Bo Diddley and Thanksgiving 1987

I worked at a rock club in the 80s called My Fathers Place's it was located in Roslyn, NY and was home to 100s of gig's by music's top entertainer's thru it's 15 yr history. I will write a article on all that sometime soon by the way.

In 1987, on Thanksgiving Bo Didley was set to play the club and I got a call to go down and open early so Bo had a place to hang. Remember it's Thanksgiving everything is closed in NY and he checked out of his hotel at 1 in NYC! So I went down about 5 opened up, turned the heat on, got the dressing cleaned and in comes Bo with his Manager. I shake his hand and the manager's and tell them the heat is kicking in, can I do anything else for you ? . Bo sit's down looks tiried, the manager a woman by the way said she was going somewhere I don't really remember and left.

So here I am 26 yrs old in a old club in the dressing with Bo Didley. We are the only two in the building. Bo is parked in some old chair I ask "Can I get you anything"? Yeahh Teddy get me some medicine Grand Marinier on the rocks. Ok I run upstairs get some ice find the right liquere bottle run down stairs hand it to him "There you go Bo".

He starts to sip and I have nothing to do really it's 5:30 so I sit down and we start chatting about pumpkin pie, thankgiving dinner etc. I quickly realize Bo is just a regular guy, no ego, no star trip, nothing.

THE GUY INVENTED ROCK N ROLL !

He is sitting with a 26 yr old guy from Long Island in an old dressing room on Thanksgiving chatting away like we have known each other since I was born ! We talked for close to 2 hours ! He told me a story about how he bought his grand-daughters a chick for Easter. They loved them, but they grew up and by the fall "They waz clucking and jiving and makin a racket Teddy ". "I couldn't take it so I called Cousin Ernie up one day"......"Teddy them where some good tasting chickens allI can say !" I just cracked up, just him and I bs'ing and every so often he would say "Teddy get me some more medicine" and we would be right back at it.

About 7:30 pm, Bo pulls his hat down and the conversaton stops. He says to me "Teddy wake me up for show time." snoreeeeee. He is sound asleep ! I shut the door, walk upstairs and start checking to see if the band is here, the PA set, all my other jobs I had to do. Bo was to play at 9 sharp it said in the rider so I kept checking my watch. I see his manager she say's go get him at 10 of 9 no later.

At 8:50 PM on Thanksgving I had the pleasure of waking up the grandfather of rock Mr. Bo Didley. Push on the shoulder Bo Bo..Bo....show time. He pushed his hat up "Let's do it" He doesn't say another word, gets up, walks up the stairs, to the stage his tech gives him the Bo guitar. I see from the curtain he walks out, grabs the mic and chung chung chung starts playing.....

Ladies and Gentleman My Fathers Place presents Bo Didley..........