I was inconsiderate about her feelings. 2 on their list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time. [121] He re-recorded "I'm Blue" as a duet with singer Billy Rogers in 1995. [45] Phillips used profits from the success of the record to launch Sun Records in February 1952. [197] However, Turner and Bullock eventually began having an affair and she became pregnant in January 1960. However, James did eventually sign with Modern, and Turner played on his recordings that were released on Modern's subsidiary label Flair Records. [176], In 1986, Tina Turner released her autobiography, I, Tina, in which she recounted Turner's volatile behavior. Records show that Turner added four years to his age. I never sent itI was telling her in this letter that I'm sorry for putting her and the kids through that kind of stuff. [164] He was honored with a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame in 2001. [194], In East St. Louis, Turner lived with Lorraine Taylor. [64] Turner recalled, "Bonnie played piano. Ike Turner performing in Juan-Les-Pins, southern France, on the last day of the Jazz a Juan music festival. 27 on the Billboard Disco Top 100 chart. [13] Tina did not attend because she took the year off from making public appearances, so Phil Spector delivered a speech at the ceremony on their behalf. [190], Turner's second wife, Velma Davis (ne Dishman) is the elder sister of former Ikette Joshie Armstead. [234], Turner had a daughter, Mia Turner (b. [233] Tina's son Craig Turner (19582018) with Raymond Hill was adopted by Turner and therefore carried his surname. How many wives did Ike Turner have? [49], To accommodate his then-wife Bonnie, who also played piano, Turner taught himself how to play guitar by ear and Willie Kizart taught him blues guitar techniques. [130] Turner credited Joe Louis Walker with encouraging him to return to his roots in blues music. He said, "Ike wasn't more than sixteen then. Turner was cremated after the funeral service. Turner and the band were paid $20 each for the record. [114] Turner had plans to leave United Artists Records for a five-year $150,000 per year deal with Cream Records, which was to be signed on July 6. [223] Turner stated, "I loved Tina, but I was in love with Ann Thomas. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. According to Jeanette, Turner called her his "backbone". [239][240], Ronnie Turner was in a band called Manufactured Funk with songwriter and musician Patrick Moten. [112] During this period, Turner produced singer Judy Cheeks' debut album Judy Cheeks (1973),[113] and the last album by the Ikettes, (G)Old & New (1974). [5] Addicted to cocaine for at least 15 years, Turner was convicted of drug offenses and served 18 months in prison. [22] Turner was also raped by another middle-aged woman, Miss Reeny, before he was twelve. 1969), with Ann Thomas,[16] and he later discovered he had another daughter, Twanna Melby Turner (b. King, Howlin' Wolf, and Bobby "Blue" Bland. Turner and Bob Krasnow, founder of Blue Thumb, co-produced Earl Hooker's 1969 album Sweet Black Angel. Ike Turner married four times and had four children: Ike Jr., Michael, Ronald and Mia. Mini Bio (1) Ike Turner is best known for his career as half of the duo Ike & Tina Turner with his former wife Tina Turner, but before he discovered her, Turner was already a pioneer in rhythm & blues and rock & roll. I never knew he was no musician. [19] One day after Reese gave him a whipping, Turner knocked him out with a length of lumber and ran away to Memphis for a few days before returning home. Show. The single peaked at No. "[218][219], Turner married Margaret Ann Thomas in Las Vegas on April 11, 1981;[220] they divorced in 1990. "Rocket 88" is notable among other things for Willie Kizart's distorted guitar sound. Alongside his former wife, he was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. . [192] However, Turner asserted in his book that he is not the biological father. The domestic situation was relentlessly permeated with fear and pain as Ike abused drugs and openly paraded around mistresses. [264] His daughter Mia was said to be surprised at the coroner's assessment, believing his advanced stage emphysema was a larger factor. Tina retained songwriter royalties from songs she had written, but Turner got the publishing royalties for his compositions and hers. 104 and No. "[16], Turner attended Booker T. Washington Elementary School, then was promoted to Myrtle Hall in the sixth grade. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. In her mid-40s, Tina staged a pop music comeback with her 1984 Private Dancer album and a host of singles that included the title track, a remake of Al Greens Lets Stay Together, Better Be Good to Me, and Whats Love Got to Do With It. The Grammy-winning Whats Love Got to Do With It reached No. [12] In 2002, Turner's performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival was released as a live album and DVD. The texture and flavor of R&B owe a lot to him. [148] Turner was an early adopter of the Fender Stratocaster electric guitar, buying one from O.K. But more than that, it broke his heart". [157][158] Prince also said Turner as his first musical influence. Annie Mae left Turner for a policeman after they moved to East St. Louis, Illinois. Turner said he only fired a shot to scare him off and that the man had injured himself when he climbed over the fence to get away. It was number one in the rhythm and blues chart for five weeks, it is in the Grammy Hall of Fame and it was an indisputable claim to fame for Ike Turner.To critics he will be known as a great founder, unfortunately to the general public he will always be known as a brutal man.[9]. She came from an abusive relationship and went straight to the top. Her parents owned the Taylor Sausage Factory in St. [62] In 1952, Turner discovered Little Junior Parker in West Memphis, and they formed a band with Matt "Guitar" Murphy. Tina would later pen a bouncing, up-tempo ode to her roots, 1973s Nutbush City Limits, that hit both the pop and R&B charts and became a long-time favorite. [260][261], In the weeks leading up to his death, Turner became reclusive. 107) under the anagram "Icky Renrut" because he was still under contract with Sun for several more months, and he didn't want to cause friction with Phillips. "[156] Ronnie died from complications of colon cancer in 2022. "If I married her, he couldn't do nothing," he said. [10], In 2015, Rolling Stone ranked Ike & Tina Turner No. [70], In 1954, Turner visited his sister Lee Ethel Knight in St. Louis, Missouri. He played at Johnny's Lounge and the Club Imperial which was popular with white teenagers. My Godat the moment he's more interesting than Tina. [140][141] Turner won his first solo Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards in 2007. And the high energy, intricate dance moves high kicks, twirls and spins, deep diving, and swimming motions displayed by the wigged out Tina and the Ikettes further cemented the revues reputation for serving up legendary, must-see performances. [57][4], Turner was contracted to the Bihari brothers, but he continued to work for Phillips, where he was effectively the in-house producer. In 1952, under the alias Mary Sue, she released the single "Everybody's Talking" / "Love Is a Gamble" on Modern Records. His early influences included Amos Milburn and Louis Jordan, as well as country music artists such as Hank Williams Sr. and Merle Travis. His ex-wife Audrey Madison claimed Turner was bipolar and that she was helping him with his illness, a claim supported by Turner's personal assistant and caretaker, Falina Rasool. Ike was always quite a character and was very candid about his struggles with addiction, sexual abuse as a child, and his abusive actions toward some women in his life. Her parents were poor sharecroppers, who split up and left Turner and her sister to be. [9], Turner's songs have been sampled by hip hop artists, most notably Salt-n-Pepa used "I'm Blue" for their 1994 hit "Shoop". Tina would be a mother figure to Ikes other two sons as well. They had met in the mid-1960s at a concert in Bakersfield, California. He brought Emerson to record at Sun Records and backed him on guitar in 1954. But as the documentary Tina reveals, even 43 years after her divorce, the icon still has nightmares. They earned a Grammy Award in 1971: Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Group for "Proud Mary." But the abuse continued, and they finally split in 1976 and divorced two years later. [80], In 1957, Ann Bullock accompanied her sister Alline Bullock to watch Turner and the Kings of Rhythm at the Manhattan Club in East St. She also kept her two Jaguar cars, furs and jewelry along with her stage name. Ike Turner Jr. Ike Turner had six children, but Tina only adopted two of his sons. He was convicted of, 2015: Inducted into St. Louis Classic Rock Hall of Fame, This page was last edited on 26 February 2023, at 08:14. Also, I wanted the general public to have a better outlook and perspective on where Ike was mentally and emotionally, because so often, as a nation, we turn on people who have mental health issues and define them by their behaviors rather than their condition. [130], Although Turner considered himself a pianist rather than a guitarist,[31] Rolling Stone magazine editor David Fricke ranked him No. Love invited Turner and his band to play at his club. Without Ike you wouldn't have had the Stones and Zeppelin. [235], Turner's second wife Velma Davis (ne Dishman) claimed that Turner was the father of her daughter, Linda Turner Bullock (b. I think that Rocket 88 is R&B, but I think Rocket 88 is the cause of rock and roll existing". [95] He produced singles by the Ikettes, Jimmy Thomas, Fontella Bass, George Jackson, and other artists on his labels. "Rocket 88" is one of the two records that can claim to be the first rock 'n' roll record, the other being "The Fat Man" by Fats Domino from 1949. When Ike and Tina Turner got together, it was volatile. He defined how to put the Fender bass into that music. [84] One night during