My Love Story Read online

  Here we are—Tina and Erwin—looking very happy with each other. I love this picture because it is the first one of us as a couple, in Los Angeles in 1986. (Personal collection)

  A romantic Christmas vacation in Gstaad, 1986. (Personal collection)

  Erwin in 1961, when he was five— adorable, but very proper. (Personal collection)

  When I looked for a home in London in the late 1980s, I picked one of the beautiful white town houses I had admired during my first trip in 1966. (Personal collection)

  The living room in my London house, complete with a guitar. (Archive Rhonda Graam)

  Villa Anna Fleur in the South of France. (Peter Lindbergh)

  Our home in Cologne. The houses I gravitated toward in Europe often looked as if they belonged in a fairy tale. (Personal collection)

  Photographer Peter Lindbergh captures my feelings about life at a shoot on the Eiffel Tower in Paris in 1990. I’m happier than I’ve ever been and leaping into my exciting future in Europe. (Peter Lindbergh)

  Peter Lindbergh always managed to make me look—and feel—poised and pretty. (Peter Lindbergh)

  A relaxed (and rare) moment with Peter Lindbergh in front of the camera with me. (Peter Lindbergh)

  The Wildest Dreams tour in 1997 broke records everywhere. I didn’t think I was ready for sequins, but when I saw how I looked in this dress by Versace, I said, “I’ll wear that!” (Getty Images)

  The cover of All the Best, the 2005 album that featured some of my favorite songs, including “Proud Mary,” “River Deep—Mountain High,” and “Nutbush City Limits.” (Paul Cox)

  Proudly posing with fellow 2005 Kennedy Center honorees, including Robert Redford, Tony Bennett, Julie Harris, and Suzanne Farrell. (Getty Images)

  I said I retired . . . but here I am again, singing and dancing up a storm on the Fiftieth Anniversary tour in 2008. (Getty Images)

  The best night performing “Proud Mary” with Beyoncé at the 2008 Grammy Awards. (Getty Images)

  And still running out on the claw, high, high, high above the audience! (Getty Images)

  I love everything about this Vogue cover, including my stunning blue dress by Giorgio Armani. (Claudia Knoepfel & Stefan Indlekofer)

  On a trip to Russia with Erwin in 2008 for a live performance. (Personal collection)

  A happy day on Lake Zurich in 2008. This is one of Erwin’s favorite pictures of me. (Personal collection)

  Looking out my window on my wedding day, I am overwhelmed by the beauty of my guests, the spectacular setting, and my total happiness. (Personal collection)

  The bride and groom enjoying a kiss. (Personal collection)

  We arrive at the wedding to the music of Frank Sinatra—“I did it my way.” (Personal collection)

  Our beautiful flower girls. They’re so excited they can barely contain themselves! (Personal collection)

  After the ceremony, posing on the steps in front of the house with Craig, Oprah, Gayle, and Erwin. Our big smiles show exactly how we felt! (Personal collection)

  Our classic “You may now kiss the bride!” moment, with Rhonda, my maid of honor, watching happily. (Personal collection)

  Mr. and Mrs. Erwin Bach greet their guests and get pelted with rice. (Personal collection)

  Just as I imagined, the Château Algonquin looked like a fairy-tale castle on the night of the wedding. (Personal collection)

  On my way to dialysis—trying to look brave. (Personal collection)

  My dialysis routine—the staff at the clinic tried so hard to make me comfortable. (Personal collection)

  Hard at work on My Love Story with my writers, Dominik Wichmann (left) and Deborah Davis (right). I was a bit nervous to revisit the past, but writing the book turned out to be a wonderful experience. (Personal collection)

  The first time I came to London in 1966, I fell in love with the city’s quaint red double-decker buses. I never imagined I would see my name on one! (PR Stage Entertainment)

  Erwin and I attending opening night. (PR Stage Entertainment)

  Celebrating with the sensational Adrienne Warner, who plays Tina, and the rest of the cast on the opening night of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical in London, April 2018. (Getty Images)

  With my dear friend and designer extraordinaire Giorgio Armani. (Personal collection)

  Rehearsing with the cast of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical. (Hugo Glenndeling)

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  * * *

  There would be no love story, on the pages of this book, or in life, without my wonderful husband, Erwin Bach. April 7, the day he gave me his kidney and a second chance at life, is my new birthday. My gratitude and devotion to him are truly “river deep, mountain high.” May we always make each other laugh, the true sign of a successful relationship.

