Article
and review by Matthew Anthony Allair
Bill Wyman
observed from Tina’s book:
“Ike was a brilliant piano player, but he didn’t like to talk about those early records he’d done. He said he always used to get screwed up in those days, no credits or anything, and he always had a chip on his shoulder about it. That’s probably why he was such a bad guy to deal with later.”
In 1956 Ike had another hit with “I’m Tore Up” featuring Billy Gayles. In 1956, Ann Bullock first saw the Kings of Rhythm at the Club Manhattan in East St. Louis. Ann’s sister was working as a barmaid in the club, and Ann tried several times to sing on the stage for Ike. She got hold of a microphone and sang B.B. King’s “You Know I Love You” for Ike and he was impressed with her. In March 1960, Ike allowed Ann to record a demo for his self-penned song “A Fool In Love”, the original singer was a no show, and when a local DJ suggested Ike send the record to Sue Records, label head Juggy Murray insisted on releasing the track as a single with Bullock’s vocal. The track was released in July 1960 and “A Fool In Love” was a massive, national hit, selling over a million copies. That was the start, the success of “A Fool in Love”, which reached number 2 in the RNB Billboard charts, necessitated a follow up, “I Idolize You” – another hit, which lead to their second million seller, “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine”.
But like
many other acts in the “chitlin circuit’, they toured a grueling set of
one-nighters through the United States. The origins of the ‘Chitlin circuit’
lay in the racialized vaudeville performance circuit of the 1920s, and this
carried over for decades, in the circuit, each act would be billed with other
“black acts’, and would include rhythm and blues acts, gospel performers and
comedians. The scourge of Segregation was a unifying force for performers on
the circuit, Black performers were prevented from stayi8ng in most hotels and
had only option available to them in most areas, these performers stayed at the
hotel, this lead to fraternization, collaboration and cooperation. Often Ike
would have a white employee, road assistants ensure they stay at such hotels,
keeping up a ruse. The reality is that, for many, singles were just promotions to
get people to live shows in the American market of the time. But the duo would
jump from one record label to another through the 60s, aside from Sue Records,
they recorded for Teena, Prann, Innis, Sony, and Sonja. Ike was a hustler - not
the sense of drugs or prostitution - but getting bookings and signing with labels.
Their tours were brutal, and they had to deliver at every live show.
By 1962,
Ike and Tina got married in Tijuana, Mexico and moved the entire band to Los
Angeles, the struggles in the south may have been over but new issues were on
their way. Ike had a history of marrying and divorcing women, he was married 14
times, some of the events in “What’s Love Got To Do With It” (1993) was an
amalgamation of several relationships. When Annie Mae Wilson left Ike for a
police officer in 1958, Ike presented a petition to the East St Louis Board of
Police Commissioners, claiming abuse to get the officer fired. Another early
marriage did lead to a wife being institutionalized, his marriage to Marion
Louis Lee (Bonnie Turner) in 1952 lead to several singles and collaborations
that could be seen as the template to his partnership with Tina. Bonnie and Ike
divorced in 1955. Ike had a knack for cultivating drama, but we’ll get into
that soon.
By 1964, the revue had more hits with the biggest being “Two Is a Couple”, peaking at 15 on the Cashbox RNB chart. Throughout 1965 they appeared on American Bandstand, Shindig! And Hollywood A Go Go, then Phil Spector seeked out Tina for something special. Spector even negotiated a deal to get the duo out of their contract with Lorma Records, with their manager, Bob Krasnow, to sign with Spector’s label Philles Records, so Phil could record with the duo, and namely Tina on the single “River Deep – Mountain High” in 1966, a track that became regarded as a cinemascope feat, yet only charted at 88, while Ike was technically involved in the sessions, he was actually paid to stay away during the recordings with Spector. As pointed out by critic Robert Palmer in 1993:
“There was never any doubt that Tina Turner was the star of the Ike and Tina Turner revue, the electrifying performer audiences came to see. Ike kept his own stage presence deliberately low-key, avoiding flamboyant moves and directing the band with underplayed economical gestures. His songwriting, production and music direction were geared towards showcasing Tina.”
