Tina Turner by Mark Bego

Author:Mark Bego
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing
Published: 2003-09-16T04:00:00+00:00

12

TINA REBORN/PUTTIN’ ON THE RITZ

Experiencing her newfound freedom, Tina was on the path of redefining her career as a solo artist. For the first time in her life she was getting to truly make her own decisions. And, she was no longer living in the fear that she had existed with during her sixteen years with Ike.

“Once the divorce came—I had cut my hair,” she recalls. “I had gone shopping, even though I had no money. I got through it, though, but it was really fun. It was a freedom that—unless you’ve ever been in some form of bondage that you—it’s very hard to explain it. To have the freedom to get in your car and just ride, sometimes, because I’d never had that chance or that opportunity. I met new people, new friends. I moved from that side of California to an opposite side and I met friends, and . . . I learned how to drink a bit of champagne and wine. I learned some things. I learned about another life, and I liked it, you know?” (12).

Part of her new life included selecting the material for her albums on her own. She was truly trying out her wings, and it felt great. In 1978 Liberty/United Artists released her third solo album, entitled Rough. It was a mixture of contemporary rock songs and cover versions of recent hits from other artists. Three of the most notable cuts include her interpretation of Bob Seger’s “Fire Down Below,” Dan Hill’s “Sometimes When We Touch,” and her first recorded version of Elton John’s “The Bitch Is Back.” Still trying her hands at country, she also recorded Willie Nelson’s “Funny How Time Slips Away.” There was one single released from it, titled “Root Toot Undisputable Rock & Roller.” The album was produced by Bob Monaco.

Also in 1978 came Tina’s next appearance in a major film. She was seen in the highly publicized rock & roll motion picture Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Producer Robert Stigwood had been so successful at bringing The Who’s Tommy to the big screen that he was anxious to repeat the formula with another big rock star feature fashioned after a famous album. So, he optioned The Beatles’ 1967 masterpiece album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and set about turning it into a huge spectacle, starring The Bee Gees and Peter Frampton as the four members of the band.

Since several of the songs contained on it suggested characters, like “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite,” “Lovely Rita,” and “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” different actors could play each of them. One of the most famous aspects of the album was the original cover, on which The Beatles were depicted standing in marching band outfits, surrounded by cardboard cutouts and photos of famous people on bleachers behind them. To replicate the album cover concept, during the last minutes of the film, The Bee Gees and Peter Frampton were likewise surrounded by a team of famous faces on bleachers behind them.

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