Timmy84 said:

Probably best to forget the rumours about his private life and remember him for his truly great music. He was one of the pioneers of rock & roll with "Rocket 88" way back when... Another of modern music's innovators has passed. R.I.P. Ike

4everYoung said:

This is pretty much what I was thinking...

I have deep mixed feelings...

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Yeah I don't believe his story either. I'll always believe Tina's but that movie did fabricate some parts of the story. But I do believe Tina was abused by him.

woogiebear said:

Nobody's disputing his standing as a musical legend. In death, people still have their history.....

pacey68 said:

True. I have given it up for the man for his contributions. It's just too bad that he had to have a violent and mean streak in him.

Timmy84 said:

Man am I glad to hear that! That was the worst part of that movie, the part that made me feel like like Ike was truly evil. I'm glad to hear that it was not true.

Damn another great musician gone.

And yes its a shame he will be remembered more as the abusive asshole to Tina Turner rather than the great talent that he was in rock and roll history. Yes he was wrong for abusing a woman, but one thing is for sure there wouldn't had been a Tina Turner without Ike.

As far as her speaking out about his death, I'm really not concerned if she speaks out or not, nor do I think it matters. He was a great talent and music wouldn't had been shaped the way it is without his contributions.

So R.I.P Ike!!!

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

You're assuming he made it to the pearly gates.

missfee said:

Exactly.

His legacy as an artist and a person are different, but they combine for a balanced picture of the man. Let's all hope that God will forgive him for all of his wrongs, just as we hope the same for ourselves.

That angela Bassett film made him look positively cruel and sadistic

namepeace said:

I believe He has. Ike did a lot of good and he did a lot of bad. Neither of us are perfect and we're gonna do things that are very stupid and almost unforgivable but it doesn't mean we should shun that person as just pure evil unless he or she really had evil intentions.

thesexofit said:

He told Howard he was afraid some of Tina's fans would come after him because of the movie.

uPtoWnNY said:

Thats rough.

I've seen interviews saying Ike was a nice guy, so who knows how much dramatisation was used for "whats love got to do with it"?

He musta been one of the first to do rock n roll? Probably pre-dating Chuck Berry?

He should be remembered as one of the great pioneering musicians of rock and roll, albeit with a checkered history. Yes, he had a mean streak, and he was definitely abusive towards Tina, but he also was a heavy user of drugs for much of his life. I wouldn't be surprised if much of his abuse towards Tina wasn't fueled as much by needing to get a drug fix as by any nasty or controlling streak he had during their marriage.

As for Tina, I think that she has forgiven him for his misdeeds years ago. I believe they also had a couple of children from their marriage, and they have a number of grandchildren as well, so I would guess that she would probably attend his funeral at least out of courtesy to their children.

LOL @ the movie lines

DAMN, I'm just hearing this. Sad shit, despite his ills. RIP...

People can say what they want about Ike (and they may be right), but he was one of the 1st early pioneers of rock and roll. He started the all soul revue type shows, he employed many black musicians in his band (Jimi was one of them), and
he was the 1st to use the drum machine.

He was also a cool guitarist and piano player.

CalhounSq said:

"You got more excuses than a nigger going to jail, you got too many excuses, woman!"

Robin(talking about Ike): "One thing about Ike, he does get through to you."

Howard: "Yeah, or he'll beat you with his boot!"

Rest In Peace

vainandy said:

Well put. I'm not gonna say he wasn't a dog, but he should rest in peace.

Ike Turner dead at 76
The Associated Press

December 12, 2007 at 6:21 PM EST

San Diego — Ike Turner, whose role as one of rock's critical architects was overshadowed by his ogrelike image as the man who brutally abused former wife Tina Turner, died Wednesday at his home in suburban San Diego. He was 76.

Turner died at his San Marcos home, Scott M. Hanover of Thrill Entertainment Group, which managed Turner's career, told The Associated Press.

There was no immediate word on the cause of death, which was first reported by celebrity Web site TMZ.com.

Turner managed to rehabilitate his image somewhat in later years, touring around the globe with his band the Kings of Rhythm and drawing critical acclaim for his work. He won a Grammy in 2007 in the traditional blues album category for Risin' With the Blues.

But his image is forever identified as the drug-addicted, wife-abusing husband of Tina Turner. He was hauntingly portrayed by Laurence Fishburne in the movie What's Love Got To Do With It, based on Tina Turner's autobiography.

In a 2001 interview with The Associated Press, Turner denied his ex-wife's claims of abuse and expressed frustration that he had been demonized in the media while his historic role in rock's beginnings had been ignored.

“You can go ask Snoop Dogg or Eminem, you can ask the Rolling Stones or (Eric) Clapton, or you can ask anybody — anybody, they all know my contribution to music, but it hasn't been in print about what I've done or what I've contributed until now,” he said.

Turner, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, is credited by many rock historians with making the first rock 'n' roll record, Rocket 88, in 1951. Produced by the legendary Sam Phillips, it was groundbreaking for its use of distorted electric guitar.

