Muddy Waters (1913–1983) was an American blues artist who is considered a pioneer of the electric Chicago blues and a major influence on the development of blues and rock music. He popularized several early Delta blues songs, such as "Rollin' and Tumblin'", "Walkin' Blues", and "Baby, Please Don't Go", and recorded songs that went on to become blues standards, including "Hoochie Coochie Man", "Mannish Boy", and "Got My Mojo Working". During his recording career from 1941 to 1981, he recorded primarily for two record companies, Aristocrat/Chess and Blue Sky; they issued 62 singles and 13 studio albums (as with most postwar blues musicians, his recordings were released as two-song singles until the 1960s, when the focus shifted to long-playing albums).

While he was living in Mississippi, Waters was recorded by Alan Lomax in 1941 for a U.S. Library of Congress folk music project. Two songs were released on a 78 rpm record, "Country Blues" and "I Be's Troubled". After moving to Chicago, he recorded for Leonard Chess and Aristocrat issued Waters's first single in 1947. In 1950, Chess bought out his label partners and formed Chess Records. From 1950 to 1958, Chess issued 15 singles that reached the top 10 of Billboard magazine's R&B chart. Among the many albums the label released are the influential early compilation The Best of Muddy Waters (1958) and the live At Newport 1960.

After Chess went out of business in 1975, Waters recorded several successful albums for Blue Sky. Produced by blues rock singer and guitarist Johnny Winter, Hard Again (1977), I'm Ready (1978), and Muddy "Mississippi" Waters – Live (1978) won Grammy Awards for "Best Ethnic or Traditional Recordings". As a sideman, Waters also contributed to recordings by Little Walter, Junior Wells, Otis Spann, and others. After Waters's death in 1983, a large number of compilation and live albums have been issued by various record companies, often with significant overlap and duplication. The double disc The Anthology: 1947–1972 (2001) is ranked at number 483 on Rolling Stone magazine's 2020 list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".

List of studio albums with title, album details, chart peak, and reference(s)

Title	Album details	Chart peak U.S. 200	Ref(s)
Muddy Waters Sings "Big Bill"	Released: June 1960 Label: Chess (LP-1444) Format: Mono LP	—
Folk Singer	Released: January 30, 1964 Label: Chess (LP-1483) Format: Mono LP	—
Muddy, Brass & the Blues	Released: October 26, 1966 Label: Chess (LP/S-1507) Format: Mono/stereo LP	—
Electric Mud	Released: October 5, 1968 Label: Cadet Concept (LPS-314) Format: Stereo LP	127
After the Rain	Released: May 12, 1969 Label: Cadet Concept (LPS-320) Format: Stereo LP	—
Fathers and Sons	Released: August 18, 1969 Label: Chess (LPS-127; reissue: 2CH 50033, 1972) Format: Stereo LP Note: Sides 1 and 2 are studio recordings	70
The London Muddy Waters Sessions	Released: April 1972 Label: Chess (CH 60013) Format: Stereo LP	—
Can't Get No Grindin'	Released: August 1973 Label: Chess (CH 50023) Format: Stereo LP	—
"Unk" in Funk	Released: March 1974 Label: Chess (CH 60031) Format: Stereo LP	—
The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album	Released: April 1975 Label: Chess (CH 60035) Format: Stereo LP	—
Hard Again	Released: January 10, 1977 Label: Blue Sky (PZ 34449) Format: Stereo LP	143
I'm Ready	Released: January 1978 Label: Blue Sky (JZ 34928) Format: Stereo LP	157
King Bee	Released: 1981 Label: Blue Sky (PZ 37064) Format: Stereo LP	192
"—" denotes a release that did not chart

Since Waters's death in 1983, a large number of live albums have been released by a variety of record companies. According to biographer Robert Gordon, "much of it comes from the latter years and the recordings tend to blend." However, some were well-received and appeared on Billboard's Blues albums chart.