In spite of it’s American reception, “River Deep – Mountain High” was a pivot point for Tina, a moment that demonstrated that she could transcend her partnership from Ike and have worth on her own as a marketable talent. It also may have set the seeds towards Ike’s jealousy and control moving forward, but that is just sheer observational speculation from this writer. Tina’s nature was nurturing, and she documented that ways of her for Ike, doing manicures, pedicures, messages, advising him on his dress and hair style changes.
“It
was my relationship with Ike that made me the most unhappy. At first, I had
really been in love with him. Look’s what he’s done for me. But he was totally
unpredictable.”
In 1969,
Ike released an instrumental album, “A Black Man’s Soul” that earned a Grammy
nomination for Best R&B Instrumental performance. While headlining the
International Hotel’s Casino Theatre in Las Vegas, Ike, who had been living a
drug and alcohol-free life, started to use Cocaine, which would only make
matters worse and enable his volatile moods. It’s been pretty much documented
that it was Tina that pushed for recording more Rock N Roll covers. It was Tina
who pushed to open for the Rolling Stones in their 1969 tour. Ike resisted the
direction, he didn’t care for “Proud Mary”, the changes would help build their
fortunes. She had an uncanny ability to read trends. Close to the middle of 1969 while Ike and Tina were in Seattle, they went to a record shop as recounted by Tina, she heard The Beatles "Come Together", The Rolling Stones "Honky Tonk Woman", and got Ike to agree to perform them, which in turn lead to the studio recordings, more on that in a moment.
Let’s address the elephant in the room, not only Ike’s drug abuse, or his numerous infidelities but his domestic abuse. Let’s be clear, any form of physical, mental, or verbal abuse is never acceptable. If anything, the violent incidents depicted in “What’s Love Got To Do With It” is watered down, based on accounts I have seen. At various points, Ike could have killed Tina with the severity of some of the incidents. It was not only exclusive to Tina, there were other female assistants he was known to have hit. In the age of “MeToo” and younger generations being far more attuned and intolerant towards abuse, I can admire Ike’s accomplishments without admiring the man himself, which I don’t. I cling to Bruce Springsteen’s ethos of ‘trust the art, not the artist’. Why did Ike abuse her? Hard to say, he had his own abuse as a child, not only physical, but sexual, there’s two directions an abused person can go – either repeat the patterns and abuse as an adult, or recoil from violence and go the opposite direction and be non-violent, unfortunately, the later seems to be the aberration statistically. But we’ll get back to that later.
1969 also saw the release of a more blues-based record with “The Hunter” with guest guitarist Albert Collins. As well as A&M rereleasing the “River Deep – Mountain High” which was released in the US for the first time. At the start of 1970, their cover of The Beatles “Come Together” reached number 21 on the RNB charts. The success of the album with the same name, reached number 21 on the RNB charts, as well as their cover of “I Want To Take You Higher” which charted even higher than the Sly Stone original and this led to Liberty agreeing to another album. That album, “Workin’ Together” would almost be the apex of their career. The Revue’s performance fee went from $1,000 to $5,000a night following their successful run. They had turned a corner, after jumping from label to label, they had enough momentary stability to hold them. Their tenure at the United Artists label ran for about seven years until their marriage dissolved.
Of course, success brought further avarice, Ike’s drug problems would increase, as well as the pressures of keeping the touring band together. Ike had been diagnosed with a Bipolar Disorder, but I suspect there’s another issue to explain his behavior, as much as I am not a clinician, he may have been a Narcissist. Now, Narcissism is an overused term, but there are definitions that help fit the criteria of this personality type. Many entertainers with huge egos are not narcissists, but there are many traits described with this type, a grandiose sense of self-importance, a lack of empathy and a constant need for admiration. Often these types of people will manipulate, gaslight, and triangulate friends and family against one another.
