Willie Mae Thornton: Big Mama to the end

WILLIE MAE Thornton, called Big Mama by friends and fans, sang the sort of boisterous blues that made one want to roll around in the street, throwing money at the moon. Her best songs always went straight to the heart — bypassing that unnecessary filter called the brain — and could shake the soul inside-out with their power. The first time I ever saw her sing, the person I was with beat a styrofoam ice chest to smithereens and chewed up the remains. Big Mama's ominous voice could do that: crawl inside your guts and tell you it's all right to go wild.