Ike Turner: 1931 - 2007

Ike Turner, who has died aged 76 will be forever remembered as half of one of the most explosive double acts in rock n roll history. Sadly this wild reputation extended to his personal life and his outstanding musical achievements will always be overshadowed by his violent relationship with singer Tina Turner.

It’s impossible, however, to overstate his importance to the development of soul, R&B and rock music in general. Born in the ‘home of the blues’, Clarksdale, Mississippi he began hanging around the local radio station aged 8 years old. By 11 he was mastering boogie-woogie piano and backing legends such as Sonny Boy Williamson.

His defining moment came in 1951 when he wrote and recorded what many believe to be the first bona-fide rock & roll record, Jackie Brenston’s ‘Rocket 88’. On the way to the recording session Turner’s band, the Kings of Rhythm, were involved in a car crash causing their instruments, which were on the roof, to be dislodged. Among these was guitarist Willie Kizart’s amplifier which suffered severe damage. Later at the studio Ike repaired the amp by jamming some paper in the woofer and so inadvertently invented fuzztone guitar.

Through the 1950s, as a recording scout and A&R man, Turner was instrumental in getting the likes of Howlin' Wolf and Elmore James signed, while participating in landmark recording sessions with B.B. King, Bobby Bland and Otis Rush. In 1956 he met Anne Mae Bullock, marrying her in 1958. By 1960 she’d changed her name to Tina Turner and over the next few years they became one of the hottest acts in showbiz, albeit one based more on their tumultuous live performances than on chartbusting records. The 1965 album ‘Live! The Ike and Tina Turner Show’, caught the revue at full blast in Texas.

In 1966, producer Phil Spector became involved and produced one of Tina's finest moments, the momentous and groundbreaking single ‘River Deep, Mountain High’. For Ike however, the song was an embarrassment. Spector refused to let him play on it and Tina’s astonishing vocal further cemented her reputation as the star in the duo.