TAMMI TERRELL
She was born Thomasina Winifred Montgomery in Philadelphia on April 29, 1945, the older of two siblings. She was nicknamed “Tommie” but changed it to “Tammy” at age 12, when she saw the movie Tammy and the Bachelor.
According to Ludie Montgomery's book, My Sister Tommie—The Real Tammi Terrell, Tammy was raped by three boys when she was 11 years old. Shortly after, she started to have the headaches that would plague her for the rest of her life.
Terrell’s music career began in 1960, when she recorded as Tammy Montgomery for Scepter/Wand Records. After two singles, she left the label to be a background singer for the James Brown Revue tours. In 1963, she recorded her first charted single, “I Cried,” on Brown’s Try Me Records. As with her Scepter/Wand recordings, the label read “Tammy Montgomery.”
At 17, she became romantically involved with James Brown, who was 12 years her senior. Terrell left him after a 1963 incident in which Brown gave her a beating for not sitting through his full performance. According to band member Bobby Bennett, “She was bleeding, shedding blood.”
Terrell subsequently signed with Checker Records in Chicago and recorded “If I Would Marry You,” a duet with singer Jimmy Radcliffe. When the single did nothing, Terrell enrolled in the University of Pennsylvania and majored in pre-med. During that time, soul singer Jerry Butler asked Terrell to perform with him in a series of nightclub shows. Terrell agreed, but only if she could continue her education. (She would stay in school for two years.)
During a 1965 show in Detroit, Terrell came to the attention of Motown CEO Berry Gordy, Jr. She signed with the label on her 20th birthday. Gordy suggested a name change to “Tammi Terrell.” She agreed, and Motown put out her first single under that name, “I Can’t Believe You Love Me,” which made both the Rhythm & Blues and pop charts.
During a 1966 Motortown Revue tour, Terrell began a romance with David Ruffin of the Temptations. She accepted his marriage proposal, only to find out that Ruffin was already married and had three children. This, and Ruffin’s drug addiction, led to violent arguments between the two, which in turn led to Terrell’s headaches getting worse. She ended the relationship when Ruffin hit her on the head with a motorcycle helmet. It was rumored that Ruffin had also hit her on the head with a hammer, but this proved to be untrue.
In early 1967, Terrell began to record duets with Marvin Gaye. Their first hit, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” was nominated for a Grammy Award. At first, they recorded their vocals separately and Motown remixed them. It wasn’t until they began recording and performing together that Gaye realized how truly gifted his new singing partner was. Terrell served as an inspiration to Gaye, who hated live performing until he saw how she pulled it off.
On October 14, 1967, they were giving a show in Virginia when Terrell collapsed into Gaye’s arms onstage. Doctors diagnosed a malignant tumor on the right side of Terrell’s brain. She underwent surgery in Philadelphia in January 1968. Despite Terrell’s optimism, her tumor worsened. On her doctor’s orders, she retired from live performing in 1969. It was also reported that she was too ill to record, so Valerie Simpson stepped in as a substitute. However, Simpson later insisted that she only provided “guide” vocals for the ailing Terrell, who did, in fact, sing on the recordings in question.
By the beginning of 1970, Tammi Terrell was confined to a wheelchair, suffered from blindness and hair loss, and weighed just 93 pounds. She underwent her eighth and final surgery on January 21st and subsequently slipped into a coma. She died on March 16th at age twenty-four. Marvin Gaye, her closest friend, never fully got over Terrell’s death. It is widely believed that his depression and drug abuse stemmed from the loss.
Charted singles:
“I Cried” (as Tammy Montgomery, 1963) Pop #99
“I Can’t Believe You Love Me” (1965) R&B #27, Pop #72
“Come On and See Me” (1966) R&B #25, Pop #80
“Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” (with Marvin Gaye, 1967) R&B #3, Pop #19
“Your Precious Love” (with Marvin Gaye, 1967) R&B #2, Pop #5
“If I Could Build My Whole World Around You” (with Marvin Gaye, 1967-68) R&B #2, Pop #10
“If This World Were Mine” (with Marvin Gaye, 1968) R&B #27, Pop #68
“Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing” (with Marvin Gaye, 1968) R&B #1 (1 week), Pop #8
“You’re All I Need to Get By” (with Marvin Gaye, 1968) R&B #1 (5 weeks), Pop #7
“Keep On Lovin’ Me Honey” (with Marvin Gaye, 1968) R&B #11, Pop #24
“This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)” (1968-69) R&B #31, Pop #67
“Good Lovin’ Ain’t Easy to Come By” (with Marvin Gaye, 1969) R&B #11, Pop #30
“What You Gave Me” (with Marvin Gaye, 1969) R&B #6, Pop #49
“The Onion Song” (with Marvin Gaye, 1969) R&B #18, Pop #50
“California Soul” (with Marvin Gaye, 1970) Pop #56
Other notable recordings by Tammi Terrell include “Tears at the End of a Love Affair,” “What a Good Man He Is,” “Two Can Have a Party” (with Marvin Gaye), “Sinner’s Devotion,” “Can’t Stop Now, Love Is Calling,” and “Just Too Much to Hope For.”