List of live albums with title, album details, chart peak, and reference(s)

Title	Album details	Chart peak U.S. Blues	Ref(s)
At Newport 1960	Released: November 15, 1960 Label: Chess (LP-1449) Format: Mono LP	—
Fathers and Sons	Released: August 1969 Label: Chess (LPS-127) Format: Stereo LP Note: Sides 3 and 4 are live recordings	—
Live at Mr. Kelly's	Released: October 1971 Label: Chess (CH 50012) Format: Stereo LP Note: Recorded June 1971	—
Muddy "Mississippi" Waters – Live	Released: Early 1979 Label: Blue Sky (JZ35712) Format: Stereo LP Note: Recorded March 1977	—
Collaboration	Released: 1995 Label: Tomato (R2 71661) Format: CD Note: Recorded 1958	—
Hoochie Coochie Man	Released: 1996 Label: LaserLight (17 101) Format: CD Note: Recorded 1964	—
The Lost Tapes	Released: 1999 Label: Blind Pig (BPCD 5054) Format: CD Note: Recorded Nov 1971	—
Live at the Fillmore Auditorium – San Francisco Nov 04–06 1966	Released: 2009 Label: Geffen/Chess (B0012650-02) Format: CD	8
Live at the Checkerboard Lounge, Chicago 1981	Released: 2012 Label: Eagle Vision Format: CD, DVD Note: Muddy Waters & the Rolling Stones	15
Hoochie Coochie Man: Live at the Rising Sun Celebrity Jazz Club	Released: 2016 Label: Justin Time Format: LP, CD Note: Recorded Jan 1977	5
Live at Rockpalast 1978	Released: 2018 Label: MIG/WDR Format: Double LP, 2xCD, 2xDVD	7
The Montreux Years 1972/1974/1977	Released: 2021 Label: BMG Format: Double LP, CD	—
Live In Los Angles 1954	Released: 2021 Label: GNP Crescendo Format: 10" LP	—
"—" denotes a release that did not chart

Muddy Waters's original two-song singles recorded for Chess were later released on various "Best of" and anthology albums. Over the years, many were repackaged with new titles and re-sequenced, with the earlier versions going out-of-print. In the 1990s, Chess's successor, MCA Records, began releasing compilations, sometimes focusing on different periods during Waters's career as well as broader overviews. Around the same time, Charly Records also released a number of albums of Chess recordings, including the nine CD set The Complete Muddy Waters 1947–1967 (1992). After years of litigation, MCA was able to stop Charly from using Chess material without authorization.

List of compilation albums with title, album details, chart peak, and reference(s)

