Tearing Down the Wall of Sound: The Rise and Fall of Phil Spector

“Tearing Down the Wall of Sound is a remarkable book about, among other things, fame, obsession, genius, money and madness. It paints the fullest picture yet of a man who, whether creating some of the greatest pop music of all time, or destroying the lives of those closest to him, seems to have existed in a continuous state of mental agitation. The Phil Spector story still awaits its ending. In the meantime, this is the definitive study of the man, and the myth that engulfed him.” —Sean O’Hagan, The Observer (U.K.)

With a number-one hit at age eighteen, a millionaire with his own label by twenty-two, and proclaimed by Tom Wolfe “The First Tycoon of Teen,” Phil Spector owned pop culture, his roster as a producer including the Ronettes, the Righteous Brothers, Ike and Tina Turner, the Beatles, then John Lennon and George Harrison, as well as Leonard Cohen and the Ramones. But in the spring of 2007, he stands trial for murder.

A spectacularly troubled genius, Spector created with the “Wall of Sound” music never heard before, from “Be My Baby” and “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” to “Imagine” and “My Sweet Lord.” He suffered poorly the quantum shifts in rock and roll—not to mention the loss of his friends Lenny Bruce and John Lennon—growing ever more reclusive and abusive. By the turn of this century, however, he was not only sober but also attracted to new bands who knew his reputation, good and bad, all too well. Then, in February 2003, he leapt back into the headlines when Lana Clarkson, an actress, was found dead by gunshot in his Los Angeles mansion.

Only weeks before, Spector had granted Mick Brown the first major interview he’d given in twenty-five years—the seed for this definitive, mesmerizing biography of a man who first became a king, then something else altogether.

"This eminently readable and thoroughly researched biography from UK journalist and author Brown (The Dance of 17 Lives) chronicles the roller-coaster life of legendary (and legendarily bizarre) music producer Phil Spector, a man propelled by genius, insecurity, paranoia and rage. Spector's career was off and running before his 20th birthday, when he penned and produced the 1958 Teddy Bears' hit, 'To Know Him is to Love Him.' Soon enough, Spector was perched atop the industry, a dazzling figure in flashy suits and six-inch Cuban-heeled boots who produced dozens of hits for the Crystals, the Ronettes and the Righteous Brothers, worked with the Beatles and the Ramones, and defined the 'Wall of Sound' technique that would change audio forever and bring the first strains of pop music into the world of serious art. And yet, Spector remained anxious, paranoid and vengeful ('the little guy rubbing the big guy's nose in it'), secluding himself for years at a time and prone to unpredictable, dangerous outbursts-in other words, a time bomb. Brown makes a chilling account of Spector's most recent brush with detonation-the 2003 shooting death of a woman in Spector's home-in a chapter titled, 'I Think I Killed Somebody,' featuring new interviews and grand jury testimony released in 2005. Stacked with incredible anecdotes, Brown's entertaining and nuanced portrait lifts the fog of myth and outright falsehood (including Spector's own) that have obscured the celebrity producer (like an enormous, gravity-defying wig) through the years." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

"With his gaudy white suits, high-heeled boots and huge mess of hair, Phil Spector is making headlines for his bizarre courtroom appearances as he stands trial for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson, found dead from a gunshot to the face in Spector's home in 2003. While Spector makes for scandalous tabloid fodder, the legendary record producer's greatest contribution to popular culture will forever... Washington Post Book Review (read the entire Washington Post review) remain his trademark 'Wall of Sound,' characterized by dozens of guitars, pianos, drums, strings and vocal harmonies all condensed through mono production. Employed on classic songs such as the Ronettes' 'Be My Baby' and the Righteous Brothers' 'You've Lost That Loving Feeling,' the 'Wall of Sound' remains one of the most important breakthroughs in recorded music, and, with that accomplishment, Spector cemented his reputation as a genius.

But with his genius came erratic behavior. British journalist Mick Brown's exhaustively reported biography — which includes an interview Brown conducted with Spector mere weeks before Clarkson's body was found — traces the producer's rise and fall: from his tumultuous childhood with his overbearing mother and sister to his adulthood as a scrappy songwriter and producer to his present-day hermitage high in the hills of Alhambra, Calif.

Brown packs his book with gripping anecdotes. While some may be apocryphal, they paint Spector as an egomaniacal, insecure and duplicitous sociopath. For instance, to get out of a business contract with two of his partners and avoid sharing recording royalties, Spector 'devised a plan that would fulfill his obligations while costing him next to nothing.' Brown continues: '(Spector) recorded a mindless ... dance song he had written himself called 'Let's Dance (The Screw)'. ... But whatever the reasons behind the record, the implied meaning of the title — screw you — was not lost.' Even ghastlier are tales of Spector's gun-wielding antics while recording with John Lennon and his boozy exploits while working with Leonard Cohen.

Like Spector's pop songs, Brown's biography is by no means intellectual. At times his tone becomes somewhat hysterical and gossipy, like an episode of VH1's 'Behind the Music.' And regrettably, considering that Brown had access to interview Spector, he rarely offers direct quotes from the man he attempts to unmask. (One chapter, in which Spector talks eloquently about his life, is the exception.) Still, Brown succeeds in providing a well-rounded portrait of someone the public never understood. And it comes at just the right time, too — when they're asking more questions about him than ever before.

Kevin O'Donnell is on the editorial staff of Rolling Stone and contributes pop music reviews to The Washington Post.

" Reviewed by Elizabeth StroutKevin O'Donnell, Washington Post Book World (Copyright 2006 Washington Post Book World Service/Washington Post Writers Group)
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Born in London in 1950, Mick Brown is a journalist, broadcaster, and the author of four previous books. His article on Phil Spector was published in The Telegraph just two days before Lana Clarkson was found dead in the “castle” where he’d interviewed him only two months earlier.