Ike & Tina Turner

Ike & Tina Turner 1971 in the Netherlands

Ike & Tina Turner were an American R&B duo that was particularly successful in the USA in the 1960s and early 1970s, with individual hits but also in Europe. Ike Turner and his wife Tina Turner mainly played rock 'n' roll , blues , funk and soul and toured with their band almost continuously until 1975.

Career

The duo's origins lie in Ike Turner's band Kings of Rhythm , which had existed since the early 1950s. In 1956 Ike met the gospel singer Anna Mae Bullock. At first she was just a background singer, but gradually came to the fore. She had an affair with the saxophonist Raymond Hill and became pregnant by him, but instead of marrying him, she moved in with Ike and married him a few years later (1962 in Tijuana ). He also invented her stage name Tina Turner . In 1959 he wanted to record his song A Fool in Love with a singer, who did not appear in the studio. Then his wife took over the singing. When the song became a hit, they renamed themselves Ike & Tina Turner and from then on appeared as the "Ike & Tina Turner Revue". The single reached number 2 in the R&B charts and number 27 in the official pop charts .

Appearance in Hamburg 1972

This was followed by a string of hits like I Idolize You , Poor Fool, and Tra La La La La , which were top 10 hits on the R&B charts. The greatest success was It's Gonna Work Out Fine with the support of the duo Mickey & Sylvia , which reached number 14 in the pop charts in 1961. It also earned them their first Grammy nomination for Best Rock & Roll Recording . Their particular strength, however, were their live appearances, and while the single successes waned, they entered the album charts for the first time in 1965 with a live album.

In the mid-1960s, producer Phil Spector , who had become known for his Wall of Sound , had also become aware of them. He saw Tina Turner's strong, rough voice as the ideal complement to his dominant musical sounds. He was able to win her over for the song River Deep - Mountain High , although it did not correspond to the bluesy R&B sounds and the vocal requirements of her other music. The single was released under Ike & Tina Turner , while Spector had even paid for Ike not to be in the studio during the recording and to stay out of it. The song is one of the most famous of the duo, but it only reached number 88 at the time and was a flop in terms of production costs in the USA. River Deep - Mountain High was all the more successful in Europe, where it made the two famous and laid the foundation for the later success of Tina Turner. In the British charts , the song rose to number 3 and drew two more hits that only came into the charts in England. Only afterwards did the song get its real recognition in the USA: in 1999 it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and in 2004 it was voted 33rd of the best songs of all time ( Rolling Stone list ).

In the USA it was not until 1969 that the duo achieved success again with their own music. Although they were regularly in the charts, there was no big hit. In the same year they successfully went on tour as the opening act with the Rolling Stones . This also had an impact on their musical direction. They recorded Honky Tonk Women and the Beatles song Come Together and were quite successful with it. Another cover version, the song I Want to Take You Higher by Sly & the Family Stone , brought them back into the Top 40. Finally, in 1971 they recorded the song Proud Mary by John Fogerty and his band Creedence Clearwater Revival . It became the most successful recording by Ike & Tina Turner in the USA, it was a million seller and reached number 4 on the official charts. It also received a Grammy for Best R&B Performance . The album Workin 'Together and the live edition What You Hear Is What You Get , both of which contained the song, both reached number 25, by far their best positions in the official album charts . There was also another gold record . The song and the albums were also successful internationally.

Nevertheless, they then returned to their own songs. Tina Turner also increasingly distinguished herself as a songwriter. After a few minor hits, Nutbush City Limits was released in 1973 . Tina had written the song in memory of her hometown of Nutbush , Tennessee . In the US, it was her third most successful song in the pop charts, at number 22. In Europe it was a top hit with top 5 placements in Germany, Switzerland and Great Britain and even number 1 in Austria .

It was their last great success together. Ike Turner had already been dominant in his band, wanted to control everything and took tough action. In his marriage to Tina, this happened to his wife. Then there was alcohol and cocaine in the 1960s. Tina Turner later reported in her autobiography of physical and sexual violence that brought her to the verge of suicide in 1968. Nevertheless, she stayed with Ike until the 1970s, before apparently one argument led to her running away in 1976. With that she finished everything to do with Ike & Tina Turner. In 1978 their marriage ended in divorce.