Title	Album details	Chart peak U.S. Blues	Ref(s)
The Best of Muddy Waters	Released: 1958 Label: Chess (LP-1427) Format: Mono LP Note: Repackaged and resequenced as Sail On (1969, Chess)	—
The Real Folk Blues	Released: January 1966 Label: Chess (LP-1501) Format: Mono LP	—
More Real Folk Blues	Released: January 27, 1967 Label: Chess (LP/S-1511) Format: Mono/stereo LP	—
They Call Me Muddy Waters	Released: February 1971 Label: Chess (CH 1553) Format: LP	—
McKinley Morganfield A.K.A. Muddy Waters	Released: June 1971 Label: Chess (2CH 60006) Format: Double LP	—
Rolling Stone	Released: November 1982 Label: Chess (CH 8202) Format: LP	—
Rare and Unissued	Released: 1984 Label: Chess (CH 9180) Format: Mono LP	—
Trouble No More: Singles 1955–1959	Released: 1989 Label: Chess (CH/C/D-9291) Format: LP, cassette, CD	—
The Chess Box–Muddy Waters	Released: 1989 Label: Chess (CH/D-80002) Format: LP/CD	—
Blues Sky	Released: June 16, 1992 Label: Columbia/Legacy (ZK/T-49172) Format: CD, cassette	—
The Complete Plantation Recordings	Released: June 8, 1993 Label: Chess (CHD/C-9344) Format: CD, cassette	—
One More Mile	Released: 1994 Label: Chess (CHD/C2-9348) Format: CD, cassette	—
His Best: 1947 to 1955 [Volume 1]	Released: 1997 Label: Chess (CHD-9370) Format: CD	—
His Best: 1956 to 1964 [Volume 2]	Released: 1997 Label: Chess (CHD-9380) Format: CD	—
King of the Electric Blues	Released: 1997 Label: Epic/Legacy (65215) Format: CD	—
The Best of Muddy Waters: 20th Century Masters/The Millennium Collection	Released: 1999 Label: Chess (CHD-11946) Format: CD	15
Rollin' Stone: The Golden Anniversary Collection (1947–1952)	Released: 2000 Label: Chess (CHD-112301) Format: CD	—
The Anthology (1947–1972)	Released: 2001 Label: Chess (CHD-112649) Format: CD	—
Winning Combinations (split release with John Lee Hooker)	Released: 2001 Label: Universal/MCA (088 112 646-2) Format: CD	8
Martin Scorsese Presents the Blues: Muddy Waters	Released: 2003 Label: Universal (B000048202) Format: CD	4
Hoochie Coochie Man: The Complete Chess Masters, Volume 2, 1952–1958	Released: 2004 Label: Hip-O Select Format: CD	—
The Definitive Collection	Released: 2006 Label: Geffen Format: CD	14
The Father of Chicago Blues	Released: 2010 Label: X5 Music Group Format: CD	1
Playlist: The Very Best of Muddy Waters	Released: 2011 Label: Epic/Legacy Format: CD	—
You Shook Me: The Complete Chess Masters, Volume 3, 1958–1963	Released: 2012 Label: Geffen Format: CD	—
"—" denotes a release that did not chart

Muddy Waters's first 78 rpm record in 1941 listed him using his birth name, McKinley Morganfield. The late 1940s–mid-1950s record releases by Aristocrat Records and Chess Records sometimes used "Muddy Waters and His Guitar" as well as Muddy Waters. From the late 1950s on, he is identified as Muddy Waters.

List of singles with title, year, label, chart peak, and reference(s)

