"I'm a Man" is a

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

song written and recorded by

Bo Diddley Ellas Otha Bates (December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist and singer who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, including Buddy ...

in 1955. Inspired by an earlier blues song, it was one of his first hits. "I'm a Man" has been recorded by a variety of artists, including

the Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1963. The band started the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists: Eric Clapton (1963–1965), Jeff Beck (1965–1966) and Jimmy Page (1966–1968), all of whom ...

, who adapted it in an upbeat rock style.

Bo Diddley song

"I'm a Man" was one of the first songs Bo Diddley recorded for

Checker Records Checker Records is a defunct record label that was started in 1952 as a subsidiary of Chess Records in Chicago, Illinois. The label was founded by the Chess brothers, Leonard and Phil, who ran the label until they sold it to General Recorded T ...

. Unlike his self-titled "

" that was recorded the same day (March 2, 1955 in Chicago), "I'm a Man" does not use the

Bo Diddley beat The Bo Diddley beat is a syncopated musical rhythm that is widely used in rock and roll and pop music. The beat is named after rhythm and blues musician Bo Diddley, who introduced and popularized the beat with his self-titled debut single, "Bo Di ...

. Rather, it was inspired by

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913April 30, 1983), better known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer-songwriter and musician who was an important figure in the post-World War II blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of moder ...

' 1954 song "

Hoochie Coochie Man "Hoochie Coochie Man" (originally titled "I'm Your Hoochie Cooche Man") is a blues standard written by Willie Dixon and first recorded by Muddy Waters in 1954. The song makes reference to hoodoo folk magic elements and makes novel use of a sto ...

", written by

Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...

. After the release of "I'm a Man", Waters recorded an "

answer song An answer song, response song or answer record is a song (usually a recorded track) made in answer to a previous song, normally by another artist. The concept became widespread in blues and R&B recorded music in the 1930s to the 1950s. Answer son ...

" in May 1955, titled " Mannish Boy", referring to Diddley's younger age. In a ''Rolling Stone'' magazine interview, Diddley recounts that the song took a long time to record because of confusion regarding the timing of the "M... A... N" vocal chorus. There are conflicting accounts regarding the instrumental backing musicians for the song. Reissues of Diddley's first album, ''Bo Diddley'', list them as Diddley on vocals and guitar, Frank Kirkland on drums, Jerome Green on

maracas A maraca ( , , ), sometimes called shaker or chac-chac, is a rattle which appears in many genres of Caribbean and Latin music. It is shaken by a handle and usually played as part of a pair. Maracas, also known as tamaracas, were rattles of d ...

, Lester Davenport on harmonica, and either

Otis Spann Otis Spann (March 21, 1924, or 1930April 24, 1970) was an American blues musician many consider the leading postwar Chicago blues pianist. Early life Sources differ over Spann's early years. Some state that he was born in Jackson, Mississippi, ...

Henry Gray Henry Gray (1827 – 13 June 1861) was a British anatomist and surgery, surgeon most notable for publishing the book ''Gray's Anatomy''. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) at the age of 25. Biography Gray was born ...

on piano. However, the song has also been identified as Chicago harmonica player

Billy Boy Arnold William "Billy Boy" Arnold (born September 16, 1935) is an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter. Arnold is a self-taught harmonica player and has worked with blues legends such as Bo Diddley, Johnny Shines, Otis Rush, Earl H ...

's first contribution to a Checker recording. Arnold later played harmonica on several Bo Diddley songs. "I'm a Man" was released as the B-side of Bo Diddley's first single in April 1955. The single became a two-sided hit and reached number one on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart. The song is included on several of his compilation albums, including ''

'' (1958) and '' His Best'' (1997). He also recorded it with Muddy Waters and

Little Walter Marion Walter Jacobs (May 1, 1930 – February 15, 1968), known as Little Walter, was an American blues musician, singer, and songwriter, whose revolutionary approach to the harmonica had a strong impact on succeeding generations, earning him ...

for the 1967 '' Super Blues'' album. The single was released in Canada on Reo 8022 in 1955.

The Yardbirds versions

The English rock band

recorded a live version of "I'm a Man" for their first UK album '' Five Live Yardbirds'' with

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

in 1964, that was later included on their second American album '' Having a Rave Up with The Yardbirds''. In 1965 during their first American tour, the Yardbirds with

Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (24 June 1944 – 10 January 2023) was an English musician. He rose to prominence as the guitarist of the rock band the Yardbirds, and afterwards founded and fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, ...

on guitar, recorded a studio version of "I'm a Man", that is also included on ''Having a Rave Up''. Their versions feature their signature "rave-up" arrangement, when the beat shifts into double time and the instrumentation builds to a climax. Beck added a "scratch-picking" technique to produce a percussive effect during the song's instrumental section, which critic

Cub Koda Michael John "Cub" Koda (né Uszniewicz; October 1, 1948 – July 1, 2000) was an Americans, American rock and roll musician, songwriter, and critic. ''Rolling Stone'' magazine considered him best known for writing the song "Smokin' in the Boys ...

notes "provides the climax on the studio version of 'I'm a Man', perhaps the most famous Yardbirds rave-up of all". The Yardbirds recorded the backing track at Chess Studios in Chicago on September 19, 1965. They

overdubbed Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more a ...

further elements on the 21st and 22nd at Columbia Studios in New York. On October 11,

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

released "I'm a Man" as a single in the US, with "Still I'm Sad" as the B-side. It peaked at number 17 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In Canada, the single was released by Capitol and reached number 4 on the ''RPM'' singles chart. The song was included on their 1965 Epic Records album ''Having a Rave Up'' and was later released in the UK in 1976. Diddley praised their cover as "beautiful" and it has been called "a defining moment for the band". In addition to the 1964 live version with Clapton, other live versions include those with Jeff Beck (1965 '' Yardbirds ...On Air'', released 1991) and

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page began his career as a studio session musician in Lo ...

(1968 '' Live Yardbirds: Featuring Jimmy Page'', released 1971 and '' Yardbirds '68'', released 2017).

Recognition

Bo Diddley's original "I'm a Man" is ranked number 369 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". In 2012, the song along with the self-named

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

song "

" was added to the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

list of "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important" American sound recordings. In 2018, "I'm a Man" was inducted into the

Blues Foundation The Blues Foundation is an American nonprofit corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, that is affiliated with more than 175 blues organizations from various parts of the world. Founded in 1980, a 25-person board of directors governs t ...

Blues Hall of Fame as a "Classic of Blues Recording". In 2020, the 1955 recording of "I'm a Man" by

was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

References

Sources

* {{authority control Songs written by Bo Diddley Bo Diddley songs Blues songs 1955 songs 1965 singles 1955 debut singles Checker Records singles Reo Records singles United States National Recording Registry recordings The Yardbirds songs Answer songs