Big Mama Thornton Sings the Blues

Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton was born in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1926. As was the case with many outstanding blues singers, Thorton got started singing in the Baptist church where her father was minister. She left Montgomery at 14, following her mother's death. She joined the Hot Harlem review and toured the south with the group for seven years until she settled in Houston in 1948 where she began her recording career with Peacock Records. Her recording of Hound Dog rose quickly to the top of the R&B chart and made her a star, but it earned her little money. Several years later, Elvis Presly made a hit recording of the song. She went on to record with Lightnin' Hopkins and Muddy Waters. She moved from Houston to San Francisco where she played at local blues clubs. She played at the Monerey Jazz Festival in 1966 and '68, at the San Francisco Blues Festival in 1979 and at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1980. She died in 1984 and was named to the Blues Hall of Fame that year.