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Bo Diddley: Living Legend
This book explores the very humblest of beginnings and, at times, heart-rending tale of a poor black boy's struggle to free himself from the shackles of the ghetto and make it to the top. Bo Diddley: Living Legend offers a fascinating insight not only into the life and times of one of rock's first superstars, but also into the soulless and frequently brutal machinations of the popular music industry.
248 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 1, 2019
Well, it's surely not the best music biography in the world, but it's not a bad one either -- much better than some other reviews here may suggest.
What I liked is that the predominant parts are quotations of the man himself. And these are nearly as much fun to read as his music is to listen to. Although it may not be the most objective account, it gives a great view of Bo Diddley's life and work as seen by himself. And it confirms what I always suspected from his music -- that Bo wasn't just a great and unique musician, he was also a great and unique and very friendly human being. Back in the 50s, not only was he the first to build his own electric guitars and guitar effects, he was also the first to have female guitarists in his band -- women on stage not just for looking good and doing backing vocals, but taking an active part in the music. Today, Diddley is nearly forgotten, but nobody has given him credit for this part of women's liberation.
Of course, I would have preferred a more balanced and objective view, because on many things, I can just take Bo's word -- but that's good enough for me. And as the other reviewer said, those paragraphs consisting purely of listings of other artist recordings covering or otherwise referencing Bo are really unreadable and offputting and would have been better separated as lists in the appendix.
But that is a minor gripe. Objectively I'd give this 3 stars, but as I rate personally and subjectively, and as Bo Diddley is one of my all-time favourite musicians, and as this seems to be the one and only biography on him, it's clearly worth 4 stars.
What I liked is that the predominant parts are quotations of the man himself. And these are nearly as much fun to read as his music is to listen to. Although it may not be the most objective account, it gives a great view of Bo Diddley's life and work as seen by himself. And it confirms what I always suspected from his music -- that Bo wasn't just a great and unique musician, he was also a great and unique and very friendly human being. Back in the 50s, not only was he the first to build his own electric guitars and guitar effects, he was also the first to have female guitarists in his band -- women on stage not just for looking good and doing backing vocals, but taking an active part in the music. Today, Diddley is nearly forgotten, but nobody has given him credit for this part of women's liberation.
Of course, I would have preferred a more balanced and objective view, because on many things, I can just take Bo's word -- but that's good enough for me. And as the other reviewer said, those paragraphs consisting purely of listings of other artist recordings covering or otherwise referencing Bo are really unreadable and offputting and would have been better separated as lists in the appendix.
But that is a minor gripe. Objectively I'd give this 3 stars, but as I rate personally and subjectively, and as Bo Diddley is one of my all-time favourite musicians, and as this seems to be the one and only biography on him, it's clearly worth 4 stars.
November 12, 2025
The verbatim interview parts were fantastic. The chronological lists of shows and songs influenced by the rocker were boring. Great descriptions of mid-20th c. Chicago.
April 17, 2011
I was really let down by this book. Usually I can get into even the worst of rock bios, but this was just terrible. Also, I think the fact that Bo Diddley is my all time favorite and that I had to look for years to find this out of print book has a lot to do with my dissapointment.
It seems like the author had some kind of mental defect at times. Yes Bo is the originator of rock, but after every song he spends a page on an obsessive list of everyone else it influenced. These lists make up half the book and also give catalog numbers for each record. What is George White thinking?! I swear that after he mentions that Who Do You Love is one of Diddley's best he spends an entire page listing all the artists who covered it. And that's another thing. I don't want to hear this windbag's opinion. To me, all Diddley is good Diddley, even the later stuff. But White constantly slags off many of Diddley's really good songs and albums while praising the hits that have already tried to strangle. Typical backhanded musical criticism. There is some good straight dialog from Bo's mouth but it all seems done in one time period. Due to the complete lack of editing Bo sometimes seems bitter, senile, confused and rambling. Bo Diddley has dealt with many injustices, and that this excuse for a bio is the only book on him just adds to the list.
It seems like the author had some kind of mental defect at times. Yes Bo is the originator of rock, but after every song he spends a page on an obsessive list of everyone else it influenced. These lists make up half the book and also give catalog numbers for each record. What is George White thinking?! I swear that after he mentions that Who Do You Love is one of Diddley's best he spends an entire page listing all the artists who covered it. And that's another thing. I don't want to hear this windbag's opinion. To me, all Diddley is good Diddley, even the later stuff. But White constantly slags off many of Diddley's really good songs and albums while praising the hits that have already tried to strangle. Typical backhanded musical criticism. There is some good straight dialog from Bo's mouth but it all seems done in one time period. Due to the complete lack of editing Bo sometimes seems bitter, senile, confused and rambling. Bo Diddley has dealt with many injustices, and that this excuse for a bio is the only book on him just adds to the list.
January 18, 2010
Think of this as your road map through Diddy Wah Diddy.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews