Here’s Bo in the 60s, complete with 60s clothing and freaky background stuff…doing his titular song:

Here’s Bo again doing “Road Runner:”

Here is some Bo in his prime, performing live. He really did invent a lot of his own instruments and made a lot of his own guitars. Check out this one:

More great live stuff of Bo. This time singing “Hey Mona” and with that “Bo Diddley” beat still going strong:

Bo doing “I’m a Man:”

I hope you enjoyed those as much as I did looking for them and then watching and listening to them as I wrote this. He will be missed and with the start of the 25th Annual Chicago Blues Festival today, it seems fitting to pay tribute, again, to one of the greats.

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Bo Diddley was a contemporary of the likes of Chuck Berry, Fats Domino and even Elvis Presley. He was known for the Bo Diddley Beat that has become famous throughout rock and roll. If it doesn’t leap immediately to mind if you have heard the song “I Want Candy” or even George Michael’s “Faith” or U2’s “Desire” then you know wht it is.

He was famous for playing his own, square-shaped guitar. He had huge successes that crossed musical boundaries with the release of a self-titled single with a B-side of “I’m a Man.” He went on to influence countless musicians of all genres.

He was trained as a child on the violin, but picked up the guitar after hearing a John Lee Hooker song “Boogie Chillin.’” He was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as you might imagine.

He had toured extensively, even into late 2007. However, health problems had begun to mount for the bluesman and he reportedly suffered a stroke last May and then had a heart attack in August.

Below is most of a live appearance of Bo during his younger days from YouTube:

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According to Peter Margasak, who writes the “Post No Bills” blog, “Although he released only six albums under his own name during a career that spanned as many decades, he was a crucial presence on the city’s bop scene. (Sadly, only his excellent 1959 album, Serenata, on Delmark, is currently in print.) He was a product of Du Sable High School, under the leadership of the legendary Captain Walter Dyett, and he got his first serious professional experience as a member of Andy Kirk’s orchestra in the early 40s. By the decade’s end he was back in town working with everyone from saxophonists Eddie Chamblee and Von Freeman to blues guitarist T-Bone Walker to singers Lorez Alexandria and Nancy Wilson. In the liner notes to his 1963 trio album, A Touch of Pepper (Argo), Jazz Showcase proprietor Joe Segal observed, ‘He is constantly sought for all types of live and recording dates; from preferred anonymity on rock ‘n’ roll gigs to ‘elite’ pleasing fashion and club dances.’”

As Peter mentions, only one of Young’s albums is readily available.  While it is sad that when it comes to our jazz legends, it is their deaths that cause a renewed interest, maybe with John passing away, there will be an increase in the demand for more of his recordings. 

John was a piano player and like many Chicago jazz musicians, he was a working musician who hired himself out to various performers of a wide number of genres.  This, apparently, was very common for the Chicago-based bop jazz musicians.  They even played into the rock and roll era, their talents recognized and sought after even then.  John was one of those.

So, once again, the world and the world of jazz and music is a little bit emptier.  Here is hoping John and his family find peace.

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Jeff was born in Toronto to a firefighter father and he lost his eyes when he was only one.  Jeff had the rare eye cancer known as retinoblastoma.  This cost him to lose both eyes and be fitted with prosthetics.  Despite this, he soon took to playing the guitar.  He started playing at the tender age of three and developed his style, which would become his trademark, even then.

Jeff played the guitar by placing it across his lap.  So, even his acoustic guitar would be like a lap-steel slide guitar.  Jeff was a musical prodigy and formed his band Blue Direction at the age of 17. 

Jeff had released rock and roll albums, but his true hearts was in playing classic jazz.  He was known to sit in with various jazz bands in his hometown of Toronto.  His band even showed up in the movie “Road House.”  Shortly after that he signed with Arista Records and released the album “See the Light” with the hit “Angel Eyes” and the album won numerous awards.

Healey eventually released CDs in the traditional jazz genre he so loved.  He also amassed a collection of over 25,000 78 rpm records.  Although known as a guitar player he also played trumpet and clarinet.  He also hosted a radio show for the Canadian Broadcasting Company called “My Kind of Jazz.”  He was planning on releasing his newest album “Mess of Blues” later this year.  Of course, the album will still be released, but with a pall of sadness now.

Jeff was hospitalized at St. Joseph’s Health Center in Toronto.  He died Sunday from the cancer that he had been battling since the age of one, the cancer having moved to other parts of his body.

So, the musical world is a little bit empiter out there.  Rest in peace Jeff Healey.

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Earl was one of those guys. You can find more about him at JazzTimes Magazine but here is the article about him:

Born in New York in 1927, May’s career began in 1949 at the famed Harlem nightclub Minton’s Playhouse, where he worked with such prominent artists as Carmen McRae and Lester Young. Initially inspired by fellow bassists Oscar Pettiford and Slam Stewart, May became a protégé of Charles Mingus when Dr. Billy Taylor, a pianist in whose band May was playing, suggested that May check him out. While in Taylor’s band, May got a chance to play alongside Coleman Hawkins, and his early Harlem days also found him serving as the musical director for singer Gloria Lynne. He also played behind the famed comedienne Moms Mabley and teamed with drummers Roach and Connie Kay.

As May became more established in the jazz community, he worked more steadily, adding to his resumé gigs with Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Mercer Ellington, the Buddy Rich Big Band, John Coltrane (the Lush Life album), Herbie Mann and many others. In the early ’60s, May switched from acoustic to electric bass and launched his own group, the Earl May Quartet. He also performed or recorded with such artists as Cab Calloway, Doc Cheatham, Ruth Brown, Jon Hendricks, Frank Foster, Dizzy Gillespie and others.”

So, another legend dies and the world is a little bit emptier.  Rest in peace Earl.

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You know that Jelly Roll Morton is often credited (whether he should be or not) with helping create the modern jazz sound.  You know the name Charlie Parker.  You know who Miles Davis is.  You know who Dizzy Gillespie is and why his horn is bent like that.  You can recognize a Charles Mingus version of a song and know when Thelonius Monk is playing the piano in a second.

Lost in some of this, at times, are the drummers.  Maybe you know Buddy Rich and what a colossal jerk he was even to other musicians in jazz.  It’s a shame the jazz drummers get lost in the hubub over the other musicians.  In jazz, the drummers are often the glue that prevents those wild improvisations from taking the entire tune off track.

Max Roach was, without a doubt, one of the best.  It seems there was a time when you simply could not pick up a jazz album and not see his name listed as the drummer.  That isn’t a bad thing.  It just means he was immensely talented.

Roach was the co-founder of Debut Records which he started with Mingus in the 1950s.  Debut records went on to release an album entitled “Jazz at Massey Hall” which was a live album for what many consider the greatest concert in history.  The concert featured Dizzy, Charlie, Bud Powell, Mingus and Roach himself.

In addition to being a great musician, Max was also very involved in the Civil Rights movement and created pieces of music for various causes.  He was also prolific, continuing to perform and record for a very long time.

Unfortunately, Max passed away on August 16.  It is a great loss to the world of Jazz.

So, look for Max Roach when you look for something to add to your music collection.  You won’t be disappointed.

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