BYHALIA, Miss. (AP) - Memphis music pioneer and Mississippi native Rufus Thomas will be honored Monday with a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail during a ceremony in Byhalia.

Thomas, a native of Cayce, Miss., and who died at age 84 in 2001, was 1 of Memphis' most colorful and well-known entertainers.

Early in his career he was a radio disc jockey and co-host of an amateur show that helped entertainers such as B.B. King get their start.

Thomas made Sun Records' first successful recording in 1953 with "Bear Cat." He recorded at Sun before Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis began their careers there with producer Sam Phillips.

Thomas was best known for novelty dance recordings such as "Walking the Dog," ''Do the Funky Chicken" and "Push and Pull."

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