Title A-side / B-side	Year	Label	Chart peak U.S. R&B	Ref(s)
"Country Blues" / "I Be's Troubled"	1941	Library of Congress AAFS 18	—
"Gypsy Woman" / "Little Anna Mae"	1948	Aristocrat 1302	—
"I Can't Be Satisfied" / "I Feel Like Going Home"	1948	Aristocrat 1305	11
"Train Fare Home" / "Sittin' Here and Drinkin' (Whiskey Blues)"	1948	Aristocrat 1306	—
"You're Gonna Miss Me (When I'm Dead and Gone)" / "Mean Red Spider"	1948	Aristocrat 1307	—
"Streamline Woman" / "Muddy Jumps One" (instrumental)	1949	Aristocrat 1310	—
"Little Geneva" / "Canary Bird"	1949	Aristocrat 1311	—
"Screamin' and Cryin'" / "Where's My Woman Been"	1949	Aristocrat 406	—
"Rollin' and Tumblin'" Part 1 / "Rollin' and Tumblin'" Part 2	1950	Aristocrat 412	—
"Rollin' Stone" / "Walkin' Blues"	1950	Chess 1426	—
"You're Gonna Need My Help 'I Said' (Gonna Need My Help)" / "Sad Letter Blues"	1950	Chess 1434	—
"Louisiana Blues" / "Evans Shuffle" (instrumental) (a.k.a. "Ebony Shuffle")	1950	Chess 1441	10
"Long Distance Call" / "Too Young Too Know"	1951	Chess 1452	8
"Honey Bee" / "Appealing Blues (Hello Little Girl)"	1951	Chess 1468	10
"Still a Fool (Two Trains Running)" / "My Fault"	1951	Chess 1480	9
"She Moves Me" / "Early Morning Blues (Before Daybreak)"	1952	Chess 1490	10
"All Night Long" / "Country Boy"	1952	Chess 1509	—
"Please Have Mercy" / "Looking for My Baby" (a.k.a. "I Can't Be Satisfied")	1952	Chess 1514	—
"Standing Around Crying" / "Gone to Main Street"	1952	Chess 1526	—
"She's All Right" / "Sad, Sad Day"	1953	Chess 1537	—
"Turn the Lamp Down Low (Baby Please Don't Go)" / "Who's Gonna Be Your Sweet Man"	1953	Chess 1542	—
"Mad Love (I Want You to Love Me)" / "Blow Wind Blow"	1953	Chess 1550	6
"I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man" / "She's So Pretty"	1953	Chess 1560	3
"Just Make Love to Me (I Just Want to Make Love to You)" / "Oh! Yeh"	1954	Chess 1571	4
"I'm Ready" / "I Don't Know Why"	1954	Chess 1579	4
"I'm a Natural Born Lover" / "Loving Man"	1954	Chess 1585	—
"I Want to Be Loved" / "My Eyes (Keep Me in Trouble)"	1955	Chess 1596	—
"Manish Boy (Mannish Boy)" / "Young Fashioned Ways (Old Fashioned Ways)"	1955	Chess 1602	5
"Sugar Sweet (I Can't Call Her Sugar)"	1955	Chess 1612	11
/ "Trouble No More"	1955	Chess 1612	7
"Forty Days and Forty Nights" / "All Aboard"	1956	Chess 1620	7
"Don't Go No Farther (You Need Meat)" / "Diamonds at Your Feet"	1956	Chess 1630	9
"Just to Be with You" / "I Got to Find My Baby"	1956	Chess 1644	—
"Got My Mojo Working" / "Rock Me"	1956	Chess 1652	—
"Good News" / "Come Home Baby (I Wish You Would)"	1957	Chess 1667	—
"I Live the Life I Love (I Love the Life I Live)" / "Evil"	1957	Chess 1680	—
"I Won't Go On" / "She's Got It"	1958	Chess 1692	—
"Close to You" / "She's Nineteen Years Old"	1958	Chess 1704	9
"Walking Thru the Park (Walking in the Park)" / "Mean Mistreater"	1958	Chess 1718	—
"Clouds in My Heart" / "Ooh Wee"	1959	Chess 1724	—
"Take the Bitter with the Sweet" / "She's Into Something"	1959	Chess 1733	—
"Recipe for Love" / "Tell Me Baby"	1959	Chess 1739	—
"I Feel So Good" / "When I Get to Thinking"	1959	Chess 1748	—
"Read Way Back" / "I'm Your Doctor"	1960	Chess 1752	—
"Look What You've Done" / "Love Affair"	1960	Chess 1758	—
"Tiger in Your Tank" / "Meanest Woman"	1960	Chess 1765	—
"Got My Mojo Working" Part 1 (live) / "Woman Wanted"	1960	Chess 1774	—
"Messin' with the Man" / "Lonesome Bedroom Blues"	1961	Chess 1796	—
"Going Home" / "Tough Times"	1962	Chess 1819	—
"You Shook Me" / "Muddy Waters Twist"	1962	Chess 1827	—
"You Need Love" / "Little Brown Bird"	1962	Chess 1839	—
"Five Long Years" / "Twenty Four Hours"	1963	Chess 1862	—
"The Same Thing" / "You Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had"	1964	Chess 1865	—
"My John the Conquer Root" / "Short Dress Woman"	1964	Chess 1914	—
"Put Me in Your Lay Away" / "Still a Fool" (re-release)	1964	Chess 1921	—
"My Dog Can't Bark" / "I Got a Rich Man's Woman"	1965	Chess 1937	—
"Corine, Corina" / "I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man" [w/overdubbed horns]	1966	Chess 1973	—
"Birdnest on the Ground" / "When the Eagle Flies"	1967	Chess 2018	—
"Going Home" (remake) / "I Feel So Good" (remake)	1970	Chess 2085	—
"Making Friends" / "Two Steps Forward"	1971	Chess 2107	—
"Can't Get No Grindin' (What's the Matter with the Meal)" / "Garbage Man"	1973	Chess 2143	—
"The Blues Had a Baby and They Named It Rock and Roll (No. 2)" / "Mannish Boy" (remake, 12-inch single)	1977	Blue Sky MUDT 1	—
"I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man" (remake) / "Mannish Boy" (edited remake, 12-inch single)	1977	Blue Sky MUD 1	—
"—" denotes a release that did not chart

