Tammi Terrell, born Thomasina
Winifred Montgomery (April 29, 1945 – March 16, 1970), best known as a star
singer for Motown Records during the 1960s, most notably for a series of duets
with singer Marvin Gaye.
Terrell's career began as a teenager, first recording
for Scepter/Wand Records, before spending nearly two years as a member of James
Brown's Revue, recording for Brown's Try Me label. After a period attending
college, Terrell recorded briefly for Checker Records, before signing with
Motown in 1965. With Gaye, Terrell scored seven Top 40 singles on the Billboard
Hot 100, including "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", "Ain't
Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By".
Terrell's career was interrupted when she collapsed into Gaye's arms as the two
performed at a concert at Hampden–Sydney College on October 14, 1967, with Terrell
later being diagnosed with a brain tumor. The cancer caused her to leave the
music industry in 1969. By early 1970 Terrell was confined to a wheelchair,
suffered from blindness and hair loss, and weighed a scant 93 pounds. Following
her eighth and final operation on January 25, 1970, Terrell went into a coma.
She died on March 16 due to complications from brain cancer, a month shy of her
25th birthday. She is buried at Mount Lawn Cemetery in Sharon Hill, PA