To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of Bo Diddley's and Chuck Berry's debut singles, "Bo Diddley"/"I'm A Man" (Checker 814, originally released in March 1955) and "Maybellene"/"Wee Wee Hours" (Chess 1604, originally released in July 1955), the tracks are to be reissued in the UK on Monday June 20th by the Universal Music Group on 2 special limited edition 2-track CD singles, "Bo Diddley"/"I'm A Man" on Chess CD 9830032 and "Maybellene"/"Wee Wee Hours" on Chess CD 9830035.

Both CDs are described by Universal thus: "We present this historical 50th anniversary limited edition single. Celebrating a pivotal moment in modern guitar music that changed the lives of both the people who heard it, (The Beatles and The Rolling Stones included), and the direction of music itself".

The original 2 singles were recently voted by visitors to the popular DigitalDreamDoor.com website into the #1 and #2 positions respectively in their listing of the 100 Greatest Rock Debut Singles. Both records are now widely hailed as being amongst the most influential debut singles in history and the cornerstones of rock music.

In other Bo Diddley 50th anniversary news, the popular UK monthly rock music magazine "Mojo" is set to include an interview with Bo Diddley along with a special 50th anniversary feature in its August 2005 issue, available on news-stands on Wednesday July 6th, and the UK's most popular blues magazine "Blues Matters!" will be carrying a special 50th anniversary tribute to Bo Diddley in its August/September 2005 issue #27, which will be available around Monday August 1st.

David Blakey, Webmaster,
BO DIDDLEY-The Originator
http://members.tripod.com/~Originator_2/index.html
A Celebration of his unique contribution to Popular Music.
1955 to 2005 - Celebrating 50 Years In Music!