Phil Spector arrested!

[Tom]

I am shocked and sorry to report that Phil Spector has been arrested in the Los Angeles area. Here is the entire Associated Press Newswire story:

Tom

Spector Arrested (Tops)
----------------
! GENERAL NEWS !
---------------------------------------------------------------
Record producer Phil Spector arrested in shooting death
---------------------------------------------------------------
(Alhambra, California-AP) -- Record producer Phil Spector has
been arrested for allegedly killing a woman.
Sheriff's deputies say Spector was arrested this morning at a
house in the Los Angeles suburb of Alhambra.
The body of the woman was found at the scene.
Spector, who's 62, is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
He created the ``Wall of Sound'' effect that involved
overdubbing scores of musicians to create a massive roar, which
changed the way pop records were produced.
Spector produced a string of '60s hits, including the Crystals'
``Da Doo Run Run'' and ``Then He Kissed Me,'' the Ronettes' ``Be My
Baby'' and ``Walking in the Rain,'' and Darlene Love's ``Christmas
(Baby Please Come Home)'' and ``(Today I Met) the Boy I'm Gonna
Marry.''
He also produced records for the Beatles and the Righteous
Brothers.
%AP Links
GRAPHICSBANK 811633 (06/19/98)>> 2000x1500
Phil Spector headshot, music producer, photo

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-02-03-03 1410EST

 

[Rudy]

Can't say it is totally surprising, but I've read in various accounts that Spector was a bit eccentric. I guess we'll wait and see what the investigation turns up...we can only hope it was someone else.

 

[W.B.]

From what I've read, by the time he produced the ill-fated sessions for what became John Lennon's Rock 'n' Roll LP (with some tracks included in the Morris Levy-released mail-order package Roots), Mr. Spector routinely carried a gun with him to the studio. So I suppose in that context, his arrest, and the circumstances leading thereto, may not be much of a surprise

 

[Ed Bishop]

Two books--by Mark Ribowsky and ex-wife Ronnie Spector--and an Illustrated History of R&R article by the great rock scribe Nick Cohn pretty much paint the picture of Uncle Phil, and it's not pretty. For all his genius, to call him eccentric would be an understatement. That's not surprising--most of the greats are different from the rest of us--but his history of carrying(and firing off)guns has been verified too many times. That this happened inside the house--where Spector is generally known to be a hermit--is damning, not least because he would not have been arrested(merely questioned)if it had genuinely appeared to be a suicide or accident.
What went on is what we're all waiting to find out. I hope it was an accident, and that this isn't murder. What a tarnish on a great musical legacy if he turns out to be a killer. And we don't even know who the woman is yet, do we?

First the shuttle disaster, now this....

ED

 

[LPJim]

Ronnie Spector's autobiography is most interesting reading. Naturally, I was intrigued by the segment about the short Phil/A&M association which produced one Ronettes single (#1040 You Came, You Saw, You Conquered/ Oh I Love You). He was so unpopular with the A&M crew they put his photo on a dart board for target practice, she recalled.
A planned album (SP 4192) was never released.
JB

 

[Harry]

What a tarnish on a great musical legacy if he turns out to be a killer.

Yep. It did wonders for Claudine Longet's career, didn't it!

Harry
NP: "It's Hard To Say Goodbye", Claudine Longet

 

[Ed Bishop]

Released on $1mil bail. Must be nice to have that kind of cash...

Funny what notoriety--as opposed to simple celebrity--will net you someday. Uncle Phil's bad karma has caught up to him, whether he's guilty or innocent. Everywhere the archives are being scoured for stories about Spector and his constant carrying of a weapon, and occasional(if benign, if that's the word)use of it. There seem to be a dozen stories, from Ronnie Spector, John Lennon, the Ramones, Leonard Cohen, and