  I would sincerely like to thank my doctors. Without their knowledge and commitment I would not have survived my life-threatening disease. The foresight of Professor Doctor Vetter, the persistence and perseverance of Dr. Bleisch, and the confidence and professionalism of Professor Doctor Steiger, Professor Doctor Gürke, and Professor Doctor Heuss enabled me to be here today, writing these words. My doctors and the staffs at the University Hospital Zurich, the clinic at Zollikerberg, as well as the University Hospital of Basel saved my life, eased my recovery, and through it all, considerately respected—and protected—my privacy.

  I am grateful to my coauthors, Deborah Davis and Dominik Wichmann, for helping me to explore my past and tell my story. Our time together was as pleasant as it was productive.

  And my thanks to Rhonda Graam, Roger Davies, Peter Lindbergh, Harry Langdon, Beat and Regula Curti, Sylvie Ackerman, Torsten Siefert, Andreas Bodenmann, Scott Waxman, and the Looping Group for their kind participation in this project.

  ABOUT THE AUTHORS

  * * *

  Tina Turner’s legendary career has spanned more than fifty years. She has won numerous awards, including eight Grammys. After early hits such as “River Deep—Mountain High” and “Proud Mary,” her 1984 solo album Private Dancer sold twenty million copies worldwide and included the hit singles “What’s Love Got to Do with It,” “Better Be Good to Me,” “Private Dancer,” and “Let’s Stay Together.” She played the Acid Queen in the 1975 film Tommy, and starred opposite Mel Gibson in Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome. Her bestselling memoir, I, Tina, was turned into the Academy Award–nominated film What’s Love Got to Do with It. One of the world’s most popular entertainers, Tina has sold more concert tickets than any other solo music performer in history. She lives with her husband, Erwin Bach, in Zurich, Switzerland.

  * * *

  Deborah Davis is the author of eight books, including Strapless: John Singer Sargent and the Fall of Madame X; Party of the Century: The Fabulous Story of Truman Capote and His Black and White Ball; Gilded: How Newport Became the Richest Resort in America; The Oprah Winfrey Show: Reflections on an American Legacy; Guest of Honor: Booker T. Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, and the White House Dinner That Shocked a Nation, which won the prestigious Phillis Wheatley Award for best work of history in 2013 and was nominated for an NAACP Image Award; Fabritius and the Goldfinch, which Amazon named one of the Best Books of 2014; and The Trip: Andy Warhol’s Plastic-Fantastic Cross-Country Adventure.

  * * *

  Dominik Wichmann was editor in chief of two major German magazines for fifteen years: Stern and Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin. He has won several journalism awards for his work as an editor and author. Recently, he wrote the book Zwischen zwei Leben for the former German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle. The book was a bestseller in Germany for more than sixty weeks and will be turned into a movie next year.

  MEET THE AUTHORS, WATCH VIDEOS AND MORE AT

  SimonandSchuster.com

  Authors.SimonandSchuster.com/Tina-Turner

  Facebook.com/AtriaBooks @AtriaBooks @AtriaBooks

  INDEX

  * * *

  A note about the index: The pages referenced in this index refer to the page numbers
in the print edition. Clicking on a page number will take you to the ebook location that corresponds to the beginning of that page in the print edition. For a comprehensive list of locations of any word or phrase, use your reading system’s search function.

