Classic blues and R&B songs have frequently been covered by later artists, with the cover versions often becoming far better known than the original recordings. Similarly, lyrics in older, often obscure, classic blues songs have been used in by other artists or incorporated into the lyrics of later songs.

We will be updating and expanding this page regularly but here are some examples to start with:

Gallows Pole

Most people think this is a Led Zeppelin song, but check out the Leadbelly version from the 1930’s.

  1. Gallows Pole by Leadbelly
  2. Gallows Pole by Led Zeppelin (1971)
  3. Gallows Pole by Robert Plant & Jimmy Page (1994)
  4. Gallows Pole by Great Big Sea (2009)

Good Mornin’ Little Schoolgirl

CD cover,The Original Sonny Boy Williamson, Volume 1, a 4 CD set released on JSP Records
CD cover,The Original Sonny Boy Williamson, Volume 1, a 4 CD set released on JSP Records
    1. Good Morning, Little School Girl by Sonny Boy Williamson (1938)
    2. Good Morning Little School Girl by Muddy Waters
    3. Little School Girl by Larry Williams (Specialty Records release)
    4. Good Morning Little School Girl by Mississippi Fred McDowell – recorded by Alan Lomax (1959)
    5. Good Morning Little School Girl by Mississippi Fred McDowell (1962)
    6. Good Morning Little School Girl by The Yardbirds – featuring Eric Clapton (1964)
    7. Good Morning Schoolgirl by Junior Wells (on Hoodoo Man Blues – Delmark Records)
    8. Good Mornin’ Little Schoolgirl by Ten Years After (1972)
    9. Good Mornin’ Little Schoolgirl by Huey Lewis and the News (1989)
    10. Good Morning Little School Girl by Rory Block (2011)

Good Night Irene

  1. Good Night Irene by Leadbelly
  2. Good Night Irene by The Weavers (Vanguard Records release)
  3. Good Night Irene by Jerry Lee Lewis (1958)
  4. Good Night Irene by Little Richard
  5. Good Night Irene by Dr. John (2012)

Good Rockin’ Tonight

  1. Good Rockin’ Tonight by Roy Brown (1948)
  2. Good Rockin’ Tonight by Wynonie Harris (1948 on King Records)
  3. Good Rockin’ Tonight by Elvis Presley (recorded by Sam Phillips for Sun Records)
  4. Good Rockin’ Tonight by Jimmy Witherspoon
  5. Good Rockin’ Tonight by Montrose (vocal by Sammy Hagar) (1973)
  6. Good Rockin’ Tonight by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen
  7. Good Rockin’ Tonight by Gary Clark Jr. (2008 – from The Honeydripper soundtrack)

 

Got Love If You Want It

  1. I’ve Got Got Love If You Want It by Slim Harpo
  2. Got Love If You Want It by The Yardbirds (1964)
  3. Got Love If You Want It by The Kinks (1964)
  4. Got Love If You Want It by Johnny Winter (1969)
  5. Got Love If You Want It by The Shadows
  6. Got Love If You Want It by Steve Miller Band
  7. Got Love If You Want It by Fabulous Thunderbirds (1992)

(Hot Tamales) They’re Red Hot 

They’re Red Hot is a well known Robert Johnson song, recorded in 1937, which is commemorated by a Mississippi Blues Trail marker in Rosedale, Mississippi. But check out the similarities in the far less well known Keep Your Hands Off Her, and Tell Me What You Been Doing, both recorded by Big Bill Broonzy in 1935.

        1. They’re Red Hot by Robert Johnson (1937)
        2. Keep Your Hands Off Her by Big Bill Broonzy (1935)
        3. Tell Me What You Been Doing by Big Bill Broonzy (1935)
        4. They’re Red Hot by Eric Clapton (2003)
        5. They’re Red Hot by Peter Green & Nigel Watson (2004)

Hard Time Killing Floor Blues

        1. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues by Skip James (1930)
        2. Hard Times Killing Floor Blues by Skip James (1960s)
        3. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues by Jack Owens (1979)
        4. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues by Colin Linden (2001)
        5. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues by Rory Block (2006)
        6. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues by Chris Thomas King (from Brother Where Art Thou? soundtrack)
        7. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues by Jimmy “Duck” Holmes (also see Blue Front Cafe, Bentonia, Mississippi)
        8. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues by Jeremiah Lockwood (2014)

Honey Hush

  1. Honey Hush by Big Joe Turner (on Atlantic Records)
  2. Honey Hush by Johnny Burnette Trio (on Coral Records – featuring Paul Burlison on guitar)
  3. Honey Hush by Jerry Lee Lewis (on Sun Records)
  4. Honey Hush by Chuck Berry (on Chess Records)
  5. Honey Hush by Robert Nighthawk (1964)
  6. Honey Hush by Foghat (studio version – 1974)
  7. Honey Hush by Foghat (live version -1977)
  8. Honey Hush by Albert Collins (on Alligator Records)
  9. Honey Hush by Jimmy Thackery (on Blind Pig Records)
  10. Honey Hush by Roomful of Blues
  11. Honey Hush by Elvis Costello (2007)
  12. Honey Hush by Harmonica Sam (2008)
  13. Honey Hush by Paul McCartney (2010)

Hound Dog

In the Big Mama Thornton original, the term “hound dog” referred to a man living off, or being financially supported, by a woman. For another Big Mama Thornton song on the same topic, check out Just Like A Dog, Barking Up The Wrong Tree.

