All of these songs were hits in the 80s, and although they are all great songs (especially The Best, which was her first #1) there are some that were better than others. At the end of the day, it’s a matter of preference.
“What’s Love Got To Do With It”
Release Date: June 1985
It was obvious that Tina was going to have her own solo career at some point in time and “What’s Love Got To Do With It” was one of those songs that she wanted to sing. It was an inspiration for her because it’s one of a few songs that the public knows her from. “What’s Love Got To Do With It” is a blues song that Tina did a great job with. Even if you have no idea who Tina Turner is, you can enjoy this song and probably still come away feeling like there’s something familiar about it as well.
“What’s Love Got To Do With It” (Live)
Release Date: July 1985
This is the Live version of “What’s Love Got To Do With It”. It’s just her and her piano on this one, but the energy is still there. Tina sounds great singing this song as well and it’s a perfect interpretation of the original version.
“Better Be Good To Me”
Release Date: July 1985
There are a lot of things going on in the music world at the time that this song was written by Tina, including the death of Bernie Taupin (the author of “Better Be Good To Me”). People thought that it would be a good idea for Tina to do a duet with him and she did just that. “Better Be Good To Me” is definitely one of those songs where you don’t need to know what the lyrics are about to enjoy it. Tina’s voice floats over this jazzy, instrumental track and I think it sounds amazing.
“Better Be Good To Me” (Live)
Release Date: September 1985
When you know that the song has been covered by other artists in the past, you can always tell when they do it well. This Live version of “Better Be Good To Me” is one of the best ones she’d sing. It’s so different from the original version and it sounds like Tina Turner is having a lot of fun performing this song on stage. There’s something about hearing her sing in a more jazzy style.
“The Best”
Release Date: September 1985
This is another duet with Bernie Taupin that was a bit unexpected. It feels like they were trying to do something different with this track, but they didn’t quite pull it off. This is one of those songs that has a very jazzy kind of feel to it and it’s a pretty interesting take on ballads.
“The Best” (Live)
Release Date: September 1985
There are so many great songs from this era of her career and “The Best” is probably one of the most iconic. It’s a very jazzy tune Tina does a great job on this track too. This is also another Live version that’s included in this post, but it doesn’t disappoint either.
