Better Than All The Rest: Remembering Tina Turner

Posted on May 25, 2023

by Eric P

There were many Tina Turners. The soulful belter of hits like “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine” in the 1960s. The raspy-voiced dynamo turning songs like “Proud Mary” into potent perpetual motion machines on TV screens in the 1970s. The chart-topping Queen of Rock and Roll unleashing timeless radio earworms like “Private Dancer” in the 1980s. She was the Acid Queen in Tommy and Aunty Entity in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. And in her most complex metamorphosis, she was Oscar nominee Angela Bassett playing her (and borrowing her inimitable vocals to do so) in the hit biopic What’s Love Got to Do With It, indelibly inscribing Turner’s story of survival and triumph in the cultural imagination.

For a while, Tina Turner was everywhere – on playlists ranging from R&B to rock to Adult Contemporary, singing James Bond themes, receiving the Kennedy Center Honors. And she never stopped working – writing books, backing a Broadway musical about her life and music, appearing on screen as the subject of a documentary. Still, her previous ubiquity receded; you could be forgiven for not knowing she’d become a citizen of Switzerland and received an honorary doctorate from the University of Bern. Turner died May 24 at the age of 83 in Zurich, a multiple Grammy winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee. Not bad for the former Anna Mae Bullock of Nutbush, Tennessee.

TINA

DVD  |  Kanopy

With a wealth of never-before-seen footage, audio tapes, personal photos, and new interviews, including with the singer herself, TINA presents an unvarnished and dynamic account of the life and career of music icon Tina Turner.

Happiness Becomes You: A Guide to Changing Your Life for the Good

print   |   eBook  |  Spoken CD

The iconic performing artist provides spiritual tools and advice for self-empowerment and fulfillment while examining the role of her enduring Buddhist faith in helping her overcome poverty, loss, and other personal and professional obstacles.

 

My Love Story

print   |   Large Print  |  eBook  |  eAudiobook

My Love Story is an explosive and inspiring story of a woman who dared to break any barriers put in her way. Emphatically showcasing Tina’s signature blend of strength, energy, heart, and soul, this is a gorgeously wrought memoir as enthralling and moving as any of her greatest hits.

Simply the Best

Music CD  |  hoopla

If you want to find out how Tina Turner became one of the biggest stars in the world, you could do worse than to start with this collection of some of her most iconic songs.

Private Dancer

hoopla

This was the 1984 album that launched Turner’s solo career into the stratosphere with massive hits like the title track and “What’s Love Got to Do With It.” Turner’s collaborators on the record included Mark Knopfler and Jeff Beck.

Tina Turner: Break Every Rule 

Celebrity biographer Mark Bego offers an effusive and thorough biography of Turner along with an extensive discography.

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome 

Who runs Barter Town? No spoilers but don’t bet on Master Blaster.

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