  1. Hound Dog by Big Mama Thornton (released by Peacock Records)
  2. Hound Dog by Elvis Presley
  3. Hound Dog by Jerry Lee Lewis
  4. Hound Dog by Junior Wells (on Hoodoo Man Blues – Delmark Records)
  5. Hound Dog by Robin Trower (2013)
  6. Hound Dog by Mudville 56 (2013)

Big Mama Thornton, 1952

Elvis Presley doing Hound Dog on the Ed Sullivan Show, 1956

Big Mama Thornton doing Hound Dog in 1965

 

House Of The Rising Sun

The Animals cover is arguably the best known version of this song. But check out the Leadbelly original.

  1. House of the Risin’ Sun by Leadbelly
  2. House of the Risin’ Sun by The Weavers
  3. House of the Risin’ Sun by Bob Dylan (1961)
  4. House of the Risin’ Sun by The Animals (1964)
  5. House of the Risin’ Sun by Tommy Emmanuel (2008)

 

How Long, How Long / How Long, How Long Blues

  1. How Long How Long by Blind Lemon Jefferson
  2. How Long, How Long Blues by Leroy Carr (1928)
  3. How Long, How Long Blues No.2 by Leroy Carr (1928)
  4. How Long, How Long Blues Part 3 by Leroy Carr (1928)
  5. How Long, How Long by Leadbelly
  6. How Long Blues by T-Bone Walker
  7. How Long, How Long Blues by Big Joe Turner (released on Savoy Records)
  8. How Long Blues by Big Joe Turner (1958 – released on Atlantic Records)
  9. How Long Blues by Skip James
  10. How Long, How Long Blues by Alexis Korner’s Blues Incorporated
  11. How Long, How Long Blues by B.B. King (1965)
  12. How Long Blues by Ray Charles & Milt Jackson
  13. How Long Blues by Robert Lockwood Jr. (2004)
  14. How Long Blues by Jesse Gelber (2007)
  15. How Long Blues by Steve Hill Blues Band (2012)

The Hunter

CD cover, Albert King, Born Under A Bad Sign, released on Stax Records.
CD cover, Albert King, Born Under A Bad Sign, released on Stax Records.
  1. The Hunter by Albert King (1967)
  2. The Hunter by Free (1968)
  3. The Hunter by Free (1970 live version)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I Ain’t Got Nobody

The Louis Prima and David Lee Roth covers seems to get the most airplay these days but check out the Fats Waller original.

  1. I Ain’t Got Nobody by Fats Waller
  2. I Ain’t Got Nobody (And Nobody Cares For Me) by Fats Waller
  3. I Ain’t Got Nobody (And Nobody Cares For Me) by Bob Wills
  4. I Ain’t Got Nobody by Louis Armstrong
  5. Just A Gigolo / I Ain’t Got Nobody by Louis Prima
  6. I Ain’t Got Nobody by Big Maybelle (1957)
  7. Just A Gigolo / I Ain’t Got Nobody by David Lee Roth (1985)
  8. I Ain’t Got Nobody by Patti Smith (with Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks) (2013)

I Can’t Quit You Baby

Most people are more familiar with the Led Zeppelin cover than the original Otis Rush recording of this Willie Dixon classic.

  1. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Otis Rush (1957)
  2. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Willie Dixon
  3. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Little Milton
  4. I Can’t Quit You Baby by John Lee Hooker
  5. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Led Zeppelin (1969)
  6. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Willie Dixon (1972)
  7. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Mighty Joe Young
  8. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Gary Moore
  9. I Can’t Quit You Baby by Eric Gales & Otis Rush

I Just Want To Make Love To You

  1. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Willie Dixon
  2. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Muddy Waters
  3. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Rolling Stones
  4. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Etta James
  5. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Righteous Brothers
  6. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Junior Wells
  7. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Junior Wells
  8. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Foghat
  9. I Just Want To Make Love To You by Paul Rodgers & Jeff Beck

 

I’m A Man / Mannish Boy

  1. Mannish Boy by Muddy Waters
  2. I’m A Man by Bo Diddley (1957)
  3. Mannish Boy by Muddy Waters & Junior Wells
  4. Mannish Boy by Muddy Waters (1978)
  5. Mannish Boy by The Groundhogs