For example – Ike did manipulate Tina’s mother and her sisters to almost always side with him as tensions grew in the 60s - they all probably ignored the abuse or rationalized it. Aspects of this would be mentioned in the “What’s Love Got To Do with It” film. Ike’s staggering number of marriages and divorces could be an example of this Narcissistic behavior. Plus, Ike had made comments later in life, upon reflection, that “Sex was power” for him. This is all conjecture on my part, but the clues suggest that he was a malignant Narcissist. This doesn’t excuse his behavior, but it enlightens it.
There’s no band credits on the album, but the likely players were: Ike Turner: Guitar, Vocals, Jackie Clark or Johnny Wright: Guitar, Warren Dawson: Bass, Soko Richardson: Drums, Edward Burks: Trombone, McKinley Johnson: Trumpet, J.D. Reed: Saxophone and, or Mary Reed. The possible keyboard players were Jerry Peters or Clearance McDonald. The likely background Ikettes singers were Robbie Montgomery, Venetta Fields, Jessie Smith and, or Jean Brown. It’s possible that bass player Jesse Knight Jr. and Saxophone player Eddie Jones were involved in the band, Several of the Ikettes became session singers away from the band, and they sang backgrounds of The Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here album.
The Album
Now, we
can get to the album, Workin’ Together might just be their most cohesive
album, for an act that was known for just treating albums like a collection of
songs. It may have been Tina that suggested the rock covers that populated the Come Together album. Selections from The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Sly
Stone, all done with a soul sensibility to appeal to the African American
marketplace. It worked, and as much as Ike was writing original material, it
gave commercial grounds to go further. That included a cover of the John
Fogerty and Creedance Clearwater Revival song. What galvanized Tina to perform
and record it was that she felt “Proud Mary” represented “Freedom” for her.
Tina
commented from her book:
“We
made that song our own, I loved the Creedence version, but I liked ours better
after we got it down, with the talking and all. I thought it was more Rock N
Roll.”
The John Fogerty song was recorded by Creedence Clearwater Revival on their Bayou Country album at the start of 1969. “Proud Mary” peaked at number 2 on the singles charts. The song was written after Fogerty was discharged from the National Guard in 1967. John would later comment on Tina Turner’s work after her passing at an public concert:
“We have lost the queen of Rock N Roll, Tina Turner, I toured with Tina way back in 2000, Of course Tina recorded my song, “Proud Mary” way back in 1971, and it was a breakthrough song for her. Also a signature song. Man, I saw her on TV every week in that red dress on and the Ikette girls dancing in the background…she was amazing…This is the first good song I wrote.”
Now, let’s get onto the album: There have been few songs that have helped to crystalize a duo’s career like “Proud Mary” for Ike and Tina. The other exception I can think of is Sonny and Cher with “I Got You Bade”, Her monologue at the opening of the track had become so iconic it had been parodied over the years, and she continued that arrangement through her solo career. Ike’s harmony vocal and that deep register added to the more laid-back grove in the first half of the arrangement. The band delivered on the promise of the rough section when it shifted into high gear. Hearing it on record was one thing, but to see the live performances of the song was entirely something else. Soko’s drums are incredible on the track. The guitar interplay between Turner and Clark is delightful. The piano work from either Peters or McDonald is quite solid, and the Ikettes support vocals are iconic.
The album opener and title track “Workin’ Together” might be one of Ike’s better songs, and a good fusion between pop and soul. The opening riff seems to be a nod to Bob Dylan’s “I Want You”, there’s some tasteful fills with the second guitar and the horns help lift the track. Tina’s plea for racial harmony and tolerance is heartfelt, and it’s a little bit of a surprise that she never included it into her live solo setlist in the 80s or 90s. “(As Long As I Can) Get You When I Want You” is the Jackson / Moore number that has a good opening riff with some strong bass fills and good support from the horns, the arrangement keeps this interesting. Tina’s vocal is strong.
