Hey! Bo Diddley

The lyrics tell a playful, comic story about a bold woman who comes looking for Bo Diddley. She is described as lively and fearless, arriving armed with a pistol and sword, but she knocks without getting an answer and eventually leaves. The narrator then watches her hurry away. The repeated calls of “Hey, Bo Diddley” give the song a chant-like, teasing energy rather than a serious or sad mood.

Several images make the story vivid. “Rustled and tussled like Buffalo Bill” compares the woman’s restless, rough-and-ready behavior to a famous fictionalized Western figure; it suggests action and toughness, not a literal fight. “Slippin’ and slidin’ like an automobile” makes her movement seem fast and uncontrolled. The phrase “got towed away” may be a joking way to describe her being carried off or disappearing, while “like a Cadillac 8” evokes a powerful, fast car.

The story’s details are deliberately strange, and the lyrics do not explain why the woman comes armed, why Bo does not answer, or what happens to her afterward. Her repeated calls might sound affectionate, frustrated, or simply playful. Rather than offering a clear narrative resolution, the song seems to use a loosely connected comic scene and repeated refrain to create rhythm and character.