Tina Turner was named the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll, and with several hits to her name, you might be wondering what some of her best tracks are. We’re going to tell you the 25 best Tina Turner songs, ranked, so keep reading to learn more about her greatest hits.
1. What’s Love Got To Do With It
First up on our list is the classic Tina Turner hit What’s Love Got To Do With It. This track was released in 1984 on her album Private Dancer, and it’s probably her biggest hit reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In fact, she would not have another number-one song to reach that chart except this one.
It won three different Grammy Awards including Song of the Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, and Record of the Year. She was 44 when she released this track, and it made her the oldest female solo artist at the time to make it to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song also landed at two on the Hot Black Singles chart and eight on the Adult Contemporary chart.
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2. I Don’t Wanna Fight
Next on the list is the other well-known classic song by her called I Don’t Wanna Fight, which was released in 1993 for the album What’s Love Got To Do With It. This track was a massive hit everywhere, and it went to number one on the Adult Contemporary chart while hitting nine on the Billboard Hot 100. It also landed at number one in Canada while hitting three on the charts in Iceland.
It would go on to be the last time that she would have a Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 hit. When you listen to this song, you can hear that her voice is epic and strong, just like she was, which is what we love about it. We also enjoyed the conviction in the tune and her tone of just being done and wanting to move on, which are feelings and thoughts we’ve all had at one time or another.
3. The Best
Next on the list is The Best, which comes from her 1989 album Foreign Affair. This song was huge and became a success internationally, making it one of her signature tracks. A lot of people think the title is Simply The Best because of the chorus, and it’s appeared in television shows, commercials, and sporting events with that chorus being used which is why there is confusion. The song made it to 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and five on the UK Singles chart.
4. Private Dancer
We can’t mention the best songs from Tina Turner without mentioning Private Dancer, which was released in 1984. This track hit three on the Billboard R&B chart while hitting seven on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was the fifth song released from the record of the same name, and it is thought of as one of her best tracks.
What’s interesting here is that Dire Straits was supposed to record this song on their album in 1982, but they didn’t feel it was a good track for a male lead singer. It had to be tweaked a little because she couldn’t use their original version due to legal reasons. This is a very edgy and dark song that suited her well, and because of its lyrics and its being about a prostitute, it allowed her sexual side to shine in a way it hadn’t before.
5. We Don’t Need Another Hero
Coming in at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart was her song We Don’t Need Another Hero, which was for the movie Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. This track was incredibly popular and earned her nominations for a Grammy and a Golden Globe, although she didn’t win either for this song.
It would go on to hit three on the Adult contemporary chart and Hot R&B chart, as well as land at three on the UK Singles chart. It made it to number one in West Germany and is thought of as one of her classic and iconic songs that is loved by fans everywhere.
6. Better Be Good To Me
Next up on our list is Better Be Good To Me, which was from her 1984 album Private Dancer. This track went to number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, six on the Hot Black Singles chart, and 16 on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart. It also did well outside of the US and went to 45 on the UK Singles chart. It was a huge hit for her and earned her a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance for a Female.
7. Tonight
Next is Tonight, which featured David Bowie, and this song was one that they sang together live at a concert in Europe. It was supposed to just be his track, but it ended up that they enjoyed each other’s music and work so they chose to collaborate on this song instead. She would put this duet on her live record in 1988 and would then release the track as a standalone single too. When she released it as a single, it went to number one in the Netherlands.
8. Break Every Rule
Break Every Rule was released on the 1986 record of the same name, and this song hit 21 on the Top 40 chart in Austria. However, it only made it to 74 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart even though it was the title track to the album. What made this song great was that it had a rock and roll feel to it yet maintained some of the classic elements of R&B.
9. I Can’t Stand The Rain
I Can’t Stand The Rain is next, which comes from her 1984 album Private Dancer. This song did not chart in America but did very well in Europe and other countries including Germany and Austria. This is different from the Ann Peebles version since it’s more rock than soul or gospel sounding, and it’s easy to feel the pain through her powerful emotion-filled vocal performance.
10. Whatever You Want
Next on the list is Whatever You Want, which is from her album Wildest Dreams, released in 1996. This song contains strong and powerful vocals by Tina Turner as well as it delivers a high-energy feeling to it that’ll make you want to dance. While the track didn’t chart in the US, it went within the top 10 on the charts in countries such as Italy and Finland. The orchestra in the song is what made this track stand out to us, and we love it.
11. River Deep – Mountain High
Ike and Tina Turner released the song River Deep – Mountain High, which was written by the infamous Phil Spector. It is thought to be one of the best tracks of all time and in 1999 went into the Grammy Hall of Fame. It was highly successful outside of the US, with it being a huge hit in Europe, and is often ranked in the top 50 of best songs of all time lists.
12. A Fool In Love
On the list next is A Fool In Love, which was the first single released by Ike and Tina Turner in 1960. This song was important for its time because it crossed over from the R&B chart to the pop chart, and that was one of the first times that had been done by anyone. It went to number two on the Hot R&B chart, 19 on the Cash Box chart, and 27 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
13. Let’s Stay Together
Next on the list is Let’s Stay Together, which was a collaboration between Tina Turner and Heaven 17, and it was released with the intention of this being her big comeback. The original version was by Al Green, but she switched it up and sang the second verse before the first verse. It went to number one on the Billboard Dance chart and 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. When the track was released, it became her biggest solo hit for that time and continues to be one of her classic hit songs even now.