List of albums with title, album details, chart peak, and reference(s)

Title	Album details (sortable by listed artist)	Chart peak U.S. Blues	Ref(s)
Broken Soul Blues	Memphis Slim Released: 1961 Label: United Artists (3137) Format: LP	—
The Blues of Otis Spann	Otis Spann Released: 1964 Label: Decca (4615) Format: LP	—
The Blues Never Die!	Otis Spann Released: 1965 Label: Prestige (7391) Format: LP Note: credited as "Dirty Rivers"	—
Big Mama Thornton with the Muddy Waters Blues Band – 1966	Big Mama Thornton Released: 1966 Label: Arhoolie (9043) Format: LP	—
Live at Cafe Au Go Go	John Lee Hooker Released: 1966 Label: Bluesway (BL/BLS 6002) Format: LP Note: recorded August 1966	—
The Blues Is Where It's At	Otis Spann Released: 1967 Label: Bluesway (BLS 6003) Format: LP	—
Super Blues	Bo Diddley, Little Walter Released: 1967 Label: Checker (LP/S 3008) Format: LP	—
The Super Super Blues Band	Bo Diddley, Howlin' Wolf Released: 1968 Label: Checker (LP/S 3008) Format: LP	—
The Bottom of the Blues	Otis Spann Released:1968 Label: Bluesway (BLS 6013) Format: LP	—
George Smith & the Chicago Blues Band: A Tribute to Little Walter	George "Harmonica" Smith Released: 1968 Label: World Pacific (WPS–21887) Format: LP	—
Luther "Georgia Boy Snake" Johnson with the Muddy Waters Blues Band	Luther "Snake Boy" Johnson Released: December 1969 Label: Douglas (LP 781) Format: LP	—
Come On Home	Luther "Snake Boy" Johnson Released: 1969 Label: Douglas (LP 789) Format: LP	—
Nothin' but the Blues	Johnny Winter Released: Mid-1977 Label: Blue Sky (PZ 34813) Format: LP, cassette	—
The Last Waltz	The Band Released: March 1978 Label: Warner Bros. Format: LP	—
Live the Life	Otis Spann Released: 1997 Label: Testament (TCD 6001) Format: CD	—
The Last Waltz (box set re-release)	The Band Released: April 16, 2002 Label: Warner Bros./Rhino Format: CD	—
Breakin' It Up, Breakin' It Down	James Cotton & Johnny Winter Released: Mid-2007 Label: Epic/Legacy (07283) Format: CD	3
"—" denotes a release that did not chart

List of singles with title, year, listed artist, label, chart peak, and reference(s)

