Willie Mae ("Big Mama") Thornton (December 11, 1926 – July 25, 1984) was an American Texas blues, R&B singer, and songwriter. She was the original singer to record the hit song "Hound Dog" in 1952. The song was #1 on the Billboard R&B charts for seven weeks.[LINK: http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/bio/index.jsp?pid=1433] Billboard: History about the song Hound Dog The B-side was "They Call Me Big Mama," and the single sold almost two million copies.[LINK: http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/TT/fthpg.html] University of Texas: Willa Mae Thornton Three years later, Elvis Presley recorded the Rock 'n' roll version of the song. In a similar occurrence, she wrote and recorded "Ball n' Chain," which became a hit for her. Janis Joplin later recorded "Ball and Chain," and it became a huge success in the late 1960s.

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