Tina Turner

The Bullock family had immediate family members throughout the Tennessee hills.

While Alline and Anna were young, Zelma realized that her daughters had the smoky, vocal tone of singing, just like her aunt, Essy Flagg. She especially noticed this great talent in Anna. Their family, on both sides, apart from Essy, were not very musical.

Anna’s family lived by a white couple who they considered the ‘good white people’. They had treated the girls very well. They counseled them in the ways of white folk and fashion, and when the T.V. came about, they allowed them to watch it.

While Anna was at the Poindexters’, she rarely missed being with her family. In her home, she always felt left out. Her parents barely had time for her older sister, Alline. Whenever Anna was not in school, or at work, assigned along with her family in the cotton and strawberry field, she would always roam the pastures and woodlands to search for strength in solitude. This is was she became to believe that thats the way things were supposed to be.

When her father went hunting, she would sometimes tag along with him, “ ‘cause I was always a tomboy.” (1) They would kill at least three hogs for the winter, and store the sausages and hams in the smokehouse.

Tina later recalls, “ I was just a country girl, you see. I was very curious about water, and fish and climbing trees; climbing anything. I wasn’t interested at all in grown- ups and whatever they were doing, and that was because, mainly, they weren’t interested in me. The fat is, I had no love from my mother or my father from the beginning, from birth. But I survived. To tell the truth, I haven’t received a real love almost ever in my life, believe it or not. People look at me now and think what a ho like I must’ve lived- ha! I never found a real, lasting love. But I have survived. Alienation, rejection- I didn’t know those words existed when I was a child. I just knew that I couldn’t communicate with my mother, and that my father didn’t seem to want me around.” (2)

When Anna was almost five, Richard and Zelma sent for their daughter to join them for a few months in Knoxville. When Anna and her mother would go out shopping, Anna would sing for the people. They would give her quarters and half dollars to sing more. In those days, a child was lucky to have pennies or a nickel.

While Anna’s parents were at work, the two girls were left in the care of Mrs. Blake. Mrs. Blake would take them to a local Pentecostal church. It was different compared to the stern Baptists back home. Anna would get in to the loud music and the singing and dancing. Her sister recalled, “One time Ann’s underpants fell down around her ankles, she was dancing so hard. But she didn’t let up.” (3)

The girls only visited their parents for a brief time. The went beck to Nut Bush, but it wasn’t long after that their parents’ jobs phased out and they too returned.

Anna had always had the feeling of being isolated but now it was increasing as her parents continued to fight. If it hadn’t been for the closeness of Alline and her cousin Margaret, she would have felt totally out in the cold, so to speak.

Margaret was always sweet and open to Anna. She was only three years older than Anna. They would always talk about life, love, and sex. This was the person that she always turned to. Margaret told her stuff that her mom should have told her, but being her mom wasn’t so open, Margaret took on that task.

Anna was sadden when they were only able to see each other on weekend, usually Saturday night.

Anna, Alline, Margaret, Joe Melvin ( Margaret’s brother), and Evelyn (Margaret’s sister), would always go out to the movies or hang out by the Hole. The Hole was like the alley were all the cool people would hang out and where many would get lucky in the backseat. There had been many times when they would pass a car with fogged up windows. Anna knew they were doing something, but she really didn’t know exactly what. At this time she was about nine, so it’s understandable.

Now Margaret meant so much to Anna. She was closer to her than her own mother, even her sister. Margaret was her only real friend, really her first teacher too. Anna felt that she was godsent.

In between the visits, Anna would sing in the church choir. She was the only little girl in there among the teenagers. She always had the solo parts and the lead parts in the songs. While she was busy singing, Evelyn would get in trouble during church, for being in the backseats with boys.

Anna Mae always had dreams of Hollywood. She could not dream about picking cotton or strawberries. She always wanted the glamorous life. She hated having to do this all the time. The black school always would close during the time that cotton and strawberries had to be picked. It was seasonal.

In 1950, she was ten, going on eleven, and the problems with her parents got worse. Her mom would always take off to her mother’s house for a few days. Then one day her mom left. Anna felt it coming. When it finally happened, her father panicked and looked everywhere and had no luck, she has disappeared. Zelma wasn’t even in the South, she moved to St. Louis to live with an aunt.

This is when Anna found out how much she loved her mother, and how much she hated her. She wanted her to come back so bad, but she never did. “ I used to go to the mailbox everyday, but there were no letters. I used to cry and cry. Finally, one day I just sat up and said: “ Damn you, Mother.” Just like that. I was so hurt. I had wanted her love for so long, and now I would never have it.” (4)

Her father was not too depressed about it. He soon remarried. He married a divorcee, Essie Mae, who had a daughter named Nettie Mae, who was Anna’s age.

They all moved to Scott’s Hill, next door to a cemetery. That’s when her father would beat Essie. She would wild on him, both time that he did hit her. She would pull out a knife and stab him. Once she stabbed him in the groin, luckily she missed his family jewels. Then soon Essie and Nettie were gone too.

Then when Anna was thirteen, her cousin Ella Vera had found out that Anna hadn’t started her period yet and had her father take her to be examined. There was nothing wrong at all.

But soon after that, her father left too. He took off for Detroit and left the girls with Ella Vera. Anna believed that his leaving caused her to start her period, and hated him for it. Her parents never contacted either of them, ever.

By 1954, her paternal grandfather died. Evelyn got pregnant and had a girl. Margaret got pregnant but never told anyone but Anna. Margaret told her everything, and taught her how to kiss. It was only a kiss, nothing sexual. Margaret wanted to go to college, but never made.

One night Margaret and Evelyn went out with some guy and another one of their cousins, Vela Evans. The guy was drunk and ran the car that they were in, head first into a diesel truck. Only Vela Lived. Anna was devastated.. The only person she loved with all her heart was taken away from her. She was only fourteen by this time and she fainted when she found out Margaret died.

The girls funeral service was together. Anna felt they should have done something to cover the wounds on their heads a bit better, out of respect.

A year after Margaret’s death, Anna had her first love in high school. Anna was not to good in math, but was great in all other areas. She was a cheerleader and basketball player. She would do half time shows after playing then go back and play some more. She went to Lauderdale High School, while Harry Taylor, the guy she liked, went to Carver High School. She first saw his at a game then later on, she was transferred to his school.

Now Harry was really sweet to her and she really liked him. But later on in their relationship, they had sex and he cheated on her. He just used her for sex.

By 1956, Zelma’s mother died, and Zelma went for the funeral. Not too long after that, Anna went to live with her as well, since her sister was already there.

She was only sixteen when she first saw Ike Turner. Her first impression of him was, “ God, I wonder why so many women like him? He sure is ugly.” (5) But she did love his singing voice. He was in a group called Kings of Rhythm.

At this time Ike already had one boy of his own. He always had many girlfriend. He was always very protective of his women. When they were all there at one of his performances, he would stay on stage the whole time to avoid any fights with them.

Now, Anna’s sister Alline had been dating the Kings’ drummer Gene Washington. Every time Anna went with Alline to the clubs, Gene would take care of her to make sure she was safe.

One day he noticed that she knew all the songs they were playing and knew all the words. She would sing beautifully. So he put a microphone near the area she would sit near the stage and it would pick up her voice. She never realized it, but everyone would wonder where that singing was coming from.

Ike never took any interest in her at all at this point in time. The other band members liked her a lot, but she was not Ike’s type. He liked big women, with big legs and especially big butts. His girlfriend Lorraine was all his type.

This became a bit of a problem for Anna when she wanted to be on stage as well with them. She was only seventeen at the time and she went to all of the shows she could. There was always crowds of people wanting to go up stage to get a chance to sing with the group. But only the bigger women were picked. One day Anna asked Alline to tell Gene to get her on stage. Gene did his best, but Ike never took her up.

Then one night she got up the guts. When Gene was trying to get Alline on stage, Anna took the microphone and sang along to the song that Ike had been playing. It was B.B. King’s song ‘ You Know I Love You’. Ike was very impressed, so he played all the songs she knew.

Ike asked her to sing with them all the time. She didn’t want her mom to find out because Ike was not a very good guy, he was violent.

But Zelma found out when one of the ladies in the group went to her house to get Anna because she was late for rehearsal. She got really mad because she wanted her to be a nurse. She didn’t want he daughter involved with a guy who would hit people with guns, let alone have a gun. This was the first time Zelma acted considered for her.

But Ike went and asked Zelma if she could sing for the group and Zelma let her. He went and took her to buy stage outfits and the whole bit.

Ike’s Little Ann was his ticket out of St. Louis. He valued her a lot, mainly for her talent.

Ann started dating Raymond Hill, sax player in the band. In November 1957, when she was barely turning eighteen, jut half- way through her senior year, she got pregnant.

Raymond had to leave the group soon after because he had a really bad break in his ankle.

So Ann stayed with Ike, but in Raymond’s old room. Lorraine got suspicious of the pregnancy and one night she woke Ann up with a gun in her hand and a poking iron in the other. Lorraine wanted to know the truth about the coming baby. Ann said it was Ray’s, but Lorraine didn’t let up. She finally said Ann was not worth it and went to the bathroom and locked herself in there.

Ike went to talk to her but she wouldn’t unlock the door for a while. When she did, she shot herself in the chest. She didn’t die though. The bullet went through both lungs, her heart sac and came out her back.

Ann moved back with her mother, than on August 20, 1958, she gave birth to her first son, Raymond Craig. Ike had Ike junior on October 3 from Lorraine.

For Ann to make ends meet with the fifteen dollars Ike paid her a week, she had a day job as a practical nurse’s assistant in the maternity ward of Barnes Hospital. She got a sitter for her son while she was at work.

Ike then took Ann back in his house. It was his first step moving into her life. He raised her pay to twenty- five dollars a week. They were like brother and sister. She would sleep in the bed with him and Lorraine, nothing ever happened though, only sleeping.

Lorraine and Ike broke up for a while. Thats when the friendship moved to love with Ann and Ike. By January, 1960, Ann got pregnant by Ike. At the same time Ike got back with Lorraine since she just had another son by him on February 23, 1959. This one was Michael. Ann was depressed, so she moved out and got her own house in St. Louis. Ann hoped she wasn’t pregnant for sure. But she was.

Early spring of 1960, they recorded ‘A Fool in Love’. They sent it to every record company in the country, and all of them turned it down.

Juggy Murray signed Ike, later, with a twenty- five- thousand- dollar advance. It was only because of Ann’s voice that made the track. He told Ike she should be the lead singer. Thats when Ike changed the group name to Ike and Tina Turner.

“Ann, however, had reservations- about this name change, about her whole relationship with Ike. At first they had been just friend- fine. But now here she was pregnant by the guy, and getting in deeper everyday.” (6) She didn’t want to have to face the fact of his cheating on her again. But at twenty now, she tried to keep it was professional as possible.

They were two totally different people. Tina knew it could never work out between them. “ He would pay my rent, but basically keep all the money for himself. I told him I didn’t want to get involved any further with him. And that was the first time he beat me up. With a shoe stretcher- one of those men’s shoe trees with the metal rod in the middle? Just grabbed one of those and started beating me with it. And after that he made me go to bed, and he had sex with me. My eye was all swollen, God, it was awful. And that was the beginning, the beginning of Ike instilling fear in me. He kept control of me with fear.

“ Why didn’t I leave him? It’s easy now to say I should’ve. But look at my situation then: I already had one child, and was pregnant with another but him. Singing with Ike was how I made my living. And I was living better than I ever had in my life.” (7) She figured if she stayed, she could make things better.

The summer of 1960 ‘A Fool in Love’ was released. It was a hit and Ike was so happy it had his name on it. He wanted to go on tour, but Tina got jaundice and had to be in the hospital. She wasn’t showing in her pregnancy, but two weeks in there, she started getting big. While she was in there, their song played a lot on the radio. “I got to hate that goddamn song. I’d have to lie there, all sick and swollen up, and listen to “ A Fool in Love” everyday, and I’d be thinking- it sounds funny now, but it’s the truth- I’d be thinking: “ What’s love go to do with it?” You know? Because here I was, pregnant by Ike Turner, who’s gone back to his wife, and now she’s getting suspicious.... I mean, this was not my idea of love at all.” (8)

‘A Fool in Love’ was getting really hot, and Ike was ready to travel. So he found the best way to get Tina out of the hospital. She snuck out and someone picked her up and she went home to the house she had been renting.

She had to alter the costume she had. She also made something to hide her pregnant tummy as well.

Their first show was in Cincinnati. Soon Ike got female backup singers and called them the Ikettes. On October 3, 1960, they appeared on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. Tina was eight months pregnant now.

When she was close to having the baby due, they were in Las Vegas. They went to Los Angeles so Ike could work there. That night that they got to Los Angeles, she went into labor. Ike was no help. He had her get a shot to freeze her muscles to hold off the labor until she got to the hospital that was far away. It didn’t work, so early morning on October 27, Ronald Renelle was born.

Lorraine never knew about it till she noticed the baby looked like Ike. She left Ike with her sons, never to return. Now there was four boys by Ike that they took care of.

Three days after birth, Tina was released home. Then two days later she was set to perform in Oakland. Ike found a girl that look like Tina and had her act like Tina while Tina was resting. The girl was a prostitute and played tricks with all the guys in the band. Tina had to fix the girl when some of them asked her about the date she supposively promised them. “Ike wasn’t around, so I called this girl up to my room and told her, you know “ You can’t do this.” She started cursing- and I don’t know where I got the strength from, but I picked her up and threw her in the bathtub. I wanted to kill her. I thought I’d never be able to clear my name after that.” (9)

She then got dressed and went on stage to do the show. She only did two songs, and sat down to sing them. She bled a lot when she hit the high notes. She got two weeks to recover after that.

Ike flew back to St. Louis to stand trail for the bank job he’d allegedly been involved in. This is when Tina decided to bleach her hair since it was the in thing to do.

They had over bleached her hair and left the heat cap on too long. All her hair fell off. Her hair would grow back, but slowly, so she started wearing wigs. And she started the look.

The year that followed the release of their hit, Tina began to realize how unhappy she was with her life. She hated all the songs they made, hated the fact that Ike always had her screaming and screeching.

She was most unhappy with her relationship with Ike. He was totally unpredictable. “ You ‘d hear this sound and you’d look and he’d be sitting there, drumming his nails on the table, staring at you, kind of muttering: “ You’re screwin’ around with me.” Like that. For no reason. And then you knew you were gonna get it. You just never knew when. Out of nowhere, he would leap up from a couch and walk right up to you and- POW! Any you’d go, “What did I do? What’s wrong?” POW! again. It was insane. It got to be that I always had a black eye and a busted lip- that was the basic beat- up. He would beat me with shoes, she trees, anything that was handy. And then he would have sex with me. It was torture plain and simple. I always had a cut on my head somewhere, always had bruises. And on top of that, there was the mental torture. We’d be in the back of the car and he’d suddenly look at me and say, “what’s the matter with you?” And I’d freeze- “ Oh... nothing, Ike. Nothing.” But I’d have to try to be sweet then; and I’d be sitting there wondering if he was going to hit me, and when. Waiting for it. And he’d be saying, “ What’s on your fuckin’ mind?” “ Nothing, Ike.” “ Yes it is. You’re trying to fuck with me.” And finally- bam! Bam! And then whomp! POW! And then the shoe would come off... and there I was. And then he would be fine, as if nothing had ever happened. And later I’d be on stage thryin’ to thing through these cut and swollen lips.” (10)

This torture would get worse and sometimes in public. It just got more and more when they moved to Los Angeles. Ike the more desperate he got for another hit, the crazier and crazier he got.

“ One time, early on, I was dumb enough to tell Ike how I felt. Still thought he was my friend, right? Wrong- POW! After that, I kept my feelings to myself. I didn’t complain.” (11)

The kids still were living in St. Louis at this time, so they rented a place and continued working. Deep down inside, Tina started telling herself that she was not going to be with Ike for very long.

Ike lost most of his original band because of money disputes. So band members would come and go over the years. The Ikettes were pretty stable though. In 1961 they got an addition to them. The Ikettes were black women. Bonnie Lynn O’ Farrell was his first and last white Ikette. She would later be in a rock team called, ‘ Delaney & Bonnie’.

Ike and Tina were fading in the charts. The new songs they were making were like remakes of their last record out. So ‘Poor Fool’ and ‘ Tra La La La La’ was not very successful.

In 1962, Ike decided to marry Tina. They wee in Tijuana and they found a place to be married and did it. Ike was not divorced from his first wife until 1974. So their marriage was never legal.

When Ike signed up for the record contract with Juggy Murray, he was given forty thousand dollars. What made Juggy upset was that Ike would cut records on his own and send him the masters. They weren’t anything. He would not do anything that Juggy told him. Ike had bought a house with the money.

A while back Ike had started calling the whole group the Revue. They toured all the time, even when their hits were diminishing. They never had any roadies with them, so they had to carry all their own equipment and they only had two guys who would drive the bus, so it was hard on them.

This lead to more flirting for Ike. “Sometimes I’d see him fooling around with one of the Ikettes, or picking up women from the audience at a show- and sending me home early. He started renting party rooms at the hotels we stayed at, just for him and the band and he women they’d bring back from the show. I was never allowed in there. Later on, the party rooms became party suites. I was jealous and hurt. But I couldn’t say anything- no one could say anything to Ike. Because you never knew what he’d do.

“He might go out shopping and come back with tons of boxes: diamonds, fur coats, all kinds of presents- it was like Christmas. But then a little while later, I’d see an Ikette or one of his other women walking by wearing the same thing he’d just bought me. And I knew. I’m known what he was like when I met him- all the women- and now I was beginning to realize that he’d never change. That I would never be enough for him. That no woman could.” (12)

Ike had his eye on Ann Thomas and Anna Cain.

Ann Cain spent a lot of time with the Turners. She was hired as their housekeeper and to look after the boys, who were all around the ages of three to five.

Ann said, “Ike and Tina were always gone and the housekeeper they’d been paying hadn’t trained these kids. One was spoiled as hell, one thought he was rich- always ripping his clothes so he could wear new ones to school the next day- and one wet his bed because he had emotional problems. They didn’t know their address, their phone number, how to wash, how to eat. I taught them their manners, etiquette: taught them how to tell time: helped them with their homework. I moved right in with them, and I kept them in line, because, honey, I’d beat their behinds all the way into the house if I had to. Those kids did not like me, but they respected me.” (13)

Tina did her best to take care of her boys when she was around. She was the most closest to Ronnie.

When Ann was moved into their house, she witnessed the truth of the relationship of Tina and Ike. She believes no one should be treated by another human the way Ike treated Tina. No one should have to put up with it.

The only reason Tina stayed, was because of the kids. It’s sad, because he would make her do the photo sessions with bruises and cuts. She would have to use a lot of make- up to cover it all up.

Even though Ann didn’t like the way Ike treated Tina, she got involved with his ways. Tina found out during the first road trip she took with the Revue. Ann wore one of Ike’s shirts that said ‘His’. The next time Tina saw her without Ike, she beat her up.

By 1964, Ann had gotten to be their business manager, so Ike had to look for another housekeeper for the kids. Rhonda was their next housekeeper. This got Ann upset because Rhonda was the next woman in the picture.

Around this time, Ike was getting involved with drugs. He started off with marijuana. He made Tina smoke one once. But that was the last time she ever touched the stuff.

In 1965, the Ikettes and Rhonda left Ike. The Ikettes were hot, but they had to go as the Mariettes. Ike would not drop that he created them, so they finally gave up.

In the summer of 1965, Phil Spector called Bob Krasnow, the Turner’s new record manager. He wanted to cut a record only with Tina. In 1966 Tina started recording ‘River Deep- Mountain High’. It was the first time Tina actually liked recording a song, and actually like the song she was recording. Ike was never allowed in the studio. So if she messed up, she would only hear from Phil that she almost has it right.

Although everyone who was involved in making this single was expecting it to be a hit. It only made it to number eighty- eight in the pop charts in it’s first week. Tina realized that it was too black for the pop stations, and too pop for the black stations, so the record never found a home. No one wanted to give it a chance, but it proved that Tina was capable of doing something other than what Ike was telling her to do.

Although it didn’t do so well in the States, it was at number three on the British charts, and stayed on the Top 50 charts for thirteen weeks.

The Rolling Stones soon invited the Ike and Tina Revue along with their show.

By this time, the Revue was already going through it’s second set of Ikettes. This is when Tina started falling out of love with Ike. All she started asking of him was for him not to take his girlfriends to her bed. Then later she found out from a picture he showed her and from one of the kids, was that Gloria Garcia had been living there while Tina was gone, and sleeping in her bed. Then Ann Thomas and Tina became friend because Tina was letting Ike go, little by little. All of his girlfriend became her friends.

The Stones tour was twelve dates in all long that was booked from September 23 through October 9. Ike and Tina played at all of those plus another dozen on the side. Tina was so busy with always getting ready for the next gig, she never saw the Stones play.

England was the beginning of Tina’s escape from Ike. When Tina would do this English TV show called, ‘Ready! Steady! Go!’, Vicki Wickham and her friends were trying to figure out if Tina was a lesbian because Tina would check out other women, trying to learn all she could about beauty and clothes and carriage. Vicki and her friends always saw this and Tina with the Ikettes, so they thought she was gay. But Tina talked to them and they found out how unhappy she was with Ike, not that it was hard to figure out.

When Tina and Ike had a bad fight in London, Vicki felt sorry for her. Vicki took her to a reader of cards. Tina was told that she would be among the biggest of stars and her partner would fall away like a leaf from a tree. Tina liked that a great deal. But Tina felt kinda sorry for Ike, even after he would beat her, she felt sorry for him. She was very mixed up. The reader had mentioned a six. So she held on for six weeks, six months, then six years, then she just kept holding on. She went to more readers and they all told her the same thing, she’d be big and away from Ike.

When they left Europe, she was saddened because she felt that she belonged there. She actually like the name of Tina, because of the way the Europeans said her name so beautifully. In Europe, Ike actually let Tina go out shopping by herself. She loved it because it was her only time alone from Ike.

When they went home, Tina caught Ike and Ann Cain in a porno position and took off. Ann had to leave. Then one day Ann came around and Tina was going to whack her with a hammer. but she never got the chance because the floor was so slippery and Ike broke it up.

Tina left Ike for a bit after he beat her for buying a wig he told her she couldn’t have. She borrowed some money from the Ikettes and got on a bus to St. Louis to her sister’s house. But Ike tracked the bus down and got her off the bus. When he got her home, he beat her with a wire hanger.

Ike had to get a new band by now. Tina fell for one of them, hard. It was Johnny Williams. Nothing ever happened between them but close friendship. Then one day when Tina went on stage, all beaten up, Johnny started crying and put his sax down and walked out, never to return. He could not work for anyone like Ike any longer.

Ike started getting bolder with his cocaine. It made him more violent. It got to the point to where everyone was scared to say a word to him. The cocaine made him evil.

In 1967, Tina’s depression got deeper. In 1968, Tina and Ann Thomas found out they were both pregnant, both by Ike. “So Tina said to Ann, “I’m not having another one for him- forget that, honey. If you want it, you have it.” And Tina terminated that pregnancy.” (14)

Tina really wished that Ike would marry Ann. She was always with them every where they went, Tina on one side and Ann on the other, even in bed. Ann would get beat too.

One day when they were going to their hotel, a man noticed Ann and followed them to the hotel and left a message for the woman he’d seen riding with Ike and Tina.

Ike got the message and later that night, he beat Ann in the hall of the hotel but the stairs. Tina went to where this was happening and looked at Ann, then Ike, and told him he should be ashamed. But he was embrassed because shame didn’t enter into things.

Ann Cain left for good when she found out when Ann Thomas was having Ike’s baby.

By the time Tina was twenty- eight, going on twenty- nine, she was becoming a familiar battered face at the local hospitals. She would go in bad shape, all beat up and bruised, face swollen, bloody noses, hematoma on the eyes, all puffed out and black. She was never admitted except for once when she had an overdose.

Tina got to the point were she wanted to die. She went to her family doctor and told him she wasn’t sleeping. So he gave Valiums, the strongest kind, and fifty of them.

Before they left for a show they were doing in LA, she went to the bathroom and took all fifty of the pills, then left with them.

Rhonda Gramm noticed Tina was putting on eyeliner and it was going down her cheek bone. She asked her what she do and Tina said, “ I took shum shleepin’ pillzhh” .(15) They took her to two hospitals. The first one wouldn’t that emergencies so they took her to Daniel Freeman Hospital. Tina kept saying she just wanted to die. They pumped her stomach, but they couldn’t get a pulse on her. The doctor told Ike she was gone and Ike went to talk to her. “And he comes in and he starts talking, and the doctor told him to keep it up and they started getting a pulse. Later we joked that Ike must have said, “ You motherfucker, you better not die, I’ll kill you.” That’s how insanely afraid of that man I was.” (16)

When she came around, she felt she only had her braids and she was in a white room, thinking she was in heaven. “ I saw his face and I said, “Oh, no”- right out loud- and I just turned and looked the other way. But boy, he had some words for me. “You motherfucker, you tryin’ to ruin my life....” I couldn’t believe I was still here on earth, still having to hear this stuff.” (17)

He made her got and sing and after she’d be coughing and throwing up. Ike told her it served her right that she wanted to die. That’s when she really started to hate him.

In May 1969, ‘I’ve Been Loving You Too Long’ became Ike and Tina’s next hit. It was rising to number sixty- eight on the charts. They made their album ‘Outta Season’ and ‘The Hunter’. This is when Tina got tired of R&B and paid attention to the pop charts. She loved pop music. She was interested in this new rock ‘n’ roll music.

By January 1970, ‘Bold Soul Sister’ hit at number fifty- nine. By this time, Tina got bronchitis. Ike avoided it to the point that if she didn’t go for some treatment, she’d die.

The doctor told her that her right lung had collapsed. She had pneumonia then it turned into tuberculosis. She had to have a spinal tap. She had glandular infections, lumps in her legs, she was basically half dead. Mick Jagger sent her flowers and many other friends and fans, but not to a surpise, Ike didn’t send her any.

Years later, she had repercussions from that illness. Every where she went, she had to go to a doctor for medication. It wasn’t till 1980 she got cure of it.

When Tina got home, the home had been completely remodeled. Every room was a different color.

They went to Las Vegas and Tina met Sammy Davis, Jr. He wanted to buy Tina a Mercedes. Rhonda told him Tina wanted a Jaguar, a white XJ6, four- door. So he bought it for her. Tina also met Ann Margret and developed a valuable connection with her.

By 1971 in January, Ike and Tina’s version of ‘Proud Mary’ became their biggest US hit. In mid March it was at number four and in May they had sold a million copies of it. The record for Tina her first Grammy Award, for Best R&B Vocal Performance for it.

Ike bought his own studio. By now, Ike met Larry Williams who got him heavily into coke. One time Ike bought three thousand dollars of coke from King Curtis. Ike showed it to Krasnow, and Krasnow told him it was Drano, turns out it was.

Ike and Tina appeared on the October 14 issue of Rolling Stone magazine. This was the first feature of Ike and Tina’s relationship.

By July, Revue made their album, ‘What You See Is What You Get’. They did shows like, ‘Soul to Soul’.

Eventually all the coke that everyone was doing with Ike, ruined the studio’s equipment.

By 1972, ‘Nuff Said’ was the Turner’s next album. Then ‘Feel Good’. Neither were very successful. Their stardom was coming to an end. It had been twenty years since Ike made his first single, and he didn’t change his style or his show since. Ike also found out that a new feminism was in the air, and much of the talk was about women’s liberation.

In November 1973, ‘Nutbush City Limits’ reached number twenty- two. It would also be the Top 30 record the Turner’s would ever have together. But as always, in Britain, it was a greater hit, spending two weeks in the number two chart. Tina was thirty- four years old, and the song ‘Nutbush City Limits’ portrayed her life story.

Tina wondered how everything had gone so wrong. She started chanting when Valerie Bishop introduced her to it. She was told that chanting was like a mirror and when you can see yourself clearly, you can change anything. Things changed alright. It was little changes at first, then bigger ones happened. She decided to do more.

In 1974, Tina was chosen to be in a movie called, ‘Tommy’. She loved doing ‘Tommy’. Her part was small, but it was a part. It gave her strength. She felt herself growing. She was also invited to go to London for a taping of a T.V. show. Once again, Ike’s presence was not requested. ‘Tommy’ was released in early 1975.

June 1975, ‘Baby- Get It On’ became the last pop- chart single Ike and Tina would ever have, reaching number eighty- eight. The records were at end, and so was Tina’s patience.

Tina realized she could take Ike’s best licks. She started leaving him again.

She left with the kids for almost two weeks to Anna Maria Shorter’s sister, Maria Booker. Maria lived in Malibu, where Ike could not think to look. But when Tina went back, she had a talk with Ike, telling him she couldn’t take his beating anymore and she wanted to get away from him for good. He beat her less often after that because he was frightened that he’d lose her. Also he didn’t know at this time, that he should respect women and stop using them as sex objects. It didn’t make sense to him when Tina would tell him, “You can’t treat me like that.” He never realized how bad Tina was feeling because he was so involved in himself and drugs.

In 1975, the Revue traveled to England, Germany, France, Australia and the Far East to make money. By January 1976, the group was in Indonesia and Ike refused to play five Djakarta dates with the substandard sound system. This led to a confrontation with gun- brandishing police goons. He then took the band to Hong Kong and forfeited twenty- two- thousand dollars’ in equipment.

They all returned to L.A. in March 1976, and Rhonda Graam finally left weary of Ike’s abuse. He repossessed the house she was living in.

On July 4, 1976, the Revue was to kick off another territorial tour of the US The opening engagement was in Dallas at Hilton hotel. It started off badly before Ike and Tina even got to the L.A. airport. Tina’s determination was out- weighing her fear of Ike. She felt she had nothing else to lose.

While in the limo going to the airport, Ike was eating chocolate candy and offered it to Tina. Now she wearing a white Yves Saint Laurent suit. She turned it away and he hit her. Tina thought to herself that this was the day she’d fight back.

So on the plane, there was the usual seating, Ann and Tina on each of Ike. He wanted to sleep and he kept laying his head on Tina. She’d nudge him off. He got really mad.

When the plane arrived, they went to their limo waiting for them and Ike was giving her evil looks. As she was getting in, he hit her. This was all that he had to do to get her mad. So she fought back. He kept hitting her, but she didn’t cry once. They were cursing back and forth. Ike was amazed. Tina said to him, “Is that your best shot? Can’t you do no better than that?” (18) She didn’t care what he did, she just knew she flying, she’d be gone, she never stopped fighting him.

By the time they got to the Hilton, the left side of her face was swollen out past her ear and blood was every where. running out her mouth, splattered all on her suit. Ike said they had an accident. She felt that Ike knew this was the end, really the end.

Tina played of like nothing was wrong and started her usual routine of serving Ike. She gave him a massage till he fall asleep. She looked at him for a second and thought, “You just beat me for the last time, you sucker.” (19) She then got up, put on a cape to cover her bloody clothes, she had to leave her wig because her head was swollen to wear it. She got some sunglasses and a hand luggage and took off.

She went out the back way so no one would stop her. She ran down the alley and hid behind some trash cans for a while . She got up and ran across the freeway to the Ramada Inn. All she had with her was a Mobil credit card and thirty- six cents. She asked to see the manager and she told him she just had a fight with Ike and could he give her a room. She couldn’t pay him then, but she promised she would. He agreed and put her in one of the best suites, put security at the door and brought her soup and crackers to tide her over. She blessed to that man.

She called Mel Johnson, then she realized that was a mistake, so she called Nate Tabor, Ike’s attorney. He knew of the situation with Ike and arranged for her to get back to L.A. the next morning. She made it safely without a stop by Ike to Nate’s house. She spent the Fourth of July weekend with him and his family. They talked about her getting divorced. A week later Nate called Ike to handle it, but Ike threatened Nate. Tina decided to go to Maria Booker’s again.

When they realized Ike could find her there, Tina went to Anna Maria’s. She paid her rent by cleaning. She didn’t miss the trappings of stardom. She started chanting for four hours a day. Ike had put out a guy to find Tina. And he did. Ike would beat on beat on the kids and destroyed things that Tina’s friend has at her house. the promoters from all the tour dates he had to cancel were filing lawsuit. Tina was legally liable for reimbursing all the promoters who had scheduled and advertised the tour’s canceled dates. She at the age of thirty- seven she found herself starting at the bottom of the business again.

Rhonda Graam got Tina on shows to pay back the promoters. She went on Hollywood Squares, Brady Bunch, Donny and Marie, the Cher show, and Laugh- In.

In 1977, Tina filed divorce at first for irreconcilable differences. Nate was driven off by Ike, so Tina got Arthur Leeds, Ann Margret’s husband’s friend. Arthur couldn’t be scared away. Tina’s divorce petition asked for four thousand dollars a month in alimony and one thousand dollars a months for child support, and continued custody of Craig, legal custody of Ronnie as well. She also asked for all her jewelry, but Ike said no, so she said forget it.

Ike set Rhonda’s house on fire twice. She moved in with Tina and the kids at Tina’s place. Ike did drive by shootings and set out a hit man for Tina. Tina started carrying a gun with her everywhere she went. When she was pulled over in December, by a traffic officer, he saw the pistol in her handbag and took her down to the station to book her. But when they found out who she was, they let her go, but kept the gun.

Tina went on and did plenty of solo shows, singing others songs. But still the divorce was not final. Ike called her conveying displeasure all the time. She had to move to Sherman Oaks to get away from Ike.

With all the gigs she was doing, she needed a housekeeper, so she got Ann Cain to do it. She continued to go to readers as well. She found out that she had been an Egyptian Queen.

Finally by November 1977, the divorce was effectively sealed but not decreed final until March 29, 1978. Tina was basically given everything she left with her on her back. She got tired of Ike playing games with her. While in court she said, “I’ll give up all that other stuff. I just want my name. I worked to hard for that.” (20)

Tina released her first solo album in 1978, called ‘Rough’. Ike also put out an album. It contained songs that they had recorded a long time ago, but never put them on an album. His album wasn’t successful at all.

By 1979, Tina got a new manager. Roger Davies firs saw Tina perform ‘Disco Inferno’. He was blown away by her voice and outstanding performance. After the show, he talked to Tina about her singing. She said she wanted to do rock ‘n’ roll. While talking to him she said, “ It took me a long time to get Ike outta my system, and now that I did that, I’m ready.” (21)

Davies got her a tour in South Africa. But South Africa was segregated. But with Rhonda on the road with her, she felt better. So the South African offer was accepted. She received a hundred- fifty- thousand dollars for a five- week tour. Tina toured the US briefly, then an extensive tour in Australia and Southeast Asia.

With the band Tina had, Davies told her that she could never go rock ‘n’ roll. So she had to let them all go, including Rhonda, and get a younger band. In the summer of 1981, Tina played at the Ritz in New York and was a hit. The reviews were unbelievable. She performed again at the Ritz later in October.

