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The Righteous Brothers were originally an American musical duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield. They began performing together in 1962 in the Los Angeles area as part of a five-member group called the Paramours, but adopted the name "The Righteous Brothers" when they embarked on their recording career as a duo. Their most active recording period was in the 1960s and 70s, and although the duo was inactive for some years, Hatfield and Medley reunited in 1981 and continued to perform until Hatfield's death in 2003. Their emotive vocal style is sometimes dubbed "blue-eyed soul".
End of the Century is the fifth studio album by the American punk rock band the Ramones, released on February 4, 1980, through Sire Records. The album was the band's first produced by Phil Spector, though he had offered the band his assistance earlier in their career. With Spector fully producing the album, it was the first release that excluded original member Tommy Ramone, who in 1978 left the band but produced their previous album Road to Ruin. Spector used more advanced standards of engineering, such as high-quality overdubbing and echo chambers. These methods caused conflict between the band and Spector since much of the recording used techniques that opposed those the Ramones had previously used. Spector emphasized the production value as well, working with a budget of around $200,000.
The Wall of Sound is a music production formula developed by American record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios, in the 1960s, with assistance from engineer Larry Levine and the session musician conglomerate later known as "the Wrecking Crew". The intention was to exploit the possibilities of studio recording to create an unusually dense orchestral aesthetic that came across well through radios and jukeboxes of the era. Spector explained in 1964: "I was looking for a sound, a sound so strong that if the material was not the greatest, the sound would carry the record. It was a case of augmenting, augmenting. It all fitted together like a jigsaw."
Hal Blaine was an American drummer and session musician, estimated to be among the most recorded studio drummers in the history of the music industry, claiming over 35,000 sessions and 6,000 singles. His drumming is featured on 150 US top 10 hits, 40 of which went to number one, as well as many film and television soundtracks.
The Wrecking Crew was a loose collective of session musicians based in Los Angeles whose services were employed for thousands of studio recordings in the 1960s and 1970s, including several hundred Top 40 hits. The musicians were not publicly recognized in their era, but were viewed with reverence by industry insiders. They are now considered one of the most successful and prolific session recording units in music history.
Death of a Ladies' Man is the fifth studio album by Leonard Cohen. Produced and co-written by Phil Spector, the voice of typically minimalist Cohen was surrounded by Spector's Wall of Sound, which included multiple tracks of instrument overdubs. The album was originally released by Warner Bros., but was later picked up by Cohen's long-time label, Columbia Records.
"Instant Karma!" is a song by English rock musician John Lennon, released as a single on Apple Records in February 1970. The lyric focuses on a concept in which the causality of one's actions is immediate rather than borne out over a lifetime. The single was credited to "Lennon/Ono with the Plastic Ono Band", apart from in the US, where the credit was "John Ono Lennon". The song reached the top five in the British and American singles charts, competing with the Beatles' "Let It Be" in the US, where it became the first solo single by a member of the band to sell a million copies.
The Teddy Bears were an American pop music group. They were record producer Phil Spector's first vocal group.
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" is a song written by Phil Spector, Barry Mann, and Cynthia Weil. It was first recorded by the Righteous Brothers in 1964, produced by Phil Spector. Their recording is considered by some music critics to be the ultimate expression and illustration of Spector's "Wall of Sound" recording technique. It has also been described by various music writers as "one of the best records ever made" and "the ultimate pop record".
"River Deep – Mountain High" is a 1966 single by Ike & Tina Turner released on Philles Records in 1966. It is considered by producer Phil Spector to be his best work. Rolling Stone ranked "River Deep – Mountain High" #33 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, NME ranked it #37 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.
"Be My Baby" is a song written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector. It was recorded on July 5, 1963 at Gold Star Studios Hollywood by American girl group the Ronettes and released as a single in August 1963 and later placed on their 1964 debut LP Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes featuring Veronica. Ronnie Spector is the only Ronette to appear on the single; her future husband Phil produced their elaborately layered recording in what is now considered a quintessential example of his Wall of Sound production formula.
