User:Brammertate/sandbox

Schedule:

For quick reference, this is the proposed Wiki page for Bo Diddley Beat (our draft):
 * Have the 150 words done by Sunday
 * Have all the edits in and worded properly by NEXT Tuesday
 * Have proper citation format done by NEXT Wednesday

Unfortunately, while Bo's sound is his trademark, he can't copyright it, which may explain why Diddley has been overlooked and undervalued, even though his sound snakes through a hit list spanning two generations.

Along with Chuck Berry's roiling rhythms, the Diddley beat established the electric guitar as the foundation of rock 'n' roll (as did the attendant showmanship of both musicians).

Cover bands play the Bo Diddley beat formulaically but when played in Bo Diddley's hands, the beat was alive. He did something different with it every time he recorded it. It's the difference between copying and creating.

Start of the Wiki edit

The Bo Diddley Beat is a kind of syncopated five-accent clave rhythm. The Bo Diddley beat is named after Bo Diddley, who introduced and popularised the beat with his self-titled debut single. Although Bo Diddley was a rhythm and blues musician essentially, the beat is widely used in rock and roll and pop music.[2][3][4]

History and Composition
The "Bo Diddley Beat" (1955) is perhaps the first true fusion of 3-2 clave and R&B/rock 'n' roll.

The Bo Diddley beat is essentially a 3-2 clave rhythm, one of the most common bell patterns found in Afro-Cuban music, and its origin goes back to the sub-Saharan African music traditions.[5] But there is no documentation of a direct Cuban connection to Bo Diddley's adaptation of the clave rhythm. The Latin connection was so strong that Bo Diddley used maracas as a basic component of his sound. Bo Diddley has given different accounts regarding how he began to use this rhythm. In an interview with Rolling Stones magazine, Diddley said he came up with the beat after listening to Gospel music in church when he was 12 years old.

Sublette asserts: "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."[6] Somewhat resembling the Shave and a Haircut rhythm, Diddley came across it while trying to play Gene Autry's version of "Jingle, Jangle, Jingle".[7]

(1)(According to ethnomusicologists), The Bo Diddley beat is similar to (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.[8] (2)(“Handboning” can also be described as a form of corpophone -- using your body for percussion. This is something that's inherent in African-American culture. You don't have a drum? Your body is the next best thing. You clap, slap and stomp. Corpophone excludes the voice and the introduction of the neologism as a classificatory category was added to the conventional scheme of idiophone, membranophone, chordophone, aerophone, and electrophone by the American ethnomusicologist Dale A. Olsen

(3)The Bo Diddley beat is also akin to the age-old rhythmic pattern best known as "shave and a haircut, two bits." And it's been linked to Yoruba drumming from West Africa.)

In its simplest form, the Bo Diddley beat can be counted out as either a one-bar, or a two-bar phrase. Here is the count as 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.

Songs using the Bo Diddley Beat
Three years before Bo's "Bo Diddley" (1955), a song similar syncopation "Hambone", was cut by Red Saunders' Orchestra with The Hambone Kids. In 1944, "Rum and Coca Cola", containing the Bo Diddley beat, was recorded by The Andrews Sisters and later Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away" (1957) and Them's "Mystic Eyes" (1965) used the beat.[1] This rhythm occurs in 13 rhythm and blues recordings made in the years 1944–55, including two by Johnny Otis from 1948.[9]

Unfortunately, while Bo's sound was his trademark, he couldn’t copyright it, which may explain why Diddley has been overlooked and undervalued, even though his sound snakes through a hit list spanning two generations. Cover bands play the Bo Diddley beat formulaically but in Bo Diddley's hands, the beat was alive. He did something different with it every time he recorded it. It's the difference between copying and creating.