  A

  Abbey Road Studios, 122

  Ackerman, Sylvie, 200

  acupuncture, 200

  Adams, Bryan, 11, 15, 127, 138

  Adams, Faye, 48

  African American Lives, 29

  Alaïa, Azzedine, 171

  Anna Fleur, 172–73

  Ann-Margret, 91

  Ann-Margret Olsson, 91

  Apollo Theater, 49, 50, 51

  Armani, Giorgio, 10, 11, 187, 194, 234, 235, 242

  B

  Bach, Erwin, 134, 145–46, 165, 176, 182–84, 186, 189, 193, 231, 233–34, 236, 242

  age difference between Tina and, 151–52, 221

  Château Algonquin home of, 9–10, 21, 23, 174–75, 176, 182–84, 217, 231

  driving and motorcycling of, 184, 226, 227

  Tina’s health problems and, 21–22, 198, 203, 205–6, 208–9, 214, 217

  Tina’s honeymoon with, 197–98

  Tina’s kidney transplant from, 208–9, 219–27, 233–34, 242

  Tina’s marriage proposals from, 5–6, 194–95

  Tina’s meeting of, 145–47, 175

  Tina’s mother and, 155–56, 178

  Tina’s relationship with, 5, 145–56, 172–74, 183, 194, 197, 216, 221, 223, 238

  Tina’s sister and, 155–56

  Tina’s wedding to, 9–18, 21, 23, 197, 198, 201

  Bach, Jürgen, 11

  Baker, LaVern, 48

  Baptist church, 31, 89

  Basel, Switzerland, 222, 223

  Bassey, Shirley, 174

  Beach Boys, 135

  Beatles, 150

  Beatrice, Princess, 29

  Beck, Jeff, 125

  Bennett, Tony, 185

  “Better Be Good to Me,” 123, 125, 131

  Beyoncé, 135, 185, 187

  Beyond, 186

  Billboard, 143

  Birdie (friend), 8, 80

  Bleisch, Jörg, 201, 203, 206, 207, 217–18

  Bolic Sound, 77–78, 81

  Bono, 173–74

  Bono, Sonny, 103–4, 139

  Book of Secrets, The (Chopra), 22–23, 215

  Bowie, David, 120–21, 122, 132–35, 138, 167

  Brazil, 164

  Break Every Rule, 158, 164

  Brendan Byrne Arena, 120

  Britten, Terry, 124

  Brown, James, 49

  Buddhism, 29, 87–88, 132, 186, 207, 239

  Tina’s practice of, 13, 26, 87–89, 99, 100, 107, 108, 132, 235

  Bullock, Floyd Richard (father), 24–28, 31, 42, 44, 56

  family abandoned by, 32–33

  Bullock, Mama Roxanna, 27, 33

  Bullock, Zelma Currie “Muh” (mother), 23–28, 31, 39, 40, 42, 44, 66, 99, 109, 176–80, 188, 216, 244

