Tammi Terrel - The Shining Star

The beautiful Tammi Terrell, famous for her intensely romantic duets with Marvin Gaye, was a rising star of the 60’s whose ascent was tragically cut short by her premature death at the age of 24.

Born Thomasina Montgomery on April 29, 1945 in Philadelphia, USA, Tammi was blessed with a natural talent that soon had her winning talent shows and participating in local singing contests. By the time she was 13 years old, Tammi was a regular on the club circuit, opening for acts like Gary “U.S” Bonds and Patti LaBelle and the Bluebells. In 1961, she caught the attention of producer Luther Dixon, who signed her to the Sceptre/Wand Records label. Tammi’s debut single If You See Bill was closely followed by The Voice of Experience the next year.

Singing as Tammi Montgomery, Tammi created a strong impact on singer James Brown during one of her live shows. Impressed, he signed her to his label Try Me. Tammi was soon touring with Brown’s Revue, both as a singer and as Brown’s girlfriend. I Cried, one of Tammi’s more popular songs and If I Would Marry You were both produced by Brown. During this time Tammi also studied pre-med at the University of Pennsylvania.

In 1965 Tammi was noticed by Motown head Berry Gordy, Jr. She was signed to Motown and made her label debut with I Can’t Believe You Love Me. Gordy was also responsible for Tammi changing her stage name to Tammi Terrell to commemorate her fresh start with Motown. Come On And See Me, This Old Heart Of Mine (Is Weak For You) and Hold Me Oh My Darling followed Tammi’s debut. However none of these songs created much impact and her stage performances remained responsible for her popularity.

In 1967 Tammi’s career took a dramatic turn with her pairing with Marvin Gaye. The chemistry between the two singers was immediate and electric. Their first duet Ain’t No Mountain High Enough shot into the pop Top 20 in 1967. Sensual, soul-stirring tracks like Your Precious Love, Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing and You’re All I Need To Get By followed, with the last two topping the R&B charts. Many of Terrell and Gaye’s duets were written by the husband and wife duo, Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson. In all Terrell and Gaye recorded three albums, United (1967), You’re All I Need (1968) and Easy (1969).

With her singing career was going great guns, Tammi however was battling crippling migraines. She was finally diagnosed with brain tumour when she collapsed onstage while performing with Gaye in 1967. Although Tammi was compelled to stop live performances, she continued recording duets with Gaye. She also released a solo album Irresistible in 1968. However as time went by, several of Tammi’s solo tracks were released with overdubbing by Gaye and a few songs on Easy were actually ghost-sung by producer Valerie Simpson.

By 1969, Tammi’s health had deteriorated considerably. She underwent a total of eight surgeries and endured memory loss and partial paralysis. The end came on March 16, 1970, when Tammi was only 24 years old. Hundreds attended her funeral and Marvin Gaye, one of her closest friends, was so distraught that he stopped recording for a year and did not tour again until 1972.

Tammi Terrell and Marvin Gaye’s passionate duets endure and are still revered by soul aficionados all over the world.

TJ Grooves - Soul Music TV & Rare Soul Grooves.com