"Try Some, Buy Some" is a song written by English musician George Harrison, first released in 1971 as a single by former Ronettes lead singer Ronnie Spector. The latter recorded this and other Harrison compositions, such as "You" and "When Every Song Is Sung", in London for a planned comeback album on the Beatles' Apple Records. The project was co-produced by her husband at the time, Phil Spector, whose temporary withdrawal from music-making in 1966 had forced Ronnie to reluctantly abandon her own career. After the single became only a minor hit, and following recording sessions that had been hampered by the producer's erratic behaviour, the proposed album was cancelled. In 1973, Harrison added his own vocal onto a new mix of the instrumental track and included the result on his album Living in the Material World.
"Don’t Worry Baby" is a song written by Brian Wilson and Roger Christian, produced by Wilson and first recorded by the American rock band, the Beach Boys. The band's version, a tender ballad with falsetto lead vocal by Wilson, was first released on their 1964 album Shut Down Volume 2. It was also released as the B-side of The Beach Boys' first US number-one, "I Get Around", also reaching number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 in its own right.
Gold Star Studios was a major independent recording studio located in Los Angeles, California, United States. For more than thirty years, from 1950 to 1984, Gold Star was one of the most influential and successful commercial recording studios in the world.
River Deep – Mountain High is a studio album by R&B duo Ike & Tina Turner. It was originally released by London Records in the UK in 1966, and later A&M Records in the US in 1969. In 2017, Pitchfork ranked it at #40 on their list of the 200 Best Albums of the 1960s.
"(You're My) Soul and Inspiration" is a song by American pop duo the Righteous Brothers. It was the group's first hit after leaving their long-time producer Phil Spector. The song was written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, who also wrote the group's first hit "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" along with Phil Spector. It is the title track of their album. The single peaked at No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and reached No. 15 on the UK Singles Chart. Billboard ranked the record as the No. 3 single for 1966.
Phillip Harvey Spector is an American record producer, musician, and songwriter who developed the Wall of Sound, a music production formula he described as a Wagnerian approach to rock and roll. Spector was dubbed the "First Tycoon of Teen" by writer Tom Wolfe and is acknowledged as one of the most influential figures in pop music history. After the 1970s, Spector mostly retired from public life. In 2009, he was convicted of second-degree murder and has remained incarcerated since.
"I Love How You Love Me" is a song written by Barry Mann and Larry Kolber. It was a 1961 Top Five hit for the pop girl group the Paris Sisters, which inaugurated a string of elaborately produced classic hits by Phil Spector. Bobby Vinton had a Top Ten hit in 1968 with a cover version. The song has been recorded by many other artists over the years.
"This Could Be the Night" is a song recorded by the American band Modern Folk Quartet (MFQ) in late 1965 or early 1966. The lyrics describe a couple on the verge of conquering their inhibitions. Written in tribute to Beach Boys leader Brian Wilson, the song is one of three that were credited jointly to Harry Nilsson and Phil Spector, although Nilsson submitted that he was the sole writer on a 1966 copyright form.
The songwriting of American musician Brian Wilson, co-founder and multi-tasking leader of the Beach Boys, is widely considered to be among the most innovative and significant of the late 20th century. His combined arranging, producing, and songwriting skills also made him a major innovator in the field of music production. In a 1966 article that asks "Do the Beach Boys rely too much on sound genius Brian?" brother and bandmate Carl Wilson said that while every member of the group contributed ideas, Brian was most responsible for their music. Dennis Wilson said: "Brian Wilson is the Beach Boys. He is the band. We're his fucking messengers. He is all of it. Period. We're nothing. He's everything."
References
- ↑ Ribowsky, Mark (2000). He's a Rebel: Phil Spector, Rock and Roll's Legendary Producer. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 303. ISBN 978-0-8154-1044-7.
- 1 2 3 Brown, Mick (2012). Tearing Down The Wall of Sound: The Rise And Fall of Phil Spector. A&C Black. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-4088-1950-0.
- ↑ Smith, Carlton (2007). Reckless: Millionaire Record Producer Phil Spector and the Violent Death of Lana Clarkson. St. Martin's Press. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-4299-0890-0.
- ↑ Howard, David N. (2004). Sonic Alchemy: Visionary Music Producers and Their Maverick Recordings. Hal Leonard Corporation. pp. 5–7. ISBN 978-0-634-05560-7.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Warner, Jay (2006). American Singing Groups: A History from 1940s to Today . Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 304. ISBN 978-0-634-09978-6.
- ↑ "This Week's Singles". Billboard . Nielsen Business Media, Inc. November 17, 1958. ISSN 0006-2510.
