TORONTO - Rompin' Ronnie Hawkins remembers the late Bo Diddley as more than just a rock 'n' roll pioneer - for the Hawk, Diddley was one of his biggest mentors when it came to the after-show ritual of picking up women.
"He was a ladies man, he was a lover," Hawkins said of Diddley, who died Monday at age 79.
Hawkins, who scored a hit in 1958 with his cover of Diddley's "Hey Bo Diddley," recalled fond times spent laughing and telling stories with the legendary artist, whom he befriended in the late 1950s when they both appeared on a variety show hosted by Alan Freed.
That New York meeting came soon after Hawkins and his group - which included future Band member Levon Helm - moved to Canada from Memphis, Tenn.
Hawkins, who was born in Huntsville, Ark., credited part of his rockabilly style to Diddley.
"We're in mourning everywhere because of poor old Bo," Hawkins said from his home in Peterborough, Ont.
"He was one of my heroes because he invented things, you know, simple things ... the sounds that he could get and the rhythms that he could get were just Bo Diddley."
Oft-referred to as a founding father of rock'n' roll, Diddley died of heart failure at his home in Archer, Fla., said a spokeswoman. He had suffered a heart attack last summer, and three months earlier had suffered a stroke.
Hawkins said the last time he spoke with Diddley was two or three years ago when they discussed a plan to tour Western Canada together. Those plans never came to pass, and Hawkins turned his hopes for a reunion to an event planned for later this year, when he marks his 50th anniversary in Canada with a massive music jam.
"They asked me who I wanted (for the celebrations) and Bo was Number One," said Hawkins, 73.
Hawkins said he and Diddley would cross paths on the concert circuit several times a year, a collision that would invariably lead to an exchange of ribald tales.
"It was always good, we had lots of laughs," he said, cautioning that most of his stories were too racy for print. "We talked about the old times, this and that, what went on, how crooked the music business is and how much he got cheated."
"He was my hero."
News from �The Canadian Press, 2008