In 1968, Taj Mahal recorded a popular blues rock adaptation of the song with a prominent slide guitar part by Jesse Ed Davis.

His rendition inspired a recording by the Allman Brothers Band, which is ranked number nine on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time".

[6] The eight sides he recorded for Victor, including "Statesboro Blues", have been described as "superb examples of storytelling in music, coupled with dazzling guitar work.

[13] Duane Allman contributes the slide guitar, which Rolling Stone later described as featuring "the moaning and squealing opening licks [that] have given fans chills at live shows.

"[21] Allman's version comes from when his brother Gregg gave him a record by Taj Mahal (containing his version of "Statesboro Blues") and a bottle of Coricidin pills, both for his birthday and as Duane had a cold that day; a short while later, Duane, who had never played slide guitar before, washed the label from the Coricidin bottle after emptying out the pills and learned how to play the song, even exhibiting it to Gregg.

In 2008, Rolling Stone magazine ranked the Allman Brothers Band's version of "Statesboro Blues" number nine in its list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time".

[16] The song was still a staple of the Allman Brothers Band's live shows in later years, with either Derek Trucks or Warren Haynes playing slide guitar.