Tina Turner enraged her second husband Erwin Bach by decorating his “minimalist” apartment when he was out as soon as they moved in together.
Tina Turner enraged her second husband Erwin Bach by decorating his “minimalist” apartment when he was out as soon as they moved in together
The late ‘Private Dancer’ singer married the German music producer, 67, who was by her side when she died aged 83 on 24 May at their Swiss estate, in 2013 – 35 years after she finalised her divorce from her abusive first husband and music partner Ike Turner.
She said in her ‘My Love Story’ memoir about moving in with him in 1985, when she was aged 46 and years before they tied the knot: “I made the right decision when I packed my ten Louis Vuitton suitcases and headed for Erwin’s two-room apartment near Cologne. It contained a great sound system, I noticed, but not much else.
“When I got to know Erwin a little better, I learnt that ‘minimalist’ is his middle name: he hates stuff.
“Me, I’ll cover every surface with books, candles, photographs, potpourri, anything to add personality.”
Tina added about hatching her plan to make the place more her own: “My first thought was: ‘Well, this room really needs decorating.’
“I waited till Erwin had to fly to Brazil on business, then did a whirlwind shop at a home interiors store and rearranged everything in his flat.
“It was supposed to be a big surprise, and it was. He was horrified. Everywhere he looked there was stuff, stuff and more stuff.
“Luckily, a friend joined us for dinner that night, so Erwin had to contain his aggravation. By the next day, he had calmed down a little. Isn’t it funny he had a harder time adjusting to new furniture than to the new woman in his life? We survived that battle, but the decorating war continues to this day.”
Tina also told how she amazed fellow residents in Erwin’s building by having to go to the basement laundry room to sort through her clothes as there wasn’t enough room to store them in Erwin’s apartment: “A more pressing problem was my ten suitcases (for a month’s stay), as there was no room for them in the apartment.
“So I stored my bags in the communal basement and had to keep running down to get my clothes.
“Imagine his neighbours' surprise when they walked into the basement laundry room and came across Tina Turner, rummaging around for something to wear.”
Tagged in Ike Turner Tina Turner