Key to the Highway
Encyclopedia
"Key to the Highway" is a blues standard
first recorded by blues pianist Charlie Segar
in 1940. The song was also recorded by Jazz Gillum
and Big Bill Broonzy
in 1940–41, and it was later a R&B record chart success for Little Walter
in 1958. Since then, a variety of artists have interpreted it, including Eric Clapton
, who has recorded several versions of the song.
Musically, however, there are differences in the recorded versions. Charlie Segar's original "Key to the Highway" was performed as a mid-tempo twelve-bar blues. When Jazz Gillum recorded it later that year with Broonzy on guitar, he used an eight-bar blues arrangement (May 9, 1940 Bluebird
B 8529). In two different interviews, Gillum gave conflicting stories about who wrote the song: in one, he claimed sole authorship, in another he "specified Broonzy as the real author". The chord progression
is as follows:
A year later, Broonzy recorded "Key to the Highway" with Gillum on harmonica, Horace Malcolm on piano, Washboard Sam
on washboard, and an unknown bassist, also using an eight-bar arrangement (May 2, 1941 OKeh
6242). According to Broonzy, the melody that he recorded was his and was based on childhood songs. These earliest recorded versions of "Key to the Highway" were released before record industry trade publications, such as Billboard
magazine began tracking such releases. While it is difficult to gauge which version was the most popular, the eight-bar arrangement used by Gillum and Broonzy is the one found in subsequent recordings.
recorded "Key to the Highway" as a Chicago blues
. The session took place sometime in August and backing Walter (vocals and harmonica) were Muddy Waters
(slide guitar), Luther Tucker
(guitar), Otis Spann
(piano), Willie Dixon
(bass), and George Hunter or Francis Clay (drums). The song was a hit, spending fourteen weeks in the Billboard R&B chart where it reached #6 in 1958. After a six-year run of successful singles, Little Walter would only have one charting single after "Key to the Highway". The song is included on several Little Walter compilation albums, including His Best
.
recorded a version of the song for Derek and the Dominos
' 1970 landmark album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs
. Lasting over nine minutes, this version was essentially an accidental, impromptu jam between Clapton and Duane Allman
. They happened to have heard singer Sam Samudio ("Sam the Sham
") doing the same song in a neighbouring studio and spontaneously started playing it. Their startled record producer, Tom Dowd
, heard what was happening and quickly told the engineers to "hit the goddamn machine!" and start the tape recorder running. This explains why the track starts with a fade-in to playing clearly already underway.
The song appears on the 1995 remastered edition of Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert
recordings from the 1973 concert.
Clapton also played on Johnnie Johnson
's 1991 Johnnie B. Bad version and revisited the song in his 2000 collaboration with Blues legend B.B. King, Riding with the King. A version is also included on Clapton's 2002 live album One More Car, One More Rider
. During two Allman Brothers shows at the Beacon Theatre in New York City on March 19 and 20, 2009, Clapton joined the band onstage to perform the song.
, who performed it. Stewart died in 1985, just after the album's completion. A version in 1981 features Mick Taylor
jamming with Keith Richards
. Richards also provided the vocal for Johnnie Johnson's 1991 version on the Johnnie B. Bad album.
Hall of Fame in the "Classics of Blues Recordings" category.
Blues standard
A blues standard is a blues song that is widely known, performed, and recorded by blues artists. The following list identifies blues standards and some of the blues artists that have recorded them...
first recorded by blues pianist Charlie Segar
Charlie Segar
This article refers to the blues pianist. For the movie producer see Charles SegarsCharlie Segar was an American blues pianist and occasional singer, who is best known for the blues standard, "Key to the Highway" in 1940. Originally from Pensacola, Florida, Segar has been dubbed the "Keyboard...
in 1940. The song was also recorded by Jazz Gillum
Jazz Gillum
William McKinley Gillum , known as Jazz Gillum, was an American blues harmonica player.He was born in Indianola, Mississippi. After running away from home at the age of seven, Gillum spent the next few years in Charleston, Mississippi, working and playing for tips on local street corners...
and Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy was a prolific American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s when he played country blues to mostly black audiences. Through the ‘30s and ‘40s he successfully navigated a transition in style to a more urban blues sound popular with white audiences...
in 1940–41, and it was later a R&B record chart success for Little Walter
Little Walter
Little Walter, born Marion Walter Jacobs , was an American blues harmonica player, whose revolutionary approach to his instrument has earned him comparisons to Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix, for innovation and impact on succeeding generations...
in 1958. Since then, a variety of artists have interpreted it, including Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
, who has recorded several versions of the song.
