logo
Getty images
Getty images

How Tina Turner's 2nd Husband Erwin Bach Literally Saved Her Life

Oyin Balogun
Jun 17, 2019
07:10 A.M.

Tina Turner is an undisputable music icon, but she also suffered an abusive marriage that made her wary of giving love a second chance. When Tina eventually did, it was to the man she dated for nearly three decades and who would later save her life.

Advertisement

Tina found fame while performing alongside her late ex-husband, Ike Turner, but their marriage also counts as one of her life’s worst experiences.

Advertisement

Last year, Tina, now 79, opened up about taking a second shot at love in her memoir “My Love Story.” In excerpts obtained by PEOPLE, the “What’s Love Got To Do With It” singer recalled meeting German record executive Erwin Bach in 1985.

Erwin was 16 years younger than Tina who also confessed to having issues with self-confidence, but the couple began dating shortly after.

Advertisement

By the early ‘90s, the globally acclaimed Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll was sharing a home with Erwin in Germany and would later move with him to Switzerland where they currently reside.

Tina reportedly turned down Erwin’s first marriage proposal, and it wasn’t until 2013, after 27 years of being a couple, that the lovebirds finally tied the knot.

Advertisement

According to E! News, Tina, and Erwin tied the knot in a quiet civil ceremony in July of 2013 at Lake Zurick in Küsnacht, Northern Switzerland. The couple also reportedly celebrated their union with an intimate Buddhist ceremony in honor of Tina’s faith.

HEALTH CHALLENGES

Unfortunately, Tina (birth name Anna Mae Bullock) suffered a stroke less than one month after the wedding. Her condition was so severe that she couldn’t stand on her own.

Advertisement

“Legs for days and muscles of steel from dancing, but I didn’t have the strength to get up,” wrote the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer. “Terrified, I dragged myself over to a sofa, all the while thinking that I couldn’t imagine Tina Turner paralyzed.”

After recovering from the stroke, Tina got another scary diagnosis in 2016 — intestinal cancer. Through it all, Erwin remained her pillar of support.

Advertisement

A WORTHY SACRIFICE

“Erwin always radiated confidence, optimism and joie de vivre,” she penned. “With his help, I tried to keep calm.”

Not even when Tina’s decision to go with homeopathic remedies made matters worse did Erwin turn against or criticize her.

Advertisement

The 12-time Grammy winner’s decision led to her next life-threatening medical battle: kidney failure. That was when Erwin stepped in and literally saved Tina’s life.

While writing of Erwin’s decision to donate a kidney for her, Tina mused about some of the challenges their relationship has faced so far:

“I wondered if anyone would think that Erwin’s living donation was transactional in some way. Incredibly, considering how long we had been together, there were still people who wanted to believe that Erwin married me for my money and fame. What else would a younger man want with an older woman? Erwin always ignored the rumors.”

Advertisement

TINA'S NEW LIFE

Tina seems to have ignored the rumors as well, choosing only to focus on what makes her happy now.

“I lived through a hellish marriage that almost destroyed me, but I went on,” she wrote in her book. “I can look back and understand why my karma was the way it was. Good came out of bad. Joy came out of pain. And I have never been so pleased as I am today.”

Advertisement

LOSING A CHILD

Tina married Ike in 1962 and filed for divorce in 1976 after fleeing from the physically abusive singer. They had one son together, Ronnie, while Tina had a son and Ike had five children from previous relationships.

Sadly, the "Proud Mary" singer experienced tragedy again last July when her other son, Craig, committed suicide.

“I have no idea what pulled him down, except something that followed him with loneliness,” Tina said in October.

And she is right, no one deserves to be happier!

Advertisement
info
Please fill in your e-mail so we can share with you our top stories!
By subscribing, you agree to our Privacy Policy
Advertisement
Related posts

Beyoncé’s Airman Uncle Dies & Fans Pray for Her Family: Details

February 27, 2024

This Girl Became a Popular Singer, Underwent a Kidney Transplant & Made It to the Guinness World Records More than Once

November 11, 2023

Selena Gomez Stuns with New Lightened Hair Yet Users Notice She ‘Looks Nothing Like’ Herself

November 28, 2023

This Woman Provided for Famous Actor - During Their Marriage, He Met His 2nd Wife Who He Nursed Back to Health

February 26, 2024

Kathleen Turner Still Called ‘Sexual Icon’ Despite Weight Change – She Kept Her Illness a Secret While Raising Her Baby

December 13, 2023

I Took My Son to the Hospital after Accident and Found Out He Wasn't Really My Son – Story of the Day

January 31, 2024

Michael Douglas & Kathleen Turner Had ‘Real’ Chemistry Then His Ex Came to One Shoot & Stepped In

November 27, 2023

14-Month-Old Toddler Tragically Drowns in the Pool - 1 Year Later His Parents Hear His Heartbeat Again

February 12, 2024

Woman Dies for 27 Minutes – Scrawls an Unearthly Note Describing What She 'Saw'

February 20, 2024

I Found Out That My Biological Son, Who I Have Never Seen, Lives 10 Minutes Away from Me

February 14, 2024

Mom Had to Place 2 of Triplet Girls for Adoption – Years Later Sisters Meet Their Carbon Copy in Mall

February 06, 2024

Mama June's Daughter, Anna 'Chickadee' Cardwell, Dies at 29 – Tragic Details

December 12, 2023

Loretta Lynn's Daughter to Undergo 'Critical Surgery' as She Battles 'Reoccurring' Illness

February 13, 2024

11 Missing Teeth, Sewn-on Wig and Scars: Whitney Houston's Autopsy Disclosed Grim Details of Her Death

November 28, 2023