14. Proud Mary
Proud Mary is considered to be one of Tina Turner’s signature tracks, and it’s a cover of a Creedence Clearwater Revival track from two years before. The song features both her and Ike Turner, and he rearranged the track to make it have a lot of soul. He even slowed it all down in the beginning.
This was such a hit song that they won a Grammy for it in the Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group category. You hear her beautiful voice in the beginning before his voice and the funk comes in, and it’s more gospel-sounding than the original. This track hit number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and number five on the Billboard R&B chart.
15. Typical Male
Typical Male was from her album Break Every Rule released in 1986. This song was a pretty big hit for her in America with it placing number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for three weeks. It also hit three on the R&B chart and number one on the Cash Box chart. This was a pop track that was unlike other traditional pop songs, given that it was recorded with a 2/4 time chorus.
16. GoldenEye
GoldenEye makes our list because it was the theme song for a movie of the same name, which was the James Bond movie released in 1995. The Edge and Bono wrote this track for Tina Turner, and it was a huge hit all over the world with it hitting number one on the Hungarian Singles chart while making it within the top 10 in multiple European countries such as Finland and France. However, it only made it to 43 on the UK Singles chart and two on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart.
17. Acid Queen
Next on the list is Acid Queen, which was released on her album of the same name, and inspired by Tommy, the movie from 1975 where she played the role of the character, the Acid Queen. She had a lot of depth and range in her vocals at this time, and it was an R&B song through and through. She had left Ike Turner and was starting her career over, and this track was the perfect start to the new Tina Turner.
18. Nutbush City Limits
One Tina Turner song you may not know is sort of an autobiography that makes the list is Nutbush City Limits. This track is about her childhood when she was living in Nutbush, Tennessee, and it’s a song that she and other artists have recorded multiple versions of through the years.
It was first released by her and Ike Turner, and when you listen to this track, you hear a lot of funk in it and guitar, so it was heavy yet very classic for its time. This song went to number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and 11 on the Hot Soul Singles chart. It peaked at two on the West German chart, so it was successful even outside of the US.
19. Whole Lotta Love
Whole Lotta Love makes the list which comes from her album Acid Queen, which made it to 61 on the Billboard R&B chart. Even though Tina Turner and Ike Turner released a version of this song, we are talking specifically about the solo version she released because she turned this track upside down and made the vocals appear to be more heartache and longing, with it being full of emotions that’ll tug at your heart strings.
20. Show Some Respect
Reaching number 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart is Show Some Respect, which comes from Tina Turner’s album Private Dancer. This song also went to 50 on the Hot R&B chart and it hit 41 on the New Zealand chart. In this track, she is singing about how much she values herself now and knows she is a good person and won’t settle for second best in a relationship.
21. Be Tender With Me Baby
On our list next is Be Tender With Me Baby, which was released on her 1989 album Foreign Affair. This song was only released as a single in certain countries, including Ireland, the UK, and Europe, so it wasn’t a single in America. However, it hit number four on the Portugal chart, 18 in Ireland, 35 in the Netherlands, and 28 on the UK Singles chart.
22. Missing You
Missing You is on our list because this song landed at number 12 on the UK Singles chart and went to 84 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This was her 1996 cover of John Waite’s original 1984 version, and she released this on her album Wildest Dreams. There were different versions of this track available with one being a mix and the other being the single that was edited for radio.
23. I Want You Near Me
I Want You Near Me was released on Simply The Best, which was Tina Turner’s compilation album that was released in 1991. This song was one of the new tracks she decided to put onto this album, and it hit 22 on the UK Singles chart but failed to chart in America. Even though it did not chart in the US, it remained one of her more popular songs that got quite a bit of radio play.
24. Two People
Next up is Two People, which was from her album Break Every Rule released in 1986. This song hit number 12 on the Adult Contemporary chart, 18 on the Hot R&B chart, and 30 on the Billboard Hot 100. It peaked at number 10 on the Switzerland chart, and it’s a classic that’s still played today.
25. Look Me In The Heart
Look Me In The Heart was one of the best Tina Turner songs, which appeared on her album Foreign Affair back in 1989. This track hit number eight on the Adult Contemporary chart in America and 23 on the Irish chart. It also is a very pop-like song, and the critics thought that it was decent and was similar to her other pop tracks such as Let’s Stay Together.
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From the time she was little, Florence loved listening to music and quickly learned how music can make you happy and feel fulfilled. One of her favorite memories is being in the garage with her dad working on classic cars with the local rock station blaring in the background. Ever since Florence was 3, she loved grunge music and spent hours listening to bands such as Alice in Chains, Mad Season, Soul Asylum, and Soundgarden.
She also enjoys classic rock, modern rock, nu metal, alternative rock, and old 90’s R&B. Her love of music grew as she got older, and used music to help her get through tough times in her life. More often than not, you’ll see Florence with earbuds in while she’s writing, cooking, cleaning, and doing other tasks. She also loves to debate music with her friends such as which lead singer is the best vocalist, the most iconic guitar solos in music, and what songs are really the best of the decade.