But even then, she quickly pulls back for the rest of the “got to do with it” phrase, as if she’d let her emotions get the better of her for just a quick second before remembering herself. It’s not that Turner doesn’t bring the goods with her vocal, as you can still hear her unleash with her peerless might on the first “OHHHH, WHAT’S LOVE…” following the mid-song key change. She croons like someone who’s a little embarrassed to be singing what she’s singing - like she’s not sure she should be admitting any of this to us - which makes sense, given that the song is all about attempting to disavow love as a “second-hand emotion,” and putting a strictly-physical framework around a relationship that’s clearly revealing itself to be much more. Unlike the chops on display with her “Together” cover, she’s noticeably restrained on “Love,” showing more of her power in what she holds back than what she lets go. It’s an incredibly versatile song, and much more of a shape-shifter than it seems at first.īut none of it works without Turner behind the microphone. And while the big pop hooks are the most attention-grabbing parts of the chorus, the most inspired bit of it might be how the rhythm shifts from the tense melodrama of the verse to a much looser, almost reggae-like shuffle for the refrain. But Turner herself was more interested in rock music, and the production’s soupy, cinematic mix of choppy guitars, throbbing bass and bubbling synths on the intro and verses is more reminiscent of Foreigner’s big ballads of the time than anything else. 2 on Billboard‘s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (then Black Singles) chart. The song’s subject matter and melody - and Turner’s pedigree - probably made it most easily slotted into R&B, and the song did hit No. It helped that the groove of “Love” was amorphous enough to allow the song to fit just about anywhere. It was a quintessentially grown-up single, one befitting of Turner’s age and stature, but even while arriving amidst the biggest pop explosion since peak disco (or maybe peak Fab Four), it still sounded very much of its time - a song that could be playlisted in between Footloose soundtrack singles and new wave hits by Duran Duran and Frankie Goes to Hollywood on top 40 radio and not feel out of place. It’s mature without being staid, it’s catchy without being cheesy, and it’s got an obvious soulfulness and wisdom to it without sounding explicitly retro or old-fashioned. hitmaker Terry Britten and co-written by Britten and Scottish folk-rock alum Graham Lyle, is simply the kind of song any veteran pop performer would kill for. ![]() “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” produced by U.K. 26 on the Hot 100 and becoming her first top 40 hit since 1973 - but it was just the table-setter for what would come next. ![]() “Love” wasn’t the first single from Turner’s 1984 album Private Dancer that was actually her cover of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together.” Her rendition of the 1972 Billboard Hot 100-topper served as a sort of soft launch for New Tina, putting the focus back on her inimitable pipes (and in the video, her singular style) while also showing off an updated synth-soul sound, courtesy of producers Greg Marsh and Martyn Ware - the latter one of the co-founders of then-cutting-edge synth-pop outfit Heaven 17. In 1984, she staged one of the era’s greatest comebacks, armed with a new contract with Capitol Records, a new set of rock and pop collaborators, and most importantly, one of the most perfect pop songs of the late 20th century: “What’s Love Got to Do With It.” For one, she was already middle-aged by that point - at 44, practically a full generation older than the 25-year-old Madonna and MJ - and for another, she’d been out of the limelight for the better part of a decade, having broken free of abusive on-stage and romantic partner Ike Turner, but failing to that point to achieve much in the way of solo chart success. ![]() Tina Turner‘s name was a strange fit on the marquee for a year of pop music that was so much about the future.
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