an intermission, Bullock got hold of the microphone from Washington and sang "You Know I Love You" by B.B. [162] In 2007, Turner won Best Traditional Blues Album for Risin' with the Blues. He revealed he hasn't spoken to Tina Turner since 'probably the year 2000'. However, it was a hit in Europe, reaching No. In 1968 she tried to escape by attempting suicide. Thelma was pregnant, not by me, but I liked her. [213] Turner admitted he took Tina for granted and called her "the best woman I ever knew. Turner's cocaine addiction and legal troubles, together with accounts by Tina Turner of domestic violence (published in her 1986 autobiography I, Tina and the 1993 film adaptation What's Love Got to Do with It), impacted his career in the 1980s and 1990s. In My Love Story, Tina has talked about her deep affection for her long-term partner, Erwin Bach, whom she wed in 2013, and the contours of their relationship, contrasting what she has experienced and learned from her second marriage in contrast to her first. King. [32] At some point in the 1940s, Turner moved into Clarksdale's Riverside Hotel. [71] He also had live music broadcast on the St. Louis radio station KATZ. [107] The album earned Turner his first solo Grammy nomination for Best R&B Instrumental Performance at the 12th Annual Grammy Awards. Ike modestly terms what he does on the guitar as 'tricks', but make no mistake, he attacked his axe with the conviction of a man who knew precisely what he wanted to hear come out of it. [102][103] Following the song's success in the UK, Mick Jagger invited them to open for the Rolling Stones on their 1966 British Tour. [193], After Alice, Turner became involved with Annie Mae Wilson from Greenville, Mississippi. "[155] Turner was a big influence on Little Richard, who wrote the introduction to Turner's autobiography. [156] Little Richard was inspired to play the piano after he heard Turner's piano intro on "Rocket 88", and later used it note for note on "Good Golly, Miss Molly". On the John Boy and Billy radio show, cast member Jeff Pillars regularly performed an impersonation of Turner in a segment called "Ax/Ask Ike". [121] Jurassic 5 used "Getting Nasty" from A Black Man's Soul on the track "Concrete Schoolyard" in 1997, Main Source also sampled "Getting Nasty" on the track "Snake Eyes" as well as Ike & Tina Turner's "Bold Soul Sister" on "Just Hanging Out"; both featured on their 1991 album Breaking Atoms. Turner was pronounced dead at 11:38am. King. She got up to sing his version of B.B. [49] He then became a freelance talent scout, session musician, and production assistant for Sam Phillips at Sun Studio, commuting to Memphis, Tennessee. Ike Turner died on December 12, 2007, of a drug overdose. Their divorce was finalized in 1955. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. He received negative publicity that was exacerbated in 1993 by the release of the film adaptation What's Love Got to Do with It. [161], Turner won two competitive Grammy Awards. [8] He later settled his account. 1960), with Lorraine Taylor. Their cover of "I Want to Take You Higher" by Sly and the Family Stone was also successful on the charts in 1970. 214 on 2012 revised list). He had two sons, Ike Turner Jr. (b. She told Jet: "He's been real inspiration and a catalyst emotionally and in other ways as well. [38][39] He played juke joints alongside other local blues artists such as Elmore James, Muddy Waters, and Little Walter. The mother of four hid at a friend's house before she began slowly . In 1986, Turner was arrested for cocaine possession. While many fans were shocked, many began speculating if his choices in life had killed him. But with or without Tina, Ike Turner was mean and dangerous, the epitome of the bad bad man." Tina met Ike when she was 18 and started visiting bars in the St. Louis area. She made her recording debut on Turner's song "Boxtop", released on Tune Town Records in 1958. [206] Tina signed her legal name as Martha Nell Turner on multiple contracts. [97][91], In 1965, Phil Spector saw them perform at a club on the Sunset Strip and invited them to film The Big T.N.T. [64] Bonnie was a member of the Kings of Rhythm as a pianist and vocalist. "I would come in the room and see him change like a lightbulb, switch on and switch off. "Tina Turner was a raw talent who's singing style fit naturally into Ike's patented rough take on rhythm and blues, a style that befit his demons. "[148], Reviewing Turner's 1973 album Bad Dreams, Robert Christgau wrote: "After twenty years of raking it in from the shadows, he's finally figured out a way of applying his basically comic bass/baritone to rock and roll. [149] Unaware that the guitar's tremolo arm could be used to subtle effect, Turner used it to play screaming, swooping and diving solos that predated artists such as Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Beck by a decade. His sons were poor sharecroppers, who wrote the introduction to Turner 's autobiography his band to play at Club... 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