Title A-side / B-side	Year	Listed artist	Label	Chart peak U.S. R&B	Ref(s)
"Johnson Machine Gun" / "Fly Right, Little Girl"	1948	Sunnyland Slim	Aristocrat 1301	—
"She Ain’t Nowhere" / "My Baby, My Baby"	1948	Sunnyland Slim	Aristocrat 1304	—
"Florida Hurricane" / "So Nice and Kind"	1948	St. Louis Jimmy	Aristocrat 7001	—
"Blue Baby" / "I Want My Baby"	1948	Sunnyland Slim	Tempo Tone 1396	—
"Locked Out Boogie" / "Shady Grove Blues"	1948	Leroy Foster	Aristocrat 1234	—
"Big Town Playboy" / "Shelby County Blues"	1949	Little Johnny (Jones)	Aristocrat 405	—
"Bad Acting Woman" / "Muskadine Blues (Take a Walk with Me)"	1950	Baby Face Leroy & Little Walter	Regal 3296	—
"I Just Keep Loving Her" / "Moonshine Blues"	1950	Baby Face Leroy & Little Walter	Parkway 502	—
"Boll Weevil" / "Red Headed Woman"	1950	Baby Face Leroy & Little Walter	Parkway 104	—
"Rollin' and Tumblin'" Part 1 / "Rollin' and Tumblin'" Part 2	1950	Baby Face Leroy & Little Walter	Parkway 501	—
"Going Away Baby" / "Today, Today Blues"	1950	Jimmy Rogers	Chess 1442	—
"Juke" / "Can’t Hold Out Much Longer"	1952	Little Walter	Checker 758	—
"The Last Time" / "Out on the Road"	1952	Jimmy Rogers	Chess 1519	—
"Left Me with a Broken Heart" / "Act Like You Love Me"	1953	Jimmy Rogers	Chess 1543	—
"Chicago Bound" / "Sloppy Drunk"	1954	Jimmy Rogers	Chess 1574	—
"'Bout the Break of Day (Early in the Morning)" / "Lord Lord (Lawdy Lawdy)"	1954	Junior Wells	States 139	—
"So All Alone (Baby So Long)" (Prison Bars all Around Me) /	1954	Junior Wells	States 143	—
"Blues All Day Long (Blues Leave Me Alone)" /	1955	Jimmy Rogers	Chess 1616	—
"Don't Start Me to Talkin'" / "All My Love in Vain"	1955	Sonny Boy Williamson II	Checker 824	—
"Key to the Highway" / "Rock Bottom"	1958	Little Walter	Checker 904	—
"—" denotes a release that did not chart

Footnotes

Citations

References

• Chess (1989). Muddy Waters: Chess Box (Box set booklet). Muddy Waters. Chess/MCA Records. OCLC 154264537. CHD3-80002.
• Dahl, Bill (1996). "Muddy Waters". In Erlewine, Michael; Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Koda, Cub (eds.). All Music Guide to the Blues. San Francisco: Miller Freeman Books. ISBN 0-87930-424-3.
• Gordon, Robert (2002). Can't Be Satisfied: The Life and Times of Muddy Waters. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-32849-9.
• Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). "Muddy Waters, Blues Standards". Encyclopedia of the Blues. Fayetteville, Arkansas: University of Arkansas Press. ISBN 1-55728-252-8.
• Koda, Cub (1996). "Muddy Waters at Newport, The Best of Muddy Waters". In Erlewine, Michael; Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Koda, Cub (eds.). All Music Guide to the Blues. San Francisco: Miller Freeman Books. ISBN 0-87930-424-3.
• Mojo (2007). The Mojo Collection: 4th Edition. Edinburgh, Scotland: Canongate Books. ISBN 978-1-84767-643-6.
• Unterberger, Richie (1996). "One More Mile". In Erlewine, Michael; Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Koda, Cub (eds.). All Music Guide to the Blues. San Francisco: Miller Freeman Books. ISBN 0-87930-424-3.
• Whitburn, Joel (1988). "Muddy Waters". Top R&B Singles 1942–1988. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research. ISBN 0-89820-068-7.
• Wight, Phil; Rothwell, Fred (1991). "The Complete Muddy Waters Discography". Blues & Rhythm. No. 200.

• Muddy Waters discography at Discogs