Bo Diddley beat

"Bo Diddley beat"[5]/Son clave Play .

The Bo Diddley beat is a variation of the 3-2 clave rhythm, one of the most common bell patterns found in Afro-Cuban music that has been traced to sub-Saharan African music traditions.[6] It is also akin to the rhythmic pattern known as "shave and a haircut, two bits", that has been linked to Yoruba drumming from West Africa.[7] A folk tradition called "hambone", a style used by street performers who play out the beat by slapping and patting their arms, legs, chest, and cheeks while chanting rhymes has also been suggested.[8]

According to musician and author Ned Sublette, "In the context of the time, and especially those maracas [heard on the record], 'Bo Diddley' has to be understood as a Latin-tinged record. A rejected cut recorded at the same session was titled only 'Rhumba' on the track sheets."[9] Bo Diddley employed maracas, a percussion instrument used in Caribbean and Latin music, as a basic component of the sound.[7] When asked how he began to use this rhythm, Bo Diddley gave many different accounts. In a 2005 interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he said that he came up with the beat after listening to gospel music in church when he was twelve years old.[10]

In its simplest form, the Bo Diddley beat can be counted out as either a one-bar or a two-bar phrase. The following consists of the count in a one-bar phrase: One e and ah, two e and ah, three e and ah, four e and ah. The bolded counts are the clave rhythm.

The rhythm occurs in 13 rhythm and blues songs recorded between 1944 and 1955, including two by Johnny Otis from 1948.[11] In 1952, a song with similar syncopation, "Hambone" was recorded by Red Saunders' Orchestra with the Hambone Kids. In 1944, "Rum and Coca Cola", containing the beat, was recorded by the Andrews Sisters.[5]

Later songs employing the Bo Diddley beat include:

• "I Wish You Would" by Billy Boy Arnold (1955)[7]
• "Not Fade Away" by Buddy Holly (1957)[12][13][14]
• "Willie and the Hand Jive" by Johnny Otis (1958)[14][15]
• "Hey Little Girl" by Dee Clark (1959)[16]
• "(Marie's the Name) His Latest Flame" by Elvis Presley (1961)[13][14][15]
• "Don't Doubt Yourself, Babe" by the Byrds (1965)[17]
• "Mystic Eyes" by Them (1965)[5]
• "I Want Candy" by the Strangeloves (1965)[14][15]
• "Please Go Home" by the Rolling Stones (1966)[18]
• "Get Me to the World on Time" by the Electric Prunes (1967)[15]
• "She Has Funny Cars" by Jefferson Airplane (1967)[19]
• "Magic Bus" by the Who (1968)[13][14][15]
• "1969" by the Stooges[14]
• "Panic in Detroit" by David Bowie (1973)[14][15]
• "Shame, Shame, Shame" by Shirley & Company (1974)[15]
• "New York Groove" by Hello (1975)[20]
• "She's the One" by Bruce Springsteen (1975)[13][14][15]
• "American Girl" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1977)[13]
• "Hateful" by the Clash (1979)[15]
• "Cuban Slide" by the Pretenders (1980)[7]
• "Europa and the Pirate Twins" by Thomas Dolby (1981)[15]
• "How Soon Is Now?" by the Smiths (1985) (Diddley-style tremolo)[14][21]
• "Mr. Brownstone" by Guns N' Roses (1987)[14]
• "Faith" by George Michael (1987)[13][15]
• "Desire" by U2 (1988)[14][15]
• "Movin' On Up" by Primal Scream (1991)[22]
• "Tribal Thunder" by Dick Dale and the Del-Tones (1993)[15]
• "No One to Run With" by the Allman Brothers Band (1994)[23]
• "Cannon Ball" by Duane Eddy (1996)[7][14]
• "That Big 5-0" by Stan Ridgway (2004)[21]
• "At the Bottom of the Ocean" by Ezra Furman (2013)[24]