 

 

I’m Built For Comfort / Built For Comfort

  1. Built For Comfort by Willie Dixon
  2. Built For Comfort by Howlin’ Wolf
  3. I’m Built For Comfort by Alexis Korner’s Blues Incorporated (vocal by Long John Baldry) (1963)
  4. Built For Comfort by Howlin’ Wolf with Eric Clapton (1970)
  5. Built For Comfort by UFO (1973)
  6. Built For Comfort by Roy Rogers (1996)
  7. Built For Comfort by Taj Mahal (1998)
  8. Built For Comfort by Dana Gillespie (2004)
  9. Built For Comfort by Dion (2006)
  10. I’m Built For Comfort by Big Twist & the Mellow Fellows (2013)

 

I’m Shakin’

  1. I’m Shakin’ by Little Willie John (1956)
  2. I’m Shakin’ by The Blasters (1981)
  3. I’m Shakin’ by Long John Baldry (1996)
  4. I’m Shakin’ by Jack White (2012)

 

I’m So Glad

  1. I’m So Glad by Skip James
  2. I’m So Glad by Cream (1966)
  3. I’m So Glad by Cream (live version) (1968)
  4. I’m So Glad by Skip James (live version) (1968)
  5. I’m So Glad by Rory Block (2014)

In The Jailhouse Now

  1. In The Jailhouse Now by Jimmie Rodgers
  2. In The Jailhouse Now by Webb Pierce
  3. In The Jailhouse Now by Johnny Cash
  4. In The Jailhouse Now by Soggy Bottom Boys (from Brother Where Art Thou? soundtrack)

In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down

  1. When The Sun Goes Down by Leroy Carr & Scrapper Blackwell
  2. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Leadbelly (1944)
  3. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Charles Brown
  4. In The Evening by Robert Petway (1942)
  5. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Leadbelly (1944)
  6. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Big Bill Broonzy (1955)
  7. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Ella Fitzgerald
  8. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Mel Torme
  9. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Big Joe Turner
  10. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Lonnie Donegan
  11. In The Evening by Memphis Slim
  12. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Lou Rawls (1966)
  13. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Ray Charles
  14. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Jimmy Witherspoon
  15. In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down by Robert Lockwood Jr. (2012)

It’s Nobody’s Fault But Mine

CD cover, The Complete Vintage Blind Willie Johnson, on Sony Legacy Records.
CD cover, The Complete Vintage Blind Willie Johnson, on Sony Legacy Records.
  1. It’s Nobody’s Fault But Mine by Blind Willie Johnson (1930)
  2. It Ain’t Nobody’s Fault But Mine by Johnny Shines
  3. Nobody Fault But Mine by Jessie Mae Hemphill
  4. It’s Nobody’s Fault But Mine by Bill Frizell
  5. Nobody’s Fault But Mine by Led Zeppelin (1976)
  6. Nobody’s Fault But Mine by Robert Plant & Jimmy Page (1994)
  7. Nobody’s Fault But Mine by Roebuck “Pop” Staples (1999)

 

 

 

 

 

Jesus Coming Soon

CD cover, The Complete Vintage Blind Willie Johnson, on Sony Legacy Records.
CD cover, The Complete Vintage Blind Willie Johnson, on Sony Legacy Records.
  1. Jesus Is Coming Soon by Blind Willie Johnson (1930)
  2. (We’ve Been Told) Jesus Coming Soon by Eric Clapton (1975)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

John Henry

  1. John Henry (A Capella) by Leadbelly
  2. John Henry by Leadbelly (1945)
  3. John Henry by Leadbelly (1948)
  4. John Henry by Tennessee Ernie Ford
  5. John Henry by Josh White
  6. John Henry by Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee
  7. John Henry by Willie Dixon &Memphis Slim
  8. John Henry by Memphis Slim
  9. John Henry by Pete Seeger
  10. John Henry by Jerry Lee Lewis (August 1960 – Sun Records single #344)
  11. Legend of John Henry’s Hammer by Johnny Cash
  12. John Henry by John Jackson
  13. Ballad of John Henry by Joe Bonamassa

 

John The Revelator

CD cover, The Complete Vintage Blind Willie Johnson, on Sony Legacy Records.
CD cover, The Complete Vintage Blind Willie Johnson, on Sony Legacy Records.
  1. John The Revelator by Blind Willie Johnson (1930s)
  2. John The Revelator by Son House (1965)
  3. John The Revelator by Depeche Mode
  4. John The Revelator by Gov’t Mule
  5. John The Revelator by John Mellencamp (2003)
  6. John The Revelator by Curtis Stigers & the Forest Rangers (2011)
  7. John The Revelator by Steve Vai (2012)
  8. John The Revelator by Zoe Sara (2013)
  9. John The Revelator by Tom Waits (2016)

 

 

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