Rod Stewart was set to perform on Saturday Night Live and Tina joined him. They duetted on Stewart’s hit ‘Hot Legs’. After the show the Stones got her to tour with them. She was really excited by working with the Stones.

In the spring of 1983, Capitol records and EMI records had a big bash. Tina was excited that she was picked to go to the listening session for David Bowie’s new album, ‘Let’s Dance’. More famous people went to see Tina perform after David said that Tina was his favorite female singer. At this time Tina didn’t have a record out of her own and so many people were there for her. After the show, she was set to make one. She also met people that she admired.

By December 1983, Tina’s version of ‘Let’s Stay Together’ was at the Top 5 in Britain. When it was released in America in mid- February, it hit on the Top 40’s, then the Top 5.

Roger collected more material for her album. He got ‘Better Be Good to Me’, ‘What’s Love Got to Do with It’, and ‘Show Some Respect’. When she first heard ‘What’s Love...’ she cried. She later learned the song was written for her. Later she got ‘Steel Claw’, ‘Private Dancer’, ‘Let’s Stay Together’, ‘1984’, and ‘I Might Have Been Queen’.

By mid- June, Tina’s LP ‘Private Dancer’ entered the charts at a hundred- one, ‘What’s Love..’ got to the Top 50 and climbed rapidly. It quickly went to number two.

In 1984, she starred in a Mad Max film, ‘Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome’. She had a great time doing this film. Later she was called but Steven Spielberg to do ‘The Color Purple’. She was to play Celie. She had to turn him down because she had lived that life. So Whoopie Goldberg got the part.

Also in 1984, she received two Grammy Awards, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance (for ‘What’s Love’) and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance (for ‘Better Be Good to Me’). She also got Record of the Year for ‘What’s Love Got to Do with It’.

Before one of Tina’s shows, Ike went to her dressing room and pulled a gun out on her. She said, “Thats supposed to scare me. Oh, yea! What you gonna do? Do what you wanna do Ike. I don’t care. Let me tell you what I’m gonna do. I got a room full of people comin’ to see me, comin’ to see me. So what you gonna do, I dunno, shoot me? Pistol whip me?” (22) Ike was blown away, he just stood there as she walked away.

“Ike Turner was later arrested on drug related charges. He was convicted and served time in a California State Prison.

“What’s Love...?” hit number one. Tina’s first solo album won four Grammy Awards including Record of the Year.” (23)

“Tina has won a total of seven Grammy Awards (only one of which was with Ike) and had sold millions of LPs and concert tickets. There is a sense that we know everything about Tina Turner because of her autobiography and the movie about her life. Yet, Tina reveals very little about her private life today. The result has been a person of power and overcoming life’s setbacks and cruelties.” (24)

In 1991, Tina and Ike Turner were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Tina now lives in Switzerland. She had just released her new album, ‘Twenty- Four Seven’, on February 1. She is currently finishing up her last tour she will ever do. When she was forty- six years old, she said, “I will never give into old age until I become old. And I am not old yet! If I look in the mirror in the morning and don’t like what I see, I don’t accept that it’s because I’m an old woman. I do whatever I can at the moment to bring myself back to life. Perhaps a facial mask, a massage, a sauna, whatever I can do naturally to return the glow to my face. As long as you’re alive, why not keep living as beautifully as you can.... So success has been useful to me, and to the people I love. Most of my earthly dreams have come true- I’m glad I never stopped pursuing them. But I always knew that singing and dancing weren’t the fulfillment of my destiny. I always seemed drawn to spirituality, but I was also smart enough to realize that I shouldn’t confuse performing and spiritual teaching.”(25)

“Tina has become one of the world’s top recording artist. Her tours continue to break concert attendance records world wide.” (26)

1. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 7

2. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 8

3. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 14

4. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 21

5. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 40

6. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 62

7. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 63

8. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 66

9. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 70

10. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 74

11. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 74

12. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 83

13. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 84

14. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 113

15. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 116

16. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 117

17. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 118

18. What’s Love Got To Do With It? Dir. Brian Gibson. With Angela Basset and Laurence Fishburne. Touchtone Pictures, 1993. 118 mins.

19. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 152

20. What’s Love Got To Do With It? Dir. Brian Gibson. With Angela Basset and Laurence Fishburne. Touchtone Pictures, 1993. 118 mins.

21. What’s Love Got To Do With It? Dir. Brian Gibson. With Angela Basset and Laurence Fishburne. Touchtone Pictures, 1993. 118 mins.

22. What’s Love Got To Do With It? Dir. Brian Gibson. With Angela Basset and Laurence Fishburne. Touchtone Pictures, 1993. 118 mins.

23. What’s Love Got To Do With It? Dir. Brian Gibson. With Angela Basset and Laurence Fishburne. Touchtone Pictures, 1993. 118 mins.

24. http://www.rockonthenet.com/artist_t/tinaturner_main.html. Pg. 1

25. Kurt Loder and Tina Turner, I, Tina (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986) Pg. 202

26. What’s Love Got To Do With It? Dir. Brian Gibson. With Angela Basset and Laurence Fishburne. Touchtone Pictures, 1993. 118 mins.