Rock and roll pioneer Bo Diddley dead at 79

0 Comments | AFP, June, 2008

MIAMI (AFP) — Guitarist and songwriter Bo Diddley, who died of heart failure Monday at age 79, was an innovative R&B pioneer who forged rock and roll's signature beat but rarely got the credit -- or the riches -- heaped on his fellow musical icons.

He died at his home in Archer, Florida where he had been convalescing since last year after suffering a stroke and later heart attack.

A contemporary of early rock icons Chuck Berry and Little Richard, Diddley earned a reputation as a legendary performer and "The Originator" of rock and roll after he created a raw and grinding rhumba-style beat that became known as "Shave and a haircut, two bits."

The syncopated groove turned early rock music on its head and spawned countless immitators, including a young Elvis...