Tina then began a solo career with which she found her way back to success after a few failures in the 1980s. Ike went through a lengthy crisis, especially his drug problems repeatedly catching up with him. In 1991 the duo was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . They didn't meet at the ceremony because Ike Turner was in jail at the time. In the 2000s he was able to celebrate some successes as a blues musician before he died in 2007 at the age of 76.

Discography

Chart singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)						Remarks
year	Title album	DE	AT	CH	UK	US	R&B	Remarks
1960	A Fool in Love The Soul of Ike & Tina Turner	-	-	-	-	US27 (13 weeks) US	R&B2 (21 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1960
1960	I Idolize You The Soul of Ike & Tina Turner	-	-	-	-	US82 (4 weeks) US	R&B5 (9 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1960
1961	It's Gonna Work Out Fine Ike & Tina Turner's Kings of Rhythm Dance	-	-	-	-	US14 (15 weeks) US	R&B2 (21 weeks) R&B	Background musicians: Mickey & Sylvia Authors: Rose Marie McCoy, Sylvia McKinney First published: 1961
1961	Poor Fool Dynamite!	-	-	-	-	US38 (11 weeks) US	R&B4 (12 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1961
1962	Tra La La La La Dynamite!	-	-	-	-	US50 (7 weeks) US	R&B9 (10 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1962
1962	You Shoulda Treated Me Right Dynamite!	-	-	-	-	US89 (2 weeks) US	-	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1962
1964	You Can't Miss Nothing That You Never Had	-	-	-	-	-	R&B29 (4 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1964
	A fool for a fool	-	-	-	-	-	R&B47 (3 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1964
	I Can't Believe What You Say (For Seeing What You Do) Get It - Get It	-	-	-	-	US95 (3 weeks) US	-	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1964
1965	Tell Her I'm Not Home	-	-	-	UK48 (1 week) UK	-	R&B33 (4 weeks) R&B	Original: Chuck Jackson as Tell Him I'm Not Home (1963); Author: Tony Bruno First published: 1965 (US) / 1966 (UK)
1965	Good Bye, So Long The Soul of Ike & Tina	-	-	-	-	-	R&B32 (4 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1965
1966	River Deep - Mountain High River Deep - Mountain High	-	-	-	UK3 silver (20 weeks)UK	US88 (4 weeks) US	-	Authors: Phil Spector , J. Barry , E. Greenwich ; Producer: Phil Spector First release: 1966 Grammy HoF
1966	A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Every Day) River Deep - Mountain High	-	-	-	UK16 (10 weeks) UK	-	-	Authors: B. Holland, L. Dozier, E. Holland First published: 1966 33rd place in the Rolling Stone 500 (2004/2010)
1968	So fine, so fine	-	-	-	-	-	R&B50 (2 weeks) R&B	Author: Johnny Otis First published: 1968
1969	I've Been Loving You Too Long Outta Season	-	-	-	-	US68 (7 weeks) US	R&B23 (7 weeks) R&B	Original: Otis Redding (1965); Authors: O. Redding, J. Butler First published: 1969
	I'm Gonna Do All I Can (To Do Right By My Man)	-	-	-	-	US98 (2 weeks) US	R&B46 (2 weeks) R&B	Author: W. Carson First published: 1969
	The Hunter The Hunter	-	-	-	-	US93 (2 weeks) US	R&B37 (2 weeks) R&B	Original: Albert King (1967); Authors: BT Jones , Carl Wells, A. Jackson , D. Dunn , S. Cropper First published: 1969
	Bold Soul Sister The Hunter	-	-	-	-	US59 (8 weeks) US	R&B22 (10 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1969
1970	Come Together Come Together	-	-	-	-	US57 (8 weeks) US	R&B21 (8 weeks) R&B	Original: The Beatles (1969); Authors: J. Lennon , P. McCartney First published: 1970
	I Want to Take You Higher Come Together	-	-	-	-	US34 (18 weeks) US	R&B25 (5 weeks) R&B	Original: Sly & the Family Stone (1969); Author: S. Stewart First published: 1970
	Workin 'Together Workin' Together	-	-	-	-	-	R&B41 (4 weeks) R&B	Author: Ike Turner First published: 1970
1971	Proud Mary Workin 'Together	DE21 (14 weeks) DE	-	-	-	US4th gold (13 weeks)US	R&B5 (9 weeks) R&B	Original: Creedence Clearwater Revival (1969); Author: John Fogerty First published: 1971 Grammy ( R&B performance ) / Grammy HoF
	Ooh Poo Pah Doo Workin 'Together	-	-	-	-	US60 (7 weeks) US	R&B31 (6 weeks) R&B	Author: Jessie Hill First published: 1971
	I'm Yours (Use Me Anyway You Wanna)	-	-	-	-	-	R&B47 (3 weeks) R&B	Authors: Calvin Lane, Philip Reese First published: 1971
1972	Up in Heah	-	-	-	-	US83 (4 weeks) US	R&B47 (2 weeks) R&B	Authors: Tina Turner , Leon Ware First published: 1972
1973	Early One Morning Let Me Touch Your Mind	-	-	-	-	-	R&B47 (2 weeks) R&B	Original / Author: Roger Whittaker (1968) First published: 1973
1973	Nutbush City Limits Nutbush City Limits	DE2 (26 weeks) DE	AT1 (20 weeks) AT	CH2 (16 weeks) CH	UK4 (13 weeks) UK	US22 (15 weeks) US	R&B11 (15 weeks) R&B	Author: Tina Turner First published: 1973
1974	Sweet Rhode Island Red Sweet Rhode Island Red	DE43 (1 week) DE	-	-	-	-	R&B43 (9 weeks) R&B	Author: Tina Turner First published: 1974
1974	Sexy Ida (Part 1) Greatest Hits	-	-	-	-	US65 (8 weeks) US	R&B29 (21 weeks) R&B	Author: Tina Turner First published: 1974
1975	Baby Get It On Acid Queen	-	-	-	-	US88 (4 weeks) US	R&B31 (10 weeks) R&B	Authors: Ike Turner, Tina Turner First published: 1975