Other well-known songs employing the Bo Diddley beat include “I Wish You Would” by Billy Boy Arnold (1955), "Willie and the Hand Jive" by Johnny Otis (1958), "(Marie's the Name) His Latest Flame" (1961) by Elvis Presley, "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" by The Supremes (1963), "I Want Candy" by The Strangeloves (1965), "Please Go Home" by The Rolling Stones (1966), "Magic Bus" (1968) by The Who, "1969" (1969) by The Stooges, "She Has Funny Cars" (1969) by Jefferson Airplane, Suzanne (1968/9) by Fairport Convention, "Panic in Detroit" (1973) by David Bowie, "Shame, Shame, Shame" by Shirley & Company (1974), "She's the One" (1975) by Bruce Springsteen, "American Girl" (1977) by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, "Rudie Can't Fail" (1979) by The Clash, "Deathwish" by The Police (1979), “Cuban Slide” by The Pretenders (1980), "I Want Candy" (cover) by Bow Wow Wow (1982), "Mr. Brownstone" (1987) by Guns N' Roses, "Faith" (1987) by George Michael, "Desire" (1988) by U2, "Movin' on Up" (1991) by Primal Scream, "Woodcutter's Son" (1995) by Paul Weller, “Cannon Ball” by Duane Eddy (1996), "Screwdriver" (1999) by The White Stripes, and "The Big 5-0" (2004) by Stan Ridgway.[10][11] "Party at the Leper Colony" (2003) by "Weird Al" Yankovic is a comedy song featuring the Bo Diddley beat.

More subtle uses of the Diddley beat include "Hateful" (1979) by The Clash and "How Soon Is Now?" (1985) by The Smiths.[10]

Tates edits -

(1)- According to ethnomusicologists, the Bo Diddley beat is related to a folk tradition called "hamboning." To hambone means to make rhythmic patterns by slapping hands against one's chest and thighs.

(2)- "It's a form of corpophone -- using your body for percussion," said Keith A. Koster, director of the music education program at Christopher Newport University. "This is something that's inherent in African-American culture. You don't have a drum? Your body is the next best thing. You clap, slap and stomp."

(3)- The Bo Diddley beat is also akin to the age-old rhythmic pattern best known as "shave and a haircut, two bits." And it's been linked to Yoruba drumming from West Africa.

Sources: http://infoweb.newsbank.com.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/10C7E976C8A1D6C0?p=WORLDNEWS

MLA format :

MCDONALD, SAM. "CHUNKA - CHUNKA - CHUNK A - CHUNK-CHUNK." Daily Press (Newport News, VA) 7 Sep. 2005, FINAL, LIFE: D1. NewsBank. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.

http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780199743391.001.0001/acref-9780199743391-e-1568?rskey=3Soepj&result=8

MLA format:

EB Libin, Laurence.“The Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments (2 ed.).” Oxford University Press 2015. Oxford Reference Web. 1 Dec. 2015

Tate’s thoughts on the initial Wiki page:

My first impression of the Wiki page is that is was very bland in detail. It seemed as though it was thrown together with a few factoids along with an insertion of songs surrounding the style. I also noticed that a lot of the current edits are coming from citations a few years old which leads me to believe that it has not been edited in the last few years.

Audrey’s edits -

-"Unfortunately, while Bo's sound is his trademark, he can't copyright it, which may explain why Diddley has been overlooked and undervalued, even though his sound snakes through a hit list spanning two generations."

- "Along with Chuck Berry's roiling rhythms, the Diddley beat established the electric guitar as the foundation of rock 'n' roll (as did the attendant showmanship of both musicians)."

-"Cover bands play the Bo Diddley beat formulaically But in Bo Diddley's hands, the beat was alive. He did something different with it every time he recorded it. It's the difference between copying and creating."

Sources-

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/0EFE41C8ECE6C04D?p=WORLDNEWS

MLA Citation:

Harrington, Richard. "Rock 'n' roll idol Bo Diddley knows he's back on top." Star Tribune: Newspaper of the Twin Cities 25 Jan. 1991, VARIETY: 01E. NewsBank. Web. 3 Dec. 2015.

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/13E6537D93767F88?p=WORLDNEWS

MLA Citation:

Sublette, Ned. "Who Do You Love? - Bo Diddley's beat changed the course of rock music. And his lyrics evoked a history that reached all the way to Africa." Smithsonian 1 Aug. 2008, TRIBUTE. NewsBank. Web. 3 Dec. 2015.

