Willie Mae ‘Big Mama’ Thornton

White or black. Rich or poor. If you ever had your heart broken
you have right to sing the blues.  ― Big Mama Thornton

Willie Mae Thornton (b. 12/11/26 – d. 7/25/84,) better known as “Big Mama” Thornton, was an American singer and songwriter of the blues and R&B. She was the first to record Leiber and Stoller’s “Hound Dog“, in 1952, which became her biggest hit, staying seven weeks at number one on the Billboard R&B chart in 1953 and selling almost two million copies. Thornton’s other recordings included the original version of “Ball and Chain“, which she wrote.

Her recording of “Hound Dog”, later recorded by Elvis Presley, reached Number 1 on the Rhythm & Blues Records chart. According to Maureen Mahon, a music professor at New York University, “the song is seen as an important beginning of rock-and-roll, especially in its use of the guitar as the key instrument.”

Early Life:
Thornton’s birth certificate states that she was born in Ariton, Alabama, a rural area near Montgomery.  Her father, George W. Thornton, was a Baptist minister, and he was almost two decades older than his wife, Mattie. Thornton had five older siblings and a younger brother, who died shortly after he was born. When she was around 4 years old, the family moved to Troy City, Pike County, also in Alabama. There, her mother, Mattie, would sing in the church choir and would take her daughter with her.   Mattie died young of tuberculosis, when Willie Mae was thirteen.

Musical Beginnings:
Willie Mae was introduced to music in church.   Thornton and her six siblings began to sing at early ages. Her musical education started in the church but continued through her observation of the rhythm-and-blues singers Bessie Smith and Memphis Minnie, the songwriter, guitarist, and singer who was also hailed as the “Queen of the Blues.” In 1940 she left home and, with the help of Diamond Teeth Mary, joined Sammy Green’s Hot Harlem Revue and was soon billed as the “New Bessie Smith.”

Thornton’s career began to take off when she moved to Houston in 1948. “A new kind of popular blues was coming out of the clubs in Texas and Los Angeles, full of brass horns, jumpy rhythms, and wisecracking lyrics.” In 1951 she signed a recording contract with Peacock Records and performed at the Apollo Theater in 1952. Also in 1952, while working with another Peacock artist Johnny Otis, she recorded “Hound Dog.”

Style:
Thornton’s performances were characterized by her deep, powerful voice and strong sense of self. She was given her nickname, “Big Mama,” by Frank Schiffman, the manager of Harlem’s Apollo Theater, because of her strong voice, size, and personality. Thornton stated that she was louder than any microphone and did not want a microphone to ever be as loud as she was. Alice Echols, the author of a biography of Janis Joplin, said that Thornton could sing in a “pretty voice” but did not want to. Thornton said, “My singing comes from my experience… My own experience. I never had no one teach me nothin’. I never went to school for music or nothin’. I taught myself to sing and to blow harmonica and even to play drums by watchin’ other people! I can’t read music, but I know what I’m singing! I don’t sing like nobody but myself.“

Discography:
Studio and live albums: 7
Compilations: 3

Some things to share:
Willie Mae Thornton died in a Los Angeles rooming house. Ironically enough, it was after her death that Thornton got recognition. She was also inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame posthumously, and her song, “Ball and Chain,” was included in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s “500 Songs That Shaped Rock.”

Official website: I did not find an official website, but I found Encyclopedia of Alabama had entry for her here.

Sources:
wikipedia
Grunge