"Key to the Highway" is usually credited to Charles "Chas" Segar and William "Big Bill" Broonzy.

[3] The verses use the theme of the itinerant bluesman leaving to travel the highways after breaking up with his lover:[4] I got the key to the highway, billed out and bound to go I'm gonna leave here runnin', because walkin' is much too slow ... Give me one more kiss mama, just before I go 'Cause when I'm leavin' here, I won't be back no more[1] Musically, however, there are differences in the recorded versions.

In two different interviews, Gillum gave conflicting stories about who wrote the song: in one, he claimed sole authorship, in another he identified Broonzy "the real author".

While it is difficult to gauge which version was the most popular, the eight-bar arrangement used by Gillum and Broonzy has become the standard for subsequent recordings.

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).

Eric Clapton recorded "Key to the Highway" for Derek and the Dominos' 1970 landmark album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.

When record producer Tom Dowd heard it, he quickly told the engineers to "hit the goddamn machine!"

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.