Funkiest Man Alive

Certificate of Merit Recipient for the 2024 Association for Recorded Sound Collections Award for Excellence in Historical Sound Research in Recorded Blues, R&B, Gospel, Hip Hop or Soul Music Rufus Thomas may not be a household name, but he is widely regarded as the patriarch of Memphis R&B, and his music influenced three generations. His first singles in the early 1950s were recorded as blues transitioned into R&B, and he was arguably one of the founding fathers of early rock ’n’ rol