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From : JohnB1948Six
Added: May 13, 2009
PLEASE NOTE: I divided my uploads between multiple channels, Bookmark this link in your browser for instant access to an index with links to all of John1948's oldies classics. LINK: http://jeb1948.blogspot.com/ Many years have passed since Tina Turner suffered at the hands of her violent, coked-up former husband, and it's high time to acknowledge that Clarksdale, MS's, Isaac Lustre Turner, for all his inexcusable and shameful behavior behind closed doors, is as much a monster on the stage and in the studio as he is off. Turner has an exemplary track record as a bandleader (his Kings of Rhythm were as formidable a combo as any in the South during the mid-'50s), talent scout, producer (for both Elmore James and Howlin' Wolf, and musician (his boogie-woogie piano style was distinctive and incendiary, and when he took up the guitar, he explored some uncharted territory marked by ferocious hurricane blasts of distortion and dirty, chunky blues riffs). On the recommendation of B.B. King, Sun Records owner Sam Phillips cut a session with Ike and the Kings on March 3, 1951, featuring Ike's cousin (and Kings saxophonist) Jackie Brenston singing lead on a propulsive ode to one of the day's most powerful motor vehicles, "Rocket 88," a song modeled after Jimmy Liggins' "Cadillac Boogie." His recordings with the Kings can be heard in all their majesty on Rhino's 1994 anthology I Like Ike, truly a thing of wonder. More recently, Ike proved that age and all his trials haven't robbed him of his muse, as his 2001 solo album, Here and Now, on the Ikon label, was nominated for a Grammy. Then there's Tina. Born Annie Mae Bullock in Brownsville, TN, she was only 18 when she joined Ike and the Kings of Rhythm just as the band was ruling the roost of a lively club scene in East St. Louis, IL. She stepped up as lead vocalist in late 1959 and was christened Tina Turner by Ike. The former Ms. Bullock made her incendiary debut on the Sue Records single "A Fool in Love," with a full repertoire of blistering, hoarse R&B shouts framed by a singsong girl chorus and the Kings' steady rocking pulse pushing the whole affair forward. A Top 30 pop and #2 R&B hit, "A Fool in Love" set the template for a succession of rousing singles in the early '60s: Tina's gravel-throated blues shouts and cries answered by a pop-ish female chorus, all set against a churning, muddy soundscape with occasional spoken double-entendre-laden byplay between Ike and Tina. Onstage, Tina's shapely, athletic figure and sexually charged performances became the stuff of legend, while Ike directed the proceedings behind her. Of course that energy could never quite be captured on disc, but producer Ike knew how to use the studio as a creative tool. Ike & Tina Turner singles from the Sue era (and the non-single album tracks as well) were some of the most ferocious performances ever set down on wax; there was very little in the way of calm introspection going on in those days. Tina sings with abandon and overwhelming emotion; most of her shouts wind up in the red, slightly distorted. The Collectables reissues of Dynamite! and The Soul of Ike & Tina Turner are essential documents of the Sue era. There is some duplication of tracks, as both contain "A Fool in Love," "Sleepless," the scalding mission statement called "Letter from Tina," "I Idolize You," and the string-laden R&B ballad "I'm Jealous," but only Dynamite! contains the priceless ditty "Tra La La La La," with its ingenious muted trumpet solo rising out of the mix like Miles on a bender. Another interesting document from this period is the all-instrumental outing Dance. Ike and Tina are on the cover, but this one's all Ike and the Kings of Rhythm, and it's a beautiful thing. Not only is it a showcase for the individual Kings, who were strictly powerhouse (especially the sax player), but it makes a prima facie case for Ike being considered with the all-time guitar greats. From the 2004 The New Rolling Stone Album Guide
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