But as would be the case for most of his career, Turner, a prolific session guitarist and piano player, was not the star on the record — it was recorded with Turner's band but credited to singer Jackie Brenston.

And it would be another singer — a young woman named Anna Mae Bullock — who would bring Turner his greatest fame, and infamy.

Turner met the 18-year-old Bullock, whom he would later marry, in 1959 and quickly made the husky-voiced woman the lead singer of his group, refashioning her into the sexy Tina Turner. Her stage persona was highlighted by short skirts and stiletto heels that made her legs her most visible asset. But despite the glamorous image, she still sang with the grit and fervour of a rock singer with a twist of soul.

The pair would have two sons. They also produced a string of hits. The first, A Fool In Love, was a top R&B song in 1959, and others followed, including I Idolize You and It's Gonna Work Out Fine.

But over the years their genre-defying sound would make them favourites on the rock 'n' roll scene, as they opened for acts like the Rolling Stones.

Their densely layered hit River Deep, Mountain High was one of producer Phil Spector's proudest creations. A rousing version of Proud Mary, a cover of the Creedence Clearwater Revival hit, became their signature song and won them a Grammy for best R&B vocal performance by a group.

Still, their hits were often sporadic, and while their public life depicted a powerful, dynamic duo, Tina Turner would later charge that her husband was an overbearing wife abuser and cocaine addict.

In her 1987 autobiography, I, Tina, she narrated a harrowing tale of abuse, including suffering a broken nose. She said that cycle ended after a vicious fight between the pair in the back seat of a car in Las Vegas, where they were scheduled to perform.

It was the only time she ever fought back against her husband, Turner said.

After the two broke up, both fell into obscurity and endured money woes for years before Tina Turner made a dramatic comeback in 1982 with the release of the album Private Dancer, a multi-platinum success with hits such as Let's Stay Together and What's Love Got To Do With It.

The movie based on her life, What's Love Got To Do With It, was also a hit, earning Angela Bassett an Oscar nomination.

But Fishburne's glowering depiction of Ike Turner also furthered Turner's reputation as a rock villain.

Meanwhile, Turner never again had the success he enjoyed with his former wife.

After years of drug abuse, he was jailed in 1989 and served 17 months.

Turner told the AP he originally began using drugs to stay awake and handle the rigours of non-stop touring during his glory years.

“My experience, man, with drugs — I can't say that I'm proud that I did drugs, but I'm glad I'm still alive to convey how I came through,” he said. “I'm a good example that you can go to the bottom. ... I used to pray, ‘God, if you let me get three days clean, I will never look back.' But I never did get to three days. You know why? Because I would lie to myself. And then only when I went to jail, man, did I get those three days. And man, I haven't looked back since then.”

But while he would readily admit to drug abuse, Turner always denied abusing his ex-wife.

After years out of the spotlight his career finally began to revive in 2001 when he released the album Here and Now. The recording won rave reviews and a Grammy nomination and finally helped shift some of the public's attention away from his troubled past and onto his musical legacy.

“His last chapter in life shouldn't be drug abuse and the problems he had with Tina,” said Rob Johnson, the producer of Here and Now.

Turner spent his later years making more music and touring, even while he battled emphysema.

Robbie Montgomery — one of the “Ikettes,” backup singers who worked with Ike and Tina Turner — said Turner's death was “devastating” to her.

“He gave me my start. He gave a million people their start,” Montgomery said.

Accolades for Turner's early and later work continued to come in as he grew older, and the once-broke musician managed to garner a comfortable income as his songs were sampled by a variety of rap acts.

In interviews toward the end of his life, Turner would acknowledge having made many mistakes, but maintained he was still able to carry himself with pride.

“I know what I am in my heart. And I know regardless of what I've done, good and bad, it took it all to make me what I am today,” he once told the AP.



http://www.theglobeandmai...m_mostview

Back in the 60s, here in Southern California, my mom went to dance halls and saw Tina and Ike when they first came on the music scene. How cool is that?! They were just 2 nobody's at that time but my mom tells me about how great they were even when they were just starting out.

RIP






down in the city!!!!!

thesexofit said:

Yeah as mentioned in my previous post, he recorded Rocket 88 in the early 50's (1951???). We should all remember him for his music. Whatever he may or may not have been guilty of in his private life will always be open to interpretation, we'll probably never know the truth but we can remember him as a true innovator.
[Edited 12/12/07 17:31pm]

Much respect for the dead, Ike Turner is an unsung pioneer of rock n roll. As far as the rep for being an abuser (drugs, women, etc.), nobody's perfect by any means. Can't vilify Ike Turner yet celebrate Richard Pryor, Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Jackie Wilson (god bless the dead) who themselves were addicts and abusers of women. Not to mention all the dead presidents you see on dollar bills and monuments who raped Black women

namepeace said:

amen!!!

Thriller81 said:

Preach on!!!!