  death of, 179

  Erwin Bach and, 155–56, 178

  family abandoned by, 25, 32, 34, 56, 176, 216

  Ike and, 108–9, 176, 177, 179

  Tina’s living with, in St. Louis, 34

  Tina’s success and, 177–78

  Bush, George W., 185

  C

  Cain, Ann, 80

  Can’t Slow Down, 125

  Capitol Records, 120, 121–22, 123

  Cat People, 121

  Chainsmokers, 193

  chanting, 87–89, 100, 107, 108, 186, 242

  Charles, Ray, 49

  Château Algonquin, 9–10, 21, 23, 174–75, 176, 182–84, 217, 231

  Cher, 103–4, 109, 139, 152, 164

  Chopra, Deepak, 22–23, 152, 186, 215

  Chopra Center, 186

  Club Manhattan, 37, 38

  Coldplay, 193

  Cologne, Germany, 172, 223

  Color Purple, The, 127

  Cooke, Sam, 48–49

  Creedence Clearwater Revival, 76

  Currie, Mama Georgie, 27–28, 31, 33–34, 88, 123, 179–80

  Curti, Regula, 186

  D

  Dalai Lama, 183

  Dallas, Tex., 91–92, 94

  Daly, Rava, 115

  Daniel Freeman Hospital, 68–69

  Dante Alighieri, 22–23, 73, 215–16, 223

  Davies, Roger, 115–24, 126, 131, 139, 143, 145, 146, 167, 182, 187–89

  Davis, Sammy, Jr., 85–86, 112

  Didier (majordomo), 214

  Dignitas, 208

  Dire Straits, 124

  Divine Comedy, The (Dante), 22–23, 73, 216

  Inferno, 223

  Duke (friend), 8, 80, 101

  Dylan, Bob, 135

  dyslexia, 29

  E

  Edge, 173

  Eiffel Tower, 171, 201

  EMI, 120, 122, 145, 147, 149, 150, 174

  England, 63, 135

  Sheffield, 189

  see also London, England

  Etheridge, Melissa, 185

  Europe, 64, 118, 171, 175, 195, 236

  Tina’s move to, 171–72

  see also specific countries

  Exit, 208

  Eze-sur-Mer, France, 173

  F

  Fabrizio, Pasquale, 164

  Fairmont Hotel, 116–17

  Farrell, Suzanne, 185

  Fiftieth Anniversary tour, 187–88

  Fisher, Mark, 182

  Flagg, Benjamin, 29–30

  Flagg Grove School, 28–30

  Fogerty, John, 76

  “Fool in Love, A,” 40–41, 43

  Foreign Affair, 158, 171

  France, 64

  Paris, 76

  Tina’s house in, 172–73, 194

  G

  Gates, Henry Louis, 29

  Geldof, Bob, 135

  German Vogue, 194

  Germany, 64, 147, 157

  Cologne, 172, 223

  Munich, 157–58

  Tina’s move to, 172

  Gibson, Mel, 130, 138

  “Girls,” 134

  “GoldenEye,” 173–74

  GoldenEye, 173–74

  “Goldfinger,” 174

  Gold Star Studios, 62

  Graam, Rhonda, 11, 57–59, 67, 68, 79, 81, 86, 91, 107, 111, 148, 156

  as Tina’s manager, 102–3, 106, 109, 115, 118

  Grammy Awards, 77, 131–32, 138, 187

  Greece, 201

  Green, Al, 122–23, 185

  Gregory, Glenn, 122

  Gürke, Professor Doctor, 220, 226

  Guinness World Records, 164

  H

  Hall, Katori, 231

  Hall & Oates, 136

  Harper’s Bazaar, 175

  Harris, Julie, 185

  Heaven, 17, 122

  Henderson, Connie and Guy, 33, 34, 42, 81, 100

  Hill, Raymond, 39–40, 82, 148

  Holdbrook-Smith, Kobna, 237, 238

  Holiday Inn, 58–59

  Hollywood Squares, The, 103, 104–5

  “Honky Tonk Woman,” 120

  Horst, Horst P., 22–23, 215

  “Hot Legs,” 119

  I

  I, Tina (Turner), 165

  “I Can’t Stand the Rain,” 125

  Ike and Tina Turner Revue, 43–51, 55–70, 75–76, 80, 84, 86, 117, 127, 135, 157, 160–61

  discrimination faced by, 57–59

  European tour of, 64

  Ikettes in, 45–48, 65, 68, 69, 77, 135, 160–61

  as Rolling Stones’ opening act, 63–65, 73–74

  Southern tours of, 57–58

  on television, 75

  Tina’s first standing ovation with, 76

  Tina’s legal situation after leaving, 102, 104

  “Tina Turner” name and, 43, 44, 112

  Indlekofer, Stefan, 194

  Inferno (Dante), 223

  Interdisciplinary Center for Vertigo and Neurological Visual Disorders, 202

  “It’s Only Love,” 127

  “
It’s Only Rock ’n’ Roll,” 136–37

  “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” 76

  J

  Jackson, Mahalia, 48

  Jackson, Michael, 46

  Jagger, Mick, 65, 134–38, 145, 159–60, 161, 164–65, 193

  JFK Stadium, 135

  Jung, Wilfried, 150–51

  K

  Kansas City, 187

  Kennedy, Caroline, 185–86

  Kennedy, Ethel, 84, 85

  Kennedy, Jacqueline, 6, 83–85, 185

  Kennedy, John F., 83

  Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 184–85

  Kings of Rhythm, 37–43, 187

  Knight, Holly, 123

  Knoepfel, Claudia, 194

  Knopfler, Mark, 124–25, 139, 235

  Knoxville, Tenn., 25, 31

  sanctified church in, 31, 238

  Kramer, Lee, 115–18

  Krasnow, Bob, 75

  L

  Lady Gaga, 182

  Lake Zurich, 11, 23, 175, 222

  Lassiter, Art, 40–41

  Leatham, Jeff, 10, 11–12, 14

  “Legs,” 143

  Let’s Dance, 120

  “Let’s Stay Together,” 122–23, 125, 126, 143, 159

  Lindbergh, Peter, 171

  Live Aid, 135–37

  Lloyd, Phyllida, 231, 236