15 Great Muddy Waters Covers

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Few musicians outweigh Muddy Waters in the amount of the influence they’ve had on modern music. Waters, often referred to as the father of modern Chicago blues, helped define blues for the latter part of the 21st century—an impact that also spanned into myriad other genres including rock ‘n’ roll, R&B, folk, jazz and country. In his 40-plus year career, Muddy Waters earned a place not only among the most heralded blues artists in his heyday, but also as one of the greatest musicians of our time.

Today would have been Water’s 98th birthday. As a result, we’ve decided to celebrate by compiling a list of his songs covered by other artists influenced by his music—including musicians such as the Rolling Stones, Cyndi Lauper, New York Dolls and more. We’ve also placed the original Muddy Waters versions side-by-side with those covers so that you can hear how he influenced a generation of musicians to follow him.

1. “You Shook Me”

Led Zeppelin’s cover:

Muddy Waters’ original:

2. “Trouble No More”

Allman Brothers Band’s cover:

Muddy Waters’ original:

3. “Louisiana Blues”

The Animals’ cover:

Muddy Waters’ original:

4. “Close To You”

The Doors’ cover:

Muddy Waters’ original:

5. “Champagne and Reefer”

The Black Crowes’ cover:

Muddy Waters’ original:

6. “I Just Want to Make Love to You”

Etta James’ cover:

Muddy Waters’ original:

7. “I Want To Be Loved”

The Rolling Stones’ cover:

Muddy Waters’ original:

8. “Rollin’ Stone”

Humble Pie’s cover:

Muddy Waters’ original: