Born in Tennessee, Tina Turner, 83, started performing with Ike Turner’s band Kings of Rhythm as a teenager. She had two sons, one with Ike whom she married in 1962.
"Mick wanted to dance - and I was a dancer i was the one who taught the Rolling Stones frontman his moves, despite his claims he was taught by his mother.
But he never gave me the credit! We worked with him in the dressing room, me and the girls, and we taught him how to Pony." I taught Mick to dance, but he never made a move on me! Jagger and David Bowie were 'like the brothers I never had'.
This month is the fifth anniversary of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical is now booking to spring 2024 at the Aldwych theatre, London. Turner lives in Switzerland with her second husband, Erwin Bach. here's an excerpt from The Guardian interview published on Sat 8 Apr 2023.
What would your superpower be?
Maybe all those solo concerts I did in 6in heels!
What makes you unhappy?
I have lost people close to me, too soon.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
Nothing. Women are forced to look far too closely and be critical of their appearance. Men don’t.
Who would play you in the film of your life?
Angela Bassett has already done that. Plus I have a team of “my Tinas” playing me in our musical.
Who is your celebrity crush?
I always had a crush on Mick Jagger. I loved when we toured with the Rolling Stones.
David Bowie and Mick? First of all Mick wanted to do the dance. David was just a gentleman, being there in some kind of way, trying to find out what he wanted to do with Tina. Because they were like brothers or close, close, close friends and then I ended up doing an album with David and a live show. We were dancing, Tonight.”
Tina concurs that the two of them together on stage was something special (“that was chemistry, that was!”) but, not surprisingly goes all coy about the boy, refusing to reveal what the Thin White One had whispered in her ear during the sax-dominated instrumental break:
“No, I’m not telling ya!” Cue lots of hysterical laughter, hoping Wossy changes the subject sharpish. Of course he doesn’t. Last time I saw David? “I think I saw him in Brussels and that was the actual last time that I went to his dressing room and said Hello and talked about the show and where he was going. “He was just in a shirt, trousers and a guitar and almost acapella and that was the actual last time I went to his dressing room and said hello and talked about the show. I remember the last thing he said. ‘I love you Tina’ and I said ‘I love you David.’ and that was all.
The next thing I heard he was sick and then after that I saw Iman and asked her how he was and she said “He’s OK”, because they kept it undercover, and then the news came through –
" I never slept with with either Jagger or Bowie, they were like the brothers that I never had. We never slept together; and they never came on to me, because I think they saw me as a role model in some kind of way."
