Music pioneer Ike Turner has died at the age of 76.
The rock legend made his name alongside wife Tina Turner.The pair had hits with 'River Deep, Mountain High' and 'Nutbush City Limits' before their well-publicized divorcing.
Turner's career began in 1951 with the single 'Rocket 88'. His Ike Turner Revue used a number of singers, one of them was a teenager named Annie Mae Bullock who joined in 1956 and changed her name to Tina in 1958.
Ike was born Izear Luster Turner in 1931 in Clarksdale, Mississippi. He was originally a broadcaster on a local radio station before starting a band, the Kings of Rhythm at the age of 20.
It is unknown how many wives Turner really had. The official count is 4 but it is said that he may have married up to 14 times.
His marriage to Tina was embroiled in brutality. Tina left him because of abuse and the marriage ended in divorce in 1978. They had one child together. Ike told Howard Stern in October 2007 that he and Tina were never really married.
In the 80s, he was sentenced to jail in a California prison on drug charges. In 1991, when Ike and Tina Turner were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Ike could not be present because he was still in jail.
Tina, who is retired and now lives in Switzerland, has not publicly commented on the death of her former husband.
Ike died in his sleep at his San Diego home.
