The former husband of Tina Turner, musician and producer Ike Turner, passed away Wednesday at his home in suburban San Diego at the age of 76, TMZ reported.

"Ike Turner passed away this morning. He was at his home," an official with the performer's management company said.

Turner, who rose to fame in the 1950s and became a star performing with his ex-wife, may have died in his sleep, sources close to his family said.

Married for as many as four times, most famously to Tina from 1958 to 1978, Turner helped launching her career and scoring several hit singles, including "River Deep Mountain High," "Nutbush City Limits" and "A Love Like Yours," while making a name for himself as an abusive husband and drug addict.

In his 2001 autobiography, "Taking Back My Name," Ike admitted to slapping his wife around and to "times when I punched her to the ground without thinking. But I never beat her," he wrote.

After failing his marriage, Ike Turner also released two unsuccessful solo albums before facing drug and weapons charges, losing much of his money to gambling and serving a period in prison.

Throughout recent years, Turner managed to rehabilitate his image somewhat, touring around the globe with his band the Kings of Rhythm and drawing critical acclaim for his work. He won a Grammy in 2007 in the traditional blues album category for "Risin' With the Blues."

Tina Turner's management company issued a brief statement on her ex-husband, "Tina is aware that Ike passed away earlier today. She has not had any contact with him in 35 years. No further comment will be made."

Considered by many musicians as one of the fathers of rock and roll, Turner is credited for recording the very first rock and roll record in 1951, when Turner's Kings of Rhythm cut ''Rocket 88,'' which would become a No. 1 R&B hit for Chess Records.

Together with Tina, Ike was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland in 1991.

"There is no doubt that Ike Turner was one of rock and roll's great architects with his genre-defying sound as an instrumentalist and bandleader," Neil Portnow, president and CEO of the Recording Academy, said in a statement issued Wedneday.

"His innovative musicality helped lay the foundation for rock and roll and R&B more than 50 years ago. As a bandleader, his well-rehearsed ensembles were some of the most exciting live groups the world had ever heard. As a two-time Grammy Award winner and recipient of the Recording Academy's 2004 Heroes Award, Ike's legacy as a groundbreaking pioneer in the music industry will never be forgotten."