Related Research Articles
The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960s, their 1961–1964 chart hits - including "There's No Other ", "Uptown", "He's Sure the Boy I Love", "He's a Rebel", "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Then He Kissed Me" - featured three successive female lead singers and were all produced by Phil Spector. The latter three songs were originally ranked #263, #114, and #493, respectively, on Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. However, two songs were dropped from the magazine's 2010 update, leaving only "He's a Rebel" at number 267.
The Ronettes were an American girl group from Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York City. The group consisted of lead singer Veronica Bennett, her older sister Estelle Bennett, and their cousin Nedra Talley. They had sung together since they were teenagers, then known as "The Darling Sisters". Signed first by Colpix Records in 1961, they moved to Phil Spector's Philles Records in March 1963 and changed their name to "The Ronettes".
Darlene Wright, known professionally as Darlene Love, is an American singer and actress. She was the lead singer of the girl group the Blossoms and she also recorded as a solo artist.
Philles Records was an American record label formed in 1961 by Phil Spector and Lester Sill, the label taking its name from a hybrid of their first names. Initially, the label was distributed by Jamie/Guyden in Philadelphia. In 1962, Spector purchased Sill's stock to become sole owner at 21 years of age, America's youngest label chief at the time.
Jeff Barry is an American pop music songwriter, singer, and record producer. Among the most successful songs that he has co-written in his career are "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", "Da Doo Ron Ron", "Then He Kissed Me", "Be My Baby", "Chapel of Love", and "River Deep - Mountain High" ; "Leader of the Pack" ; "Sugar, Sugar" ; "Without Us".
"River Deep – Mountain High" is a song by Ike & Tina Turner released as the title track to their 1966 studio album on Philles Records. Produced by Phil Spector and written by Spector, Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, it was considered by producer Phil Spector to be his best work. Rolling Stone ranked "River Deep – Mountain High" No. 33 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. NME ranked it No. 37 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame added it to the list of the 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll. The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.
"Be My Baby" is a song by American girl group the Ronettes that was released as a single in August 1963 and later appeared as a track on their 1964 album Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica. The song was written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector. Spector also produced the Ronettes' recording in what is now considered a quintessential example of his Wall of Sound production formula. It was recorded with a host of session musicians later known as the Wrecking Crew. Ronnie Spector is the only Ronette that appears on the track.
"Baby, I Love You" is a song originally recorded by the Ronettes in 1963 and released on their debut album Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes (1964). The song was written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector, and produced by Spector.
Eleanor Louise Greenwich was an American pop music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She wrote or co-wrote "Da Doo Ron Ron", "Be My Baby", "Then He Kissed Me", "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", "Christmas ", "Hanky Panky", "Chapel of Love", "Leader of the Pack", and "River Deep – Mountain High", among others.
"There's No Other " is a song first recorded in 1961 by American girl group the Crystals. Written by Phil Spector and Leroy Bates, the song derives from the gospel number "There's No Other Like My Jesus". Also produced by Spector, the single was the first release on his newly-founded Philles Records label. Barbara Alston sang lead vocal, as she did on the next two Crystals releases "Uptown" and "He Hit Me ". Spector neglected to pay the Crystals for their work on "There's No Other".
"Da Doo Ron Ron" is a song written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich and Phil Spector. It first became a popular top five hit single for the American girl group The Crystals in 1963. American teen idol Shaun Cassidy covered the song in 1977 and his version hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. There have also been many other cover versions of this song, including one by the songwriters Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich themselves, performing as The Raindrops.
"Then He Kissed Me" is a song written by Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry. The song, produced by Spector, was initially released as a single on Philles Records (#115) in July 1963 by The Crystals. The lyrics are a narrative of a young woman's encounter, romance, and eventual engagement with a young man.
Harvey Phillip Spector was an American record producer, musician, and songwriter who is best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by his two trials and conviction for murder in the 2000s. Spector developed the Wall of Sound, a production style that he described as a Wagnerian approach to rock and roll. He is regarded as one of the most influential figures in pop music history and one of the most successful producers of the 1960s.
"(The Best Part of) Breakin' Up" is a song written by Phil Spector, Pete Andreoli and Vince Poncia. It was first recorded by The Ronettes, produced by Phil Spector and arranged by Jack Nitzsche with Ronnie Spector on lead vocals and with backing vocals by Nedra Talley and Estelle Bennett, ably abetted by Darlene Love and the Blossoms, Bobby Sheen, and Sonny & Cher. The song was released in April 1964, the year widely recognized as the group's most successful year, and proved to be the group's third consecutive top forty hit in the US. The single peaked at number 39 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and number 43 on the UK Singles Chart.
Twist Uptown is the first album by The Crystals, issued to capitalize upon their success with the Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann composition "Uptown" which was a #13 US hit, and their first top forty hit "There's No Other ". Twist Uptown notably features the first released version of "On Broadway," a composition written by Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann. The song was later modified by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and became a hit for The Drifters in 1963.
"Why Don't They Let Us Fall in Love" is a song written by Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich, and Jeff Barry. It was first recorded by American singer Ronnie Spector, who was credited as Veronica. In 1964, it was released as an A-sided single backed with "Chubby Danny D". It did not chart.
"Uptown" is a 1962 single by the Crystals. On the Cash Box Top 100, the song peaked at #10. On the Billboard charts, "Uptown" reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #18 on the Billboard R&B Sides chart.
"He's Sure the Boy I Love" is a 1962 single by The Crystals. The song was originally recorded by The Blossoms but credited to The Crystals. On the Billboard charts in 1963, "He's Sure the Boy I Love" peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #18 on the Hot R&B Singles.
"Wait ’til My Bobby Gets Home" is a song written by Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry. It was recorded at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles in May 1963 by Darlene Love with the lead vocals shared by Love and her sister Edna Wright. The song was arranged by Jack Nitzsche, Larry Levine was the engineer and Spector’s Wall of Sound was played by The Wrecking Crew.
"I'll Never Need More Than This" is a single by R&B duo Ike & Tina Turner released on Philles Records in 1967. The song was included on the 1969 reissue of the album River Deep – Mountain High.
References
- ↑ Phil Spector: Out Of His Head 0857120565 Richard Williams - 2009 "But the Crystals made several fine records which weren't as successful as they deserved to be. 'Little Boy', the follow-up to 'Then He Kissed Me', may not be a classic but is notable for the way La La's voice is mixed into the track: it seems more ..."
- ↑ Anthony DeCurtis - Rocking my life away: writing about music and other matters 1998 - Page 144 "The tracks Spector recorded between 1962 and 1966 with the Crystals, Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans, Darlene Love, ... or the Crystals' "Little Boy"— again, all released in 1963 and written by Greenwich and Barry, with Spector"
- ↑ "CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. January 18, 1964. p. 14. Retrieved 2022-01-12.