May 5, 2020, 11:38AM PST

Producer Hal Davis, Tammi and arranger Gene Page. Photo by Earl Fowler for SOUL Newspaper

Tammi Terrell exploded onto the music scene in the late 1960s. Most notably known for her duets with Marvin Gaye, Terrell’s voice is ever present in some of Motown Records’ most enduring songs. She passed away early in her career from a brain tumor in 1970.

Rumors and speculation around the soulstress still circulate to the day, however most of the truth has been lost to time. Fortunately, SOUL Newspaper followed her career and interviewed Terrell several times between 1966 and 1970. Looking through these articles of soul musuc history we can provide some insight into the dynamic life of Tammi Terrell.

Who Was Tammi Terrell?

Terrel was Born Thomasina Winifred Montgomery on April 29,1945 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father owned a barbershop and her mother was a retired actress. She graduated with honors from Germantown High School and won a full scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania working her way toward becoming a doctor.

After giving piano recitals as a kid, singing in school choirs and winning a talent show, she soon found herself a professional singer working for $20 a night at the Medea Club in Philadelphia. For a short while she was with a group called the Recaps. In 1960, Terrell signed under the Wand subsidiary of Scepter Records after being discovered by Luther Dixon, recording the ballad "If You See Bill" under the name Tammy Montgomery and doing demos for The Shirelles before her first big break discovery by James Brown. She also recorded briefly for Checker Records, before signing with Motown in 1965

She was only 19 when she left James' revue to strike out on her own. She was with the Jerry Butler Show at Detroit's 20 Grand Lounge when Berry sighted her. On her twentieth birthday she signed with Motown Records, had her name changed to Tammi Terrell at Berry's suggestion and began putting out hit records both as a solo and with Marvin Gaye.

Her first solo hit was “I Can’t Believe You Love Me”. Her biggest hit with Marvin was “Ain't No Mountain High Enough” and became a personal mantra towards the end of her life.

Photo by Erik Whitaker for SOUL Newspaper

Did Marvin Gaye have a relationship with Tammi Terrell?

After gaining notoriety with Gaye, the rumors started flooding in again. There was undeniable chemistry between the two however their relationship was completely platonic. Gaye was married to Anna Gordy, Berry Gordy’s sister, at the time and he constantly denied rumors of romance. At the report of her death Marvin went into seclusion. Gaye never fully got over Terrell's death. Several biographers have stated that Terrell's death led Gaye to depression and drug abuse.

"Tammi is a great girl," he told SOUL. "And I love her very much, but not romantically. We’ve never had anything going between us, although that's the natural thing the public assumes where you're in the limelight and singing those kinds of songs — something’s got to be going on between you. But there is no truth to the rumors. I enjoyed singing with her.” - Marvin Gaye

How old would Tammi Terrell be today?

Tammi Terrell would have been 77 years old as of May 2022. (Born 4/29/45)

How did Tammi Terrell pass away?

Tammi Terrell Passed away from a malignant brain tumor at 8:55 am, March 16, 1970 in Philadelphia after two years of pain and seven brain operations. The first indication of any problem began early in 1967 when Tammi began having severe headaches. She had experienced headaches in her youth and these new ones were mostly disregarded by Tammi and the people around her as due to stress.

At the time she was involved in a very abusive relationship with David Ruffin, then lead singer of the Temptations, so the headaches were suspected to be a result of emotional upheaval. Things at one point looked well for the couple, they had even announced their engagement on stage one night. Shortly after Terrell discovered Ruffin was already married (although separated) and had two children. It was thought that this stress caused her headaches to resurface.

How did Tammi Terrell get a brain tumor?

At the beginning of a tour in the summer of '67 with Marvin Gaye, the two were in Los Angeles and posed together for SOUL photographers in a local park. Tammi was in pain that day but insisted on continuing with the scheduled photo session.

It was evident then that the headaches were beginning to interfere with her work and career. Someone suggested that she see a psychiatrist but Tammi was a fighter and she insisted on storming ahead, confident that she could consume enough aspirin to control the pain.

Then Tammi collapsed one night on stage at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia. She and Marvin were singing “Your Precious Love” when she fell into his arms and was carried off stage. It was then that Marvin realized that she was really ill. He wanted to get her a doctor immediately but she insisted on going on with the tour.

The next day they were in Chicago and Tammi was feeling worse. Marvin canceled the next show and took her back to Philadelphia. She was sent directly to Graduate Hospital there, where she was to spend a good deal of the last two years of her short life.

Tammi Terrell on the cover of SOUL Newspaper 3/2/67 Photo by Earl Fowler for SOUL Newspaper

Who hit Tammi Terrell in the head with a hammer?

Motown tried to remain silent about Tammi Terrell during her hospitalization and this led to rumors surrounding her condition. One rumor that gained particular traction was that David Ruffin hit Tammi Terrell in the head with a hammer. Many around the country believed she had died.

This incident was denied to be the cause of the tumor by her doctor, Richard Harner, chief of neurology at Graduate Hospital. He claimed that it is possible that she could have been hit at some point, but this was not the cause of her tumor. This rumor was also dispelled decades later during an episode of TVONE’s “Unsung”. It was widely know that Ruffin had been abusive towards Terrell even once hitting her in the head with a motorcycle helmet.

