So Fine was the first album on the Pompeii label and contains no less than 4 singles, including one from The Ikettes. It features also a different version of Ike & Tina’s debut single A Fool In Love from 1960. The album was released with many different cover pictures, depending on the country, and was reissued in America under the different title Too Hot To Hold in 1974 and again in 1981 as Hot ’N’ Sassy, both with a different cover artwork. In 2016, it was included into the box set The Complete Pompeii Recordings on compact disc and in 2021, it was released as a purple/black vinyl edition with a foldout cover.
Producer: Ike Turner
Release: June 1968 / 1974 (Too Hot To Hold) / 1981 (Hot N Sassy) / Various (Reissue)
Label: Pompeii (USA) / London (Europe) / Pickwick (Too Hot To Hold) / Accord (Hot ’N’ Sassy)
Format: Vinyl / CD
Tracks
- Bet’cha Can’t Kiss Me (Just One Time) 2:51
- Ain’t Nobody’s Business 2:09
- It Sho Ain’t Me 3:07
- Too Hot To Hold 2:08
- A Fool In Love (Different Version) 2:50
- I Better Get Ta Steppin’ 2:43
- Shake A Tail Feather 2:19
- So Fine 2:44
- We Need An Understanding 2:45
- You’re So Fine 2:29
Singles
Betcha Can’t Kiss Me (Just One Time Baby) was the first single in 1967. Strangely enough, the b-side track „Don’t Lie To Me“ is the same song and same version as „Poor Sam“ from the single I Better Get Ta Steppin’ and „You’re A Jive Playboy“ from the single Strange, as well as „Sad Sam“ from the sampler Souled From The Vaults.
The title track So Fine is a cover version from the band The Fiestas, with lead vocals from The Ikettes and Tina on the backing vocals. The original American release has two different labels: The first is credited to „Ike and Tina and The Ikettes“ and the other to „Iketts“, which is also misspelled. The song „You’re So Fine,“ from the same album is very similar, this time with lead vocals from Tina.
I Better Get Ta Steppin’ features with „Poor Sam“ on the flip side the same song and same version as „Don’t Lie To Me“ from the first single Betcha Can’t Kiss Me. A remixed version of the title track is available on the digital album Reworked Versions.
We Need An Understanding is the last single, credited to Ike & Tina Turner And The Ikettes. The duo promoted it at the American TV-Show Hollywood Palace in 1968. The title track was already the b-side of the single You’ve Got Too Many Ties That Bind in 1964 and a different version is available on the album Airwaves from 1978.
Betcha Can’t Kiss Me: 1967
So Fine: March 1968 / #50 (R&B)
I Better Get Ta Steppin’: 1968
We Need An Understanding: August 1968 / October 1968 (Germany)