But probably not exactly how most people would expect.
Big Mama's biggest song was "Hound Dog" and, as was common in the earlier blues era, in 1953 an answer song was recorded at a small studio in Memphis by a young artist named Rufus Thomas called "Bear Cat". The song was a big hit regionally, but the label, Sun Records and it's owner Sam Phillips, were quickly hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit. A couple years after this, Sam had a hot, young singer on his hands by the name of Elvis Presley who was lighting up the south with a new sound of hillbilly music fused with blues, but Philips studio was in danger of going under due to the "Bear Cat" lawsuit. When RCA came calling to purchase Presley's contact, Phillips didn't have much choice but to oblige because the money they were offering would cover the expenses of the copyright suit. Elvis Presley would go on to be a worldwide sensation over the course of the next year, 1956, and he would, in a bit of irony, rework Big Mama Thornton's famous song into a hit of his own.
So, in a convoluted way, Big Mama Thornton helped bring about Elvis Presley.
All that ramble being said, Thornton was an incredible artist and force in her own right!
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