After the
success of “Come Together”, they were bound to tackle some more Beatles
material. “Get Back” is a pretty faithful attempt. Tina manages to stretch out
the vocal melody and make it her own. The Lesslie flavored guitar solo feels
like a nod to Harrison. After another verse, the second guitar solo has more of
a Lennon feel, which repeats in another variation after the final verse. Tina’s
sounds like she’s enjoying this and is playful. Soko’s rhythm shuffle and fills
really spotlight the last half. Ike’s “The Way You Love Me” reverts back to
their soul influences from the early 60s, the blues piano acts as the
centerpiece of the number. Tina’s improvisation at the end is delicious.
“You Can Have It” is a more laid back blues soul ballad is another Ike number that seems to support Tina’s nuance as a singer. The Ikettes vocal support is especially good, and Chitlin’ soul guitar work give it some flavor. Soko could really pull back as a drummer and support the material when needed. “Game Of Love” has a murky, soul menace that sets up a mood, and rationalizes how infidelity works both ways. The horns accent the rhythm guitar as it progresses. Tina’s vocal is cutting. At this point, I don’t want to read into a Fleetwood Mac “Rumors” situation, but there is something a little autobiographical with some of the songs, and Tina sounds like she could be making some very pointed comments towards Ike.
“Funkier
Than A Mosquita’s Tweeter” is the straight up early funk number with some great
three way interplay between the bass and duel guitars. There’s some initial
vocal interplay between the Ikette’s and Tina before she takes over, the title
seems to a slang term for a less than endowed male and the song is a great take
down. Soko’s percussion sits in the groove until the chorus and then really
comes to life. A few things of interest, the song was written by Tina’s sister,
Aillene, we’ll get back to that in a moment. The grove of the track predates
The Temptations “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone” by nearly two years. Furthermore, Nina
Simone did a recording of the song for her album, It is Finished from
1974 that featured a more afro centric percussion feeling.
Regarding the opening piano fanfare, played by either Peters or McDonald, is dynamic on “Ooh Poo Pah Doo”, a hybrid of Spanish and classical before Tina kicks in on a fun vocal that harkens again back to their earlier days. “Goodbye, So Long” may have already been recorded in the earlier years, but it’s one of the stronger tracks, with some good interplay with the band, Tina and the Ikettes. The closing track is ironically the weak link, and the second Beatles number on here. The musical arrangement of “Let It Be” is good, faithful, and some nice piano work, but the altered lyrics undermines this take. It is understandable at the height of the Black pride empowerment, and so appeal to the soul market, I don’t know if the changes were Tina’s idea of Ike’s, but it undercuts the original spiritual point of McCartney’s lyric. It hinders the album by only a small margin. In fairness, it was common for Blues and RNB acts to alter lyrics to another artists song, that appropriation was happening long before the accusations against Led Zeppelin.
The social impact
I’d like to go back to a few points with Bullock. “Funkier” is a strong piece, and she was credited with several other songs, she was credited with writing “Love Is A Game, Baby (What You Want Me To Do), Pick Me Up (Take Me Where Your Home Is), Happy But Lonely,” and “Bootie Lip, D.M.Z” which might be instrumentals. It strikes me as a little odd that her writing career ended after just over two years, and it left me with a question. Could Ike have written these songs and credited them to her? I don’t want to be Misogynistic, and if she did, more power to her. But one of the standard traits of Narcissists is to triangulate and set family on one another, Ike could have given her credit as another way to control the sister and then control Tina. It has been documented that Tina’s mother and sister sided with Ike as the problems grew. On the other hand “Funkier” does seem to come from the perspective of a woman. Yet even by the mid-seventies, Aillene was afraid of Ike. *
In fairness to Tina, she too started to write material for several years, by the time of 71, Tina started to co write material with Ike. The 1972 album “Feel Good”, she was credited with writing nine songs alone, on their 1973 album “Let Me Touch Your Mind”, Tina wrote two songs. And her seminal 1973 “Nutbush City Limits” album, she wrote the title track and four other songs. “Nutbush” was no aberration, she had been writing or co-writing songs for a couple of years. How she wrote is an interesting question as she was not known for playing any instrument. But if you have followed Michael Jackson’s creative process, he would vocalize his ideas to other musicians, and Tina may have done exactly the same thing. She continued to write in 1974 up through 1977 when she helped co-write “Pick Me Up”.
This enters into a thorny subject, as it would reveal of generosity of spirit for Ike to encourage her writing songs, and some fear that complimenting Ike would cancel out his negative actions, I am sensitive to this, Ike did some historical important things through he life, and that should be acknowledged, even as I recognize his failings as a person. Most people are neither angel or a devil - but a little of both.
Tina’s life, her conversion to Buddhism, her bravery in her divorce with Ike, her
wildness years in the late 70s, and her decision to rebrand her career to
appeal to white audience in the early 80s and the road that lead to Private
Dancer is another incredible tale we will explore. She was candid, but she
never saw herself as a victim, there never seemed to be an ounce of self-pity
in her demeanor about the past. She exuded a sexy attitude that was built on
confidence, her sexuality didn’t come from a tawdry space but from a strength
that was very enticing to many.
Ike seemed to let his demons overtake him, and perhaps he had an inability to adapt and grow from the scene he knew from the 50s. Ike should have seen Tina as the gem she really was, but it seemed like his fears of her moving on may have led to the only choice he understood, which was to abuse her and keep her in her place. He, and he alone, is to blame for his self-sabotage. But there could also be a deeper meaning behind his attitude. One point raised with Alice Walker’s book The Color Purple was how institutional slavery, even post, and Jim Crow laws carried over to how African American men treated their women through abuse from the late 1800s until the 1950s. Some have pointed out - those scars were generational. Any abuse has ripple effects.
As a white male, I can’t really to understand their known experience - I won’t pretend to. One cannot underestimate the hurtles Tina faced in the early eighties, it took David Bowie’s early support that swayed the Capitol records executives to sign her, circa 1983. Many African American women understood the importance of Tina’s talent and work ethic. Even the abuse that the west sadly enabled. She was always more embraced in Europe even after her success in the 80s, that is a sad comment, but many African American artists felt the same way, writer James Baldwin and Musician Miles Davis come to mind. Ultimately music is music, if a black woman wants to sing rock or pop, it should not matter, while some feel we have made progress, I remain guarded about our present moment.
I hope the
reality of the situation as people diminish the merits of the album, it was
built around a circle of immensely talented persons.
Regardless of the debates raised, Workin’ Together should be one of those must listen albums before you die. Aside from how iconic ‘Proud Mary’ has become, the album is filled with some solid, enjoyable material. In 1970, it was a flashpoint, the apex of an already fascinating career with that duo. Both of their talents should remind us of what is possible, and what could happen, in a positive sense, if we allow people to be who they are. We may never see the kind again. Recommended.
Producer
and arranger: Ike
Turner
Composers: Eki Renrut (Ike Turner), *George
Jackson, *Raymond Moore, **Aillene Bullock, ***Jessie Hill, ****John Fogerty, *****John
Lennon, Paul McCartney
Engineer: Brent Maher
Cover: Herb Kravitz, Ron Wolin
Side
One:
Workin’
Together
(As Long
As I Can) Get You When I Want You*
Get Back
*****
The Way
You Love Me
You Can
Have It
Game Of Love
Side Two:
Funkier
Than A Mosquita’s Tweeter**
Ooh Poo
Pah Doo***
Proud
Mary****
Goodbye,
So Long
Let It
Be*****
Additional book research thanks to Tina Turner, Kurt Loder, Ralph H. Craig, and Fred Rothwell.
Please check out on Spotify, ITunes, Vinyl, or CD if available.
Coming
soon: The
Jimi Hendrix Experience – Axis: Bold As Love
