Community hub
Recent from talks
Contribute something to knowledge base
Content stats: 0 posts, 0 articles, 0 media, 0 notes
Members stats: 0 subscribers, 0 contributors, 0 moderators, 0 supporters
Subscribers
Supporters
Contributors
Moderators
Hub AI
The Ikettes AI simulator
(@The Ikettes_simulator)
Hub AI
The Ikettes AI simulator
(@The Ikettes_simulator)
The Ikettes
The Ikettes, originally The Artettes, were a trio (sometimes quartet) of female backing vocalists for the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. Despite their origins, the Ikettes became successful artists in their own right. In the 1960s they had hits such as "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)" and "Peaches 'N' Cream". In 2017, Billboard ranked "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)" No. 63 on its list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time.
The group started as "The Artettes", the backing group of Art Lassiter. The first official incarnation of The Ikettes was composed of Delores Johnson, Eloise Hester and Josie Jo Armstead. The most popular line-up consisted of Robbie Montgomery, Venetta Fields, and Jessie Smith. It was this trio that later morphed into The Mirettes.
As the 1960s progressed, the Ikettes became known for their sexy onstage appearance; minidresses, long hair and high-energy dance routines that mirrored their mentor Tina Turner. "They represent me, and in my act they gotta look outta sight at all times. There's simply no room for sloppiness and unprofessionalism," Tina told Esquire. She added:
I also believe in the Ikette visual. I don't see it as cheap or vulgar. Nor do I see myself as that. Sex is not cheap or vulgar. And I always loved the look of long straight hair. Ike says he patterned me after Sheena of the jungle. She was white, you know. But I still love the look and action of long hair movin' and the short skirts shimmying. I want action on that stage at all times.
When Art Lassiter did not show up for a recording session in early 1960, Ike Turner took Lassiter's backup singers, the Artettes (Robbie Montgomery, Frances Hodges, and Sandra Harding) and had them accompany Tina Turner on the recording "A Fool in Love." Following the success of the single, Ike formed the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, but with a new group of backup singers: Delores Johnson, Eloise Hester, and Jo Armstead. Montgomery was pregnant and unable to tour. They recorded "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)" the following year, produced by Ike and leased to Atco Records. Released in November 1961, the single reached No. 3 on the Billboard R&B chart and No. 19 on the Hot 100.
Montgomery rejoined the revue shortly after having her baby and was teamed with Jessie Smith (recruited from a group named Benny Sharp and the Zorros of Rhythm) and Venetta Fields (a gospel singer from Buffalo, New York) to form the first official incarnation of The Ikettes. The revue toured constantly through the U.S. on the Chitlin' Circuit in the segregated South. Occasionally they'd play at major venues such as the Apollo Theater in New York, Howard Theater in Washington, D.C., and Uptown Theater in Philadelphia.
In 1962, Ike switched them to his Teena record label for two singles: "Crazy in Love" (credited as Robbie Montgomery & the Ikettes) and "Prisoner in Love." Soon after its release, the title of "Prisoner in Love" was changed to "No Bail in This Jail" in order to avoid confusion with "Prisoner of Love" by James Brown.
During this period Bonnie Bramlett was briefly an Ikette, becoming the first white Ikette. According to Bramlett, Smith briefly quit the Ikettes after Turner fired her boyfriend Sam Rhodes, who was the bass player in the Kings of Rhythm. Bramlett recalled that she was an Ikette for three days when she was 17. She put on a dark wig to cover her blonde hair and used Man Tan to darken her skin.
The Ikettes
The Ikettes, originally The Artettes, were a trio (sometimes quartet) of female backing vocalists for the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. Despite their origins, the Ikettes became successful artists in their own right. In the 1960s they had hits such as "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)" and "Peaches 'N' Cream". In 2017, Billboard ranked "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)" No. 63 on its list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time.
The group started as "The Artettes", the backing group of Art Lassiter. The first official incarnation of The Ikettes was composed of Delores Johnson, Eloise Hester and Josie Jo Armstead. The most popular line-up consisted of Robbie Montgomery, Venetta Fields, and Jessie Smith. It was this trio that later morphed into The Mirettes.
As the 1960s progressed, the Ikettes became known for their sexy onstage appearance; minidresses, long hair and high-energy dance routines that mirrored their mentor Tina Turner. "They represent me, and in my act they gotta look outta sight at all times. There's simply no room for sloppiness and unprofessionalism," Tina told Esquire. She added:
I also believe in the Ikette visual. I don't see it as cheap or vulgar. Nor do I see myself as that. Sex is not cheap or vulgar. And I always loved the look of long straight hair. Ike says he patterned me after Sheena of the jungle. She was white, you know. But I still love the look and action of long hair movin' and the short skirts shimmying. I want action on that stage at all times.
When Art Lassiter did not show up for a recording session in early 1960, Ike Turner took Lassiter's backup singers, the Artettes (Robbie Montgomery, Frances Hodges, and Sandra Harding) and had them accompany Tina Turner on the recording "A Fool in Love." Following the success of the single, Ike formed the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, but with a new group of backup singers: Delores Johnson, Eloise Hester, and Jo Armstead. Montgomery was pregnant and unable to tour. They recorded "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)" the following year, produced by Ike and leased to Atco Records. Released in November 1961, the single reached No. 3 on the Billboard R&B chart and No. 19 on the Hot 100.
Montgomery rejoined the revue shortly after having her baby and was teamed with Jessie Smith (recruited from a group named Benny Sharp and the Zorros of Rhythm) and Venetta Fields (a gospel singer from Buffalo, New York) to form the first official incarnation of The Ikettes. The revue toured constantly through the U.S. on the Chitlin' Circuit in the segregated South. Occasionally they'd play at major venues such as the Apollo Theater in New York, Howard Theater in Washington, D.C., and Uptown Theater in Philadelphia.
In 1962, Ike switched them to his Teena record label for two singles: "Crazy in Love" (credited as Robbie Montgomery & the Ikettes) and "Prisoner in Love." Soon after its release, the title of "Prisoner in Love" was changed to "No Bail in This Jail" in order to avoid confusion with "Prisoner of Love" by James Brown.
During this period Bonnie Bramlett was briefly an Ikette, becoming the first white Ikette. According to Bramlett, Smith briefly quit the Ikettes after Turner fired her boyfriend Sam Rhodes, who was the bass player in the Kings of Rhythm. Bramlett recalled that she was an Ikette for three days when she was 17. She put on a dark wig to cover her blonde hair and used Man Tan to darken her skin.