Anna Mae Bullock (Tina Tuner)

Anna Mae Bullock was born in Nut Bush, Tennessee, on November 26, 1939. Her parents were Zelma and Richard Bullock. She was the younger of their two daughters. Anna Mae's older sister was named Alline. Young Anna's parents did not have a loving relationship. Anna Mae loved her mother but she felt a distance from her. She was convinced that because her mother was not happy with her father that her mother never wanted Anna. The estrangement Anna Mae sensed from her mother haunted her for years and contributed to her lack of self-esteem.

Anna Mae's first experience with music was at her Baptist church. At ten years of age, she was the only child invited to be part of the church's choir. Her mother left her father when Anna Mae was 12. Several years later, Alline and Anna Mae both followed their mother to St. Louis...