James Brown had also been very abusive towards Terrell during her time with him as a teen and developed a relationship with her. At one point Brown went so far as to leave her covered in blood from a beating over her not watching one of his performances. (This incident ultimately caused Terrell to leave Brown) These events coupled with Motown’s silence around her condition all fed speculation during her disappearance that these incidents had led to the development of the tumor.

What type of brain tumor did Tammi Terrell have?

At the beginning of a tour in the summer of '67 with Marvin Gaye, the two were in Los Angeles and posed together for SOUL photographers in a local park. Tammi was in pain that day but insisted on continuing with the scheduled photo session.

It was evident then that the headaches were beginning to interfere with her work and career. Someone suggested that she see a psychiatrist but Tammi was a fighter and she insisted on storming ahead, confident that she could consume enough aspirin to control the pain.

Then Tammi collapsed one night on stage at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia. She and Marvin were singing “Your Precious Love” when she fell into his arms and was carried off stage. It was then that Marvin realized that she was really ill. He wanted to get her a doctor immediately but she insisted on going on with the tour.

The next day they were in Chicago and Tammi was feeling worse. Marvin canceled the next show and took her back to Philadelphia. She was sent directly to Graduate Hospital there, where she was to spend a good deal of the last two years of her short life.

SOUL Newspaper Tammi Terrell Memorial issue 3/2/1967 Photo by Chuck Boyd

When did Tammi Terrell Die?

After the sixth surgery Tammi was still dealing with partial paralysis on one side but decided to give her career another try. While still undergoing extensive physical therapy, she went back into the recording studio for the first time in two years.

After her seventh surgery she was still cheerful and optimistic. Rita Helmick, secretary to Dr Harner became close with Tammi and recalled,

“She talked like she was going to get out and live a full life. She talked about clothes she wanted to buy and records she wanted to do.”

Terrell told her sister one day that she didn't think she could hold on any longer and shortly after went into a coma. Two days later, Tammi Terrell passed away on March 16, 1970 at the age of 24. At the time of Terrell's death, she was engaged to Doctor Ernest "Ernie" Garrett.

On Friday evening, March 20, a funeral was held at James United Methodist Church. The following day she was buried at Mount Lawn Cemetery in Sharon Hill, Penn. At the funeral, Gaye gave a final eulogy while "You're All I Need to Get By" was playing. Her mother, according to Terrell's fiancé, barred everyone at Motown from her funeral, except for Gaye, whom she felt was Terrell's closest friend. She blamed most of the label for failing to protect her daugther from David Ruffin during their relationship.

Tammi Terrell and SOUL Newspaper

SOUL featured Tammi on the cover of its publication three times March 2, 1967, December 11, 1967 and April 20, 1970 and was covered throughout its pages from 1966 to 1970. We were fortunate to foster an amazing relationship with the singer and was given interviews, behind the scenes recording access and she took a personal likeing to our staff. She was photographed by SOUL Photographers Erik Whitaker, Earl Fowler Chuck Boyd and Roland Charles. She was featured as Miss SOUL in the March 2 issue.

SOUL writer Bill Lane recounted an interaction with Tammi in 1967.

Tammi Terrell is a living doll. Not only can the lovely Motown artist sing and give entertaining impersonations, she can address envelopes. Like the one she sent to us the other day from her San Francisco hotel. Inside was a check. Turned out that Tammi was just being nice to a newspaperman. A few weeks back we were at a quickie affair. Tammi was there. Somebody ordered champagne. Somehow the waiter gave this poor newsman the check. Tammi remembered it, and sent us another kind of check.

Another story of Tammi highlighting her personality from a photoshoot for SOUL:

Tantalizin' Tammi surprised the daylights out of us when we rather playfully suggested she pose as Miss Soul. Rushing into her hotel, grabbing a swimsuit and racing back to the pool before we could say "Terrell", Tammi struck this classic pose for the SOUL cameras.

What did Tammi Terrell sing?

Some of Tammi’s hits included:

If You See Bill
I Can’t Believe You Love Me
Ain't No Mountain High Enough (with Marvin Gaye)
Your Precious Love (with Marvin Gaye)
I Cried
You're All I Need to Get By (with Marvin Gaye)
If I Could Build My Whole World Around You (with Marvin Gaye)
If This World Were Mine (with Marvin Gaye)
Come On and See Me
Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing (with Marvin Gaye)
Keep On Lovin' Me Honey (with Marvin Gaye)
Good Lovin' Ain't Easy to Come By (with Marvin Gaye)

Tammi Terrell lived a full but tragic life but the legacy of talented singer continues on through her music. She was one of the most gifted singers Motown had ever come across. She endured physical and mental abuse at the hands of men in the industry she looked up to but also found tremendous support from other entertainers like Marvin Gaye and left an indelible imprint on the landscape of music.

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Become part of the SOUL family and learn more about Tammi Terrell, soul music history and other entertainers like Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Bootsy Collins, The Supremes, The Temptations and more in our growing archive of SOUL Newspaper digital back issues HERE

Tammi Terrell: Fame, Life, Death and Marvin Gaye

Tammi Terrell Photos in Los Angeles: SOUL History

Max Julien