Danica’s edits -

- The Bo Diddley rhythm has been described as the most plagiarized beat of the 20th century. Here's a list of tunes that borrowed the signature rhythm and turned it into something new.

-"Cuban Slide" The Pretenders

-"Cannonball" Duane Eddy

-"I Wish You Would" Billy Boy Arnold

- As for Diddley himself, he says it came from gospel music. "I heard something like that when I was 12 or 13 in a sanctified church," he told Rolling Stone magazine. "I'd peek through the curtain, and they just had a tambourine and an old raggedy piano, and these old ladies was just letting loose."

- Listen to "Bo Diddley" and you won't hear the teenage fantasy of Berry's "School Day" or the youth-gone-wild adrenaline of Richard's "Tutti Frutti." It is slower and unearthly, with a space-age tremolo guitar rippling through the song, the nervous rattle of constantly shaking maracas and a staggered shuffle-beat that sounds completely primal yet wholly original.

sources:

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/0EFE41C8ECE6C04D?p=WORLDNEWS

MLA:

Harrington, Richard. "Rock 'n' roll idol Bo Diddley knows he's back on top." Star Tribune: Newspaper of the Twin Cities 25 Jan. 1991, VARIETY: 01E. NewsBank. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/13E6537D93767F88?p=WORLDNEWS

MLA:

Sublette, Ned. "Who Do You Love? - Bo Diddley's beat changed the course of rock music. And his lyrics evoked a history that reached all the way to Africa." Smithsonian 1 Aug. 2008, TRIBUTE. NewsBank. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/the-indestructible-beat-of-bo-diddley-20050825

MLA:

Strauss, Neil. “The Indestructible Beat of Bo Diddley.” Rolling Stones 25 Aug. 2005, Web. 1 Dec. 2015

Ashley’s Edits: - He put the beat front and center. To make that work, he chose the most compelling beat he could: the two-bar rhythm that Cubans know as clave. All the Chicago blues guys dipped into rumba blues, but this was another take on it. The Latin connection was so strong that Bo Diddley used maracas as a basic component of his sound. But sidekick Jerome Green didn't play maracas like a Cuban, and Bo Diddley didn't play that rhythm like a Cuban; he swung it, like an African-American who'd been playing on street corners in Chicago. And Bo Diddley's way of expressing that two-bar feel, known across a wide swath of Africa, was in turn a fountainhead for the development of rock 'n' roll, which would repeatedly cross Afro-Cuban and African-American rhythmic sensibilities.

- Cover bands play the Bo Diddley beat formulaically But in Bo Diddley's hands, the beat was alive. He did something different with it every time he recorded it. It's the difference between copying and creating.

Christina:

150 Word Summary: (feel free to edit or add)

As a group, we agreed that the original Wiki page was lacking significantly in substance. The information provided is a limited, disjointed collection of generalized facts. Although some reference is made to the origins of the beat, the article fails to explore the historical roots of the Bo Diddley beat in detail. The original article provides a list of songs that used the Bo Diddley beat; however, it gives no context or explanation of the implications of the beat’s use following its conception. The page does not communicate the integral relevance of Bo Diddley’s rhythm to the evolution of rock. We also noticed that the majority of edits reference citations that are a few years old, which led us to believe that the page has not been edited for a long time. The Wiki article requires supplementary information in order to give contextual evidence for claims made in the “History and composition” section and to ground the list of song titles provided in the “Songs using the Bo Diddley beat” section.

In case we need this...

Listening to "Bo Diddley"  won't hear the teenage fantasy of Berry's "School Day" or the youth-gone-wild adrenaline of Richard's "Tutti Frutti." It is slower and unearthly, with a space-age tremolo guitar rippling through the song, the nervous rattle of constantly shaking maracas and a staggered shuffle-beat that sounds completely primal yet wholly original. Along with Chuck Berry's roiling rhythms, the Diddley beat established the electric guitar as the foundation of rock 'n' roll (as did the attendant showmanship of both musicians).