The other day Jane and I were driving near Shady Grove Lane in Westtown, PA and I decided to play her the recording of Shady Grove by Quicksilver Messenger Service, which I knew she had never heard, but I had been thinking about.
Upon hearing Quicksilver's unusual, but highly exciting, version of this old folk song, I asked Jane what, if anything, came to her mind.
She quickly said, "it's got the Bo Diddley beat".
I was extremely pleased and proud of her, almost as much as I was when I checked out her iTunes listing of her favorite songs and found it heavily weighted with Carl Perkins, Howlin' Wolf and Louvin Brothers numbers. (I mean, she's only 13; the songs on the list were all her choices.)
I think only four "modern" rock bands have ever been able successfully to play the music of the great Bo Diddley: The Pretty Things, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Dr. Feelgood and the New York Dolls.
They're all favorites of mine. Some marvelous performances by each group are included below:
The Pretty Things
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Dr. Feelgood
New York Dolls