gray hatching : no chart data available for this year

Awards

Grammy Awards

1972 : Best R&B performance by a duo or group with vocals for Proud Mary
Nominations:
- 1962 : Best rock and roll recording for It's Gonna Work Out Fine
- 1975 : Best soul gospel performance for The Gospel According to Ike and Tina

Grammy Hall of Fame

1999: River Deep - Mountain High
2003: Proud Mary

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Ike & Tina Turner (recorded 1991)

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↑ ^a ^b The Survival Artist , Alex Gernandt, Spiegel Online, November 26, 2014
↑ Ike and Tina Turner, 'River Deep - Mountain High' in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time , April 7, 2011
↑ Chart sources: DE AT CH UK US
↑ US singles: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2006 . Billboard Books, New York 2007, ISBN 0-89820-172-1 . / US albums: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn presents the Billboard Albums . 6th edition. Billboard Books, New York 2006, ISBN 0-89820-166-7 .
↑ US R&B singles: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn presents Hot R&B Songs 1942-2010 . Billboard Books, New York 2011, ISBN 0-89820-186-1 . / US R&B albums: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn's Top R&B Albums 1965–1998 . Billboard Books, New York 1999, ISBN 0-89820-134-9 .
^ Ike & Tina Turner in the Grammy database

Web links

Ike and Tina Turner in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (English)
Ike & Tina Turner at Allmusic (English)
Ike & Tina Turner at Discogs (English)

[spiegel-1] The Survival Artist , Alex Gernandt, Spiegel Online, November 26, 2014

[rs500-2] Ike and Tina Turner, 'River Deep - Mountain High' in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time , April 7, 2011

[charts-3] Chart sources: DE AT CH UK US

[Billboard-4] US singles: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2006 . Billboard Books, New York 2007, ISBN 0-89820-172-1 . / US albums: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn presents the Billboard Albums . 6th edition. Billboard Books, New York 2006, ISBN 0-89820-166-7 .

[BillboardRB-5] US R&B singles: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn presents Hot R&B Songs 1942-2010 . Billboard Books, New York 2011, ISBN 0-89820-186-1 . / US R&B albums: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn's Top R&B Albums 1965–1998 . Billboard Books, New York 1999, ISBN 0-89820-134-9 .

[grammy-6] Ike & Tina Turner in the Grammy database