Early versions
"Key to the Highway" is usually credited to Charles "Chas" Segar and William "Big Bill" Broonzy. According to Broonzy, it is likely based on traditional songs: "Some of the verses he [Charlie Segar] was singing it in the South the same time as I sung it in the South. And practically all of blues is just a little change from the way that they was sung when I was a kid ... You take one song and make fifty out of it ... just change it a little bit." Segar's lyrics are "similar or in some cases identical" to those recorded by Broonzy and Jazz Gillum.Musically, however, there are differences in the recorded versions. Charlie Segar's original "Key to the Highway" was performed as a mid-tempo twelve-bar blues. When Jazz Gillum recorded it later that year with Broonzy on guitar, he used an eight-bar blues arrangement (May 9, 1940 Bluebird
Bluebird Records
Bluebird Records is a sub-label of RCA Victor Records originally created in 1932 to counter the American Record Company in the "3 records for a dollar" market. Along with ARC's Perfect Records, Melotone Records and Romeo Records, and the independent US Decca label, Bluebird became one of the best...
B 8529). In two different interviews, Gillum gave conflicting stories about who wrote the song: in one, he claimed sole authorship, in another he "specified Broonzy as the real author". The chord progression
Chord progression
A chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
is as follows:
| I | V7 | IV | IV | I | V7 | I–IV | I–V7 |
A year later, Broonzy recorded "Key to the Highway" with Gillum on harmonica, Horace Malcolm on piano, Washboard Sam
Washboard Sam
Robert Brown , known professionally as Washboard Sam, was an American blues singer and musician.-Biography:...
on washboard, and an unknown bassist, also using an eight-bar arrangement (May 2, 1941 OKeh
Okeh Records
Okeh Records began as an independent record label based in the United States of America in 1918. From 1926 on, it was a subsidiary of Columbia Records.-History:...
6242). According to Broonzy, the melody that he recorded was his and was based on childhood songs. These earliest recorded versions of "Key to the Highway" were released before record industry trade publications, such as Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
magazine began tracking such releases. While it is difficult to gauge which version was the most popular, the eight-bar arrangement used by Gillum and Broonzy is the one found in subsequent recordings.
Little Walter version
Shortly after his friend Broonzy's death in 1958, in an apparent tribute to him, Little WalterLittle Walter
Little Walter, born Marion Walter Jacobs , was an American blues harmonica player, whose revolutionary approach to his instrument has earned him comparisons to Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix, for innovation and impact on succeeding generations...
recorded "Key to the Highway" as a Chicago blues
Chicago blues
The Chicago blues is a form of blues music that developed in Chicago, Illinois, by taking the basic acoustic guitar and harmonica-based Delta blues, making the harmonica louder with a microphone and an instrument amplifier, and adding electrically amplified guitar, amplified bass guitar, drums,...
. The session took place sometime in August and backing Walter (vocals and harmonica) were Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
(slide guitar), Luther Tucker
Luther Tucker
For the publisher see The Genesee FarmerLuther Tucker was an American blues guitarist.While soft spoken and shy, Tucker made his presence known through his unique and clearly recognizable guitar style. Tucker helped to define the music known as Chicago Blues, but played everything from blues to...
(guitar), Otis Spann
Otis Spann
Otis Spann was an American blues musician, who many consider the leading postwar Chicago blues pianist.-Career:Born in Jackson, Mississippi, United States, Spann became known for his distinct piano style....
(piano), Willie Dixon
Willie Dixon
William James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
(bass), and George Hunter or Francis Clay (drums). The song was a hit, spending fourteen weeks in the Billboard R&B chart where it reached #6 in 1958. After a six-year run of successful singles, Little Walter would only have one charting single after "Key to the Highway". The song is included on several Little Walter compilation albums, including His Best
His Best (Little Walter album)
His Best is a greatest hits compilation album by harmonica virtuoso Little Walter, released on June 17, 1997 by MCA and Chess Records as a part of The Chess 50th Anniversary Collection...
.
Eric Clapton versions
Eric ClaptonEric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
recorded a version of the song for Derek and the Dominos
Derek and the Dominos
Derek and the Dominos were a blues rock band formed in the spring of 1970 by guitarist and singer Eric Clapton with keyboardist Bobby Whitlock, bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon, who had all played with Clapton in Delaney, Bonnie & Friends...
