Today is the birthday of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee (with Ike) Tina Turner; she’s 69.
The Ike and Tina Turner Revue was one of the highest energy ensembles on the soul circuit in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s.
Ike Turner had begun as a bandleader and talent scout in the ‘40s for blues and R&B performers. He recorded “Rocket 88,” considered by many the first rock ‘n’ roll recording, under the name of his baritone sax player, Jackie Brenston, in 1951.
Turner and his band, the Kings of Rhythm, found a young singer named Annie Mae Bullock in 1956. Eventually, the singer was renamed Tina Turner and the two married.
Their first hit, “A Fool in Love,” was recorded in 1961 when another singer failed to show up for a session. After several early ‘60s hit R&B singles, including “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine” in 1961, they became major stars in England.
A 1971 cover version of John Fogerty’s “Proud Mary” reached No. 4 on the pop chart. Ike and Tina divorced in 1976.
John McVie is 63 today. McVie is the Mac in Fleetwood Mac.
Despite all the changes, two members have remained constant over the years: drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie, whose surnames provided the group name Fleetwood Mac. Though most rock fans are familiar with the lineup that includes Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks—by far the longest-running edition of the band, responsible for the classic albums Fleetwood Mac and Rumours—the group possesses a rich and storied history that predates those epics.
Art Shell is 62 today. Shell is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a player and he was the first African-American head coach in modern NFL history.
Hall of Fame pitcher Vernon Louis “Lefty” Gomez was born on this date in 1908. He died in 1989.
“No one hit home runs the way Babe (Ruth) did. They were something special. They were like homing pigeons. The ball would leave the bat, pause briefly, suddenly gain its bearings, then take off for the stands.” Lefty Gomez
“When Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon, he and all the space scientists were puzzled by an unidentifiable white object. I knew immediately what it was. That was a home run ball hit off me in 1933 by Jimmie Foxx.” Lefty Gomez
“I talked to the ball a lot of times in my career. I yelled, ‘Go foul. Go foul.'” Lefty Gomez
Charles M. Schulz was born on this date in 1922. He died in February 2000, the night before his last Sunday strip appeared. A year ago John Updike wrote a fascinating review of Schulz and Peanuts, a biography by David Michaelis — Sparky from St. Paul.