Thornton, Willie Mae (1926–1984)

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Thornton, Willie Mae (1926–1984)

African-American blues singer who had a hit with "Hound Dog" long before Elvis Presley recorded it. Name variations: Big Mama Thornton. Born on December 11, 1926, in Montgomery, Alabama; died in Los Angeles, California, on July 25, 1984.

Anyone who doubts the existence of racism in American music should study the life of Big Mama Thornton, who was the first to perform the song "Hound Dog." While Elvis Presley made millions off Thornton's creative work, she died in obscure poverty. Said Johnny Otis, "You have to understand that white people love the music but despise the people who created it." Black music and musicians were often exploited by whites.

Willie Mae Thornton was born in 1926 in Montgomery, Alabama. She learned music in church, where her father was a minister and her mother a member of the choir. Thornton began singing in amateur shows throughout the state and then stopped singing briefly when her mother died in 1939. In 1941, she toured the Gulf Coast with Sammy Green's Hot Harlem Revue. In 1948, she settled down in Houston, Texas, where she performed at the Eldorado Club. Her first recording was made in 1951 with E&W Records. After Johnny Otis spotted her, Thornton joined his Rhythm and Blues Caravan. It was Otis who gave her the nickname "Big Mama." Thornton also often performed with Johnny Ace until 1954, when he accidentally shot himself playing Russian roulette.

Big Mama Thornton's first hit was the song "Hound Dog." Written by Otis, with Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller, the record was released in August 1952 and became the No. 1 rhythm and blues song of 1953. Thornton received only $500 for her performance. In 1956, Elvis Presley recorded this same song; his version sold over one million copies. Said Thornton, "I've been singing way before Elvis was born. And he jumps up and becomes a millionaire before me … off of something that I made popular. They gave him the right … now, why they do that. He makes a million and all this jive because his face is different from mine." Thornton faced prejudice in the concert hall as well, as did all black singers in the years before civil-rights legislation. "I had to play one night for the colored and the next night for the whites," said Thornton. "It was humiliating and it was the law of the South that you couldn't integrate audiences because there would be a cop waiting to lock you up. Sometimes we even had segregated audiences in the North."

Little is known about Willie Mae Thornton's private life, which she kept strictly to herself. Otis, who was closer to her than many, said:

There was a guy around sometimes who was introduced as her husband, but I don't really think they were legally married. He was there as long as money was coming it. I could never get a handle on Willie Mae sexually and that's not a judgment…. People in the band heard these rumors that she was gay. She was a big woman and sometimes wore suits or masculine kinds of clothes, but that might not mean anything. All I can honestly say is that she was a good intelligent person. I personally never saw her with any men, but on the other hand, I never saw her with any women either. So all I know is that I don't know much about it.

By 1957, Thornton's career had begun to wind down. Peacock Records cheated her out of money so she quit and moved out to San Francisco, where she played with local clubs. She appeared at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1964 and more appearances followed. Thornton toured with the American Folk Blues Festival in 1965 and re-recorded "Hound Dog." In 1967, the album Big Mama Thornton with the Chicago Blues Band was released. She also appeared on "The Dick Cavett Show," "The Della Reese Show," "The Midnight Special," and "Rock 1." Said Michael Erlewine, "Big Mama liked people. She'd look right at you and talk to you. She wasn't afraid of you, so there was nothing separating you and her. She included you in whatever was going on, but she wasn't catty. She was real." "She was a big woman," he added, "but she could sing her ass off. Janis Joplin learned most of her style from her. Everyone listened to Janis instead of Big Mama. I never quite understood that."

Big Mama Thornton kept working and kept winning fans into the 1980s, long after Joplin and Presley were dead. This was small consolation as she sunk deeper and deeper into poverty. Thornton had become an alcoholic. She had no royalties, not even from her reissues which were selling, and lived almost penniless in a Los Angeles boarding house. She died in Los Angeles on July 25, 1984. Said Otis: "It was Willie Mae, her sister, and a couple of friends sitting around drinking Jack Daniels or something. Willie Mae just put her head down on the table and never came up." She was 58.

Like many black performers, Thornton gained a place in death she had never enjoyed in life. Her records are still heard and her name is frequently mentioned in books and articles. She was a truly great performer.