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Rollin’ Stone, The Muddy Waters’ Song That Named The Rolling Stones
Original Muddy Waters song from which the Stones took their name from (as well as Rolling Stone magazine) Muddy originally recorded the song in 1950. According to the Encyclopedia of the Blues book, Rollin’ Stone was actually his interpretation of Catfish Blues, a Delta blues song that dates back to 1920s Mississippi. Brian Jones named the band (formerly The Rollin’ Stones) during a phone call to the Jazz News music paper. When asked by a journalist for the band’s name, Jones saw a Muddy Waters LP lying on the floor; in which one of the tracks was Rollin’ Stone.
The Blues Behind the Band Name
Before Muddy Waters made Rollin’ Stone famous, the phrase had already rolled through American music. Hank Williams used it in Lost Highway (1949), singing, “I’m a rolling stone, all alone and lost.” That lyric later inspired Bob Dylan’s iconic Like a Rolling Stone. But it was Muddy Waters’ 1950 song that lent its name to one of the biggest rock bands in history—The Rolling Stones.
When the Stones were scrambling for a name in 1962, Keith Richards recalled in a VH1 interview that it came down to a quick glance at a record. A copy of The Best of Muddy Waters was lying around, flipped over to show the track list. They saw Rollin’ Stone, and just like that, they became The Rollin’ Stones—until their manager insisted they add the “g.” And rock history was set.
From Mississippi Blues to Rock ‘n’ Roll Legends
The phrase itself goes way back to the proverb “a rolling stone gathers no moss.” In Williams’ version, the rolling stone is a symbol of loneliness. Waters flipped that script—his rollin’ stone is a restless womanizer who visits while husbands are away. It’s the same archetype found years later in The Temptations’ Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone.
Waters’ version also borrowed from earlier blues traditions. The first verse was inspired by Robert Petway’s 1941 track Catfish Blues, with Muddy dreaming of being a slick catfish chased by pretty women.
Though Waters had earlier failed releases, this 1950 single—his first under the Chess label—changed everything. It sold well, marking the real start of a legendary blues career that would echo far beyond Chicago and into the name of the most famous rock ‘n’ roll band in the world.
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