the architects. I always hold these people in higher esteem than the ones who came later. As much as I love the Byrds, the Boxtops and the Kinks, the raw energy and the electricity of the pioneers of rock and roll is the real deal. God bless Bo Diddley.