' 1970 landmark album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs is a blues-rock album by Derek and the Dominos, released in November 1970, best known for its eponymous title track, "Layla"...
. Lasting over nine minutes, this version was essentially an accidental, impromptu jam between Clapton and Duane Allman
Duane Allman
Howard Duane Allman was an American guitarist, session musician and the primary co-founder of the southern rock group The Allman Brothers Band...
. They happened to have heard singer Sam Samudio ("Sam the Sham
Sam the Sham
Sam the Sham is the stage name of the American rock and roll singer Domingo “Sam” Samudio . Sam the Sham was known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equipment in a 1952 Packard hearse with maroon velvet curtains...
") doing the same song in a neighbouring studio and spontaneously started playing it. Their startled record producer, Tom Dowd
Tom Dowd
Tom Dowd was an American recording engineer and producer for Atlantic Records. He was credited with innovating the multi-track recording method. Dowd worked on a virtual "who's who" of recordings that encompassed blues, jazz, pop, rock and soul records.- Early years :Born in Manhattan, Dowd grew...
, heard what was happening and quickly told the engineers to "hit the goddamn machine!" and start the tape recorder running. This explains why the track starts with a fade-in to playing clearly already underway.
The song appears on the 1995 remastered edition of Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert
Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert
Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert is an album recorded live at London's Rainbow Theatre on January 13, 1973, and released within the year. The concert was organized by Pete Townshend and marked Eric Clapton's comeback after the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh...
recordings from the 1973 concert.
Clapton also played on Johnnie Johnson
Johnnie Johnson (musician)
Johnnie Johnson was an American pianist and blues musician. His work with Chuck Berry led to his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.-Career:...
's 1991 Johnnie B. Bad version and revisited the song in his 2000 collaboration with Blues legend B.B. King, Riding with the King. A version is also included on Clapton's 2002 live album One More Car, One More Rider
One More Car, One More Rider
One More Car, One More Rider is a double live album by Eric Clapton, released on November 5, 2002 on Warner Bros. Records. The album contains songs performed during Clapton's 2001 world tour. The recordings on this album are from two nights at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, August 18 & 19 of 2001...
. During two Allman Brothers shows at the Beacon Theatre in New York City on March 19 and 20, 2009, Clapton joined the band onstage to perform the song.
Rolling Stones versions
In 1964, the Rolling Stones recorded a version of "Key to the Highway" at the Chess Studios in Chicago, which was not released. Over twenty years later, a 33-second instrumental snippet of "Key to the Highway" appeared at the end of the Stones' album Dirty Work. Originally hidden and uncredited, the track was included as a memorial to Stones founder-member and part time pianist Ian StewartIan Stewart (musician)
Ian Andrew Robert Stewart was a Scottish keyboardist, co-founder of The Rolling Stones and inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
, who performed it. Stewart died in 1985, just after the album's completion. A version in 1981 features Mick Taylor
Mick Taylor
Michael Kevin "Mick" Taylor is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones...
jamming with Keith Richards
Keith Richards
Keith Richards is an English musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards had created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and placed him as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time." Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting...
. Richards also provided the vocal for Johnnie Johnson's 1991 version on the Johnnie B. Bad album.
Other versions
"Key to the Highway" has been recorded by numerous blues and other artists including:- 1959 John Lee HookerJohn Lee HookerJohn Lee Hooker was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark...
plays a solo acoustic guitar version on Burning Hell (released 1964) - 1960 Count BasieCount BasieWilliam "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
with Joe WilliamsJoe Williams (jazz singer)Joe Williams was a well-known jazz vocalist, a baritone singing a mixture of blues, ballads, popular songs, and jazz standards.-Early life:...
on Just the Blues - 1963 Sonny TerrySonny TerrySaunders Terrell, better known as Sonny Terry was a blind American Piedmont blues musician. He was widely known for his energetic blues harmonica style, which frequently included vocal whoops and hollers, and imitations of trains and fox hunts.-Career:Terry was born in Greensboro, Georgia...
& Brownie McGheeBrownie McGheeWalter Brown McGhee was a Piedmont blues singer and guitarist, best known for his collaborations with the harmonica player Sonny Terry.-Life and career:...
on Blues at Newport (released 1991) - 1964 Mance LipscombMance LipscombMance Lipscomb was an American blues singer, guitarist and songster. Born Beau De Glen Lipscomb near Navasota, Texas, United States, he as a youth took the name of 'Mance' from a friend of his oldest brother Charlie .-Biography:Lipscomb was born April 9, 1895 to an ex-slave father from Alabama and...
on Texas Songster Volume 2 and on Live at the Cabale (released 1999) - 1967 Eddie BoydEddie BoydEdward Riley Boyd known as Eddie Boyd was an American blues piano player, born on Stovall's Plantation near Clarksdale, Mississippi, United States.-Life and career:...
with Peter GreenPeter Green (musician)Peter Green is a British blues-rock guitarist and the founder of the band Fleetwood Mac...
on Eddie Boyd and His Blues Band - 1968 The BandThe BandThe Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
on the remaster of Music from Big PinkMusic from Big PinkMusic from Big Pink is the 1968 debut album by rock band The Band. It features the well-known song, "The Weight". The music was composed partly in 'Big Pink', a house shared by Rick Danko, Richard Manuel, and Garth Hudson in West Saugerties, in upstate New York...
(released 2000) - 1968 Steve Miller BandSteve Miller BandThe Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1967 in San Francisco, California. The band is managed by Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals, and is known for a string of mid-1970s hit singles that are staples of the classic rock radio format.-History:In 1965, Steve Miller and...
on their debut album Children of the Future - 1971 Sam Samudio on Sam, Hard & Heavy
- 1971 Muddy WatersMuddy WatersMcKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
on The London Muddy Waters Sessions - 1973 Jimmy WitherspoonJimmy WitherspoonJimmy Witherspoon was an American jump blues singer.-Early life and career:James Witherspoon was born in Gurdon, Arkansas. He first attracted attention singing with Teddy Weatherford's band in Calcutta, India, which made regular radio broadcasts over the U. S. Armed Forces Radio Service during...
with Groove Holmes on Groovin' and Spoonin - 1975 Junior WellsJunior WellsJunior Wells , born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr., was an American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist...
on On Tap - 1977 Luther AllisonLuther AllisonLuther Allison was an American blues guitarist. He was born in Widener, Arkansas and moved with his family, at age twelve, to Chicago in 1951. He taught himself guitar and began listening to blues extensively. Three years later he began hanging outside blues nightclubs with the hopes of being...
on Love Me Papa - 1977 Freddie KingFreddie KingFreddie King , thought to have been born as Frederick Christian, originally recording as Freddy King, and nicknamed "the Texas Cannonball", was an influential African-American blues guitarist and singer. He is often mentioned as one of "the Three Kings" of electric blues guitar, along with Albert...
on Getting Ready - 1981 Sonny LandrethSonny LandrethSonny Landreth is an American blues musician from southwest Louisiana who is especially known as a slide guitar player. He was born in Canton, Mississippi, but soon after, his family moved to Jackson, Mississippi, before settling in Lafayette, Louisiana...
on Blues Attack - 1982 John HammondJohn P. HammondJohn Paul Hammond is an American blues singer and guitarist. The son of record producer John H. Hammond, he is sometimes referred to as "John Hammond, Jr.".-Background:...
on Frogs for Snakes - 1987 Snooky Pryor on Snooky
- 1991 Carey BellCarey BellCarey Bell was an American blues musician, who played the harmonica in the Chicago blues style. Bell played harmonica and bass for other blues musicians during the late 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s before embarking on a solo career...
& Lurrie BellLurrie BellLurrie Bell is an American blues guitarist and singer. His father was renowned blues harmonica player, Carey Bell.-Career:...
perform a Delta Blues version on Second Nature - 1993 Buddy GuyBuddy GuyGeorge "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
and Junior WellsJunior WellsJunior Wells , born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr., was an American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist...
play a live acoustic version on Last Time Around-Live at Legends - 1999 Jo-Ann Kelly on Key to the Highway
- 2001 Detroit JuniorDetroit JuniorEmery “Detroit Junior” Williams, Jr. was an American blues pianist, vocalist, and songwriter. He is known for songs such as "So Unhappy", "Call My Job", "If I Hadn't Been High", "Ella" and "Money Tree"...
on Live at the Toledo Museum of Art (released 2004) - 2003 B.B. King featured in the movie-documentary The Road to MemphisThe Road To MemphisThe Road To Memphis is a documentary directed by Richard Pearce. The film follows the career of Blues musician B.B. King. It features performances by B.B...
- 2006 Derek Trucks Band on Songlines Live! (DVD)
Accolades
In 2010, Big Bill Broonzy's version of "Key to the Highway" was inducted into the Blues FoundationBlues 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....
Hall of Fame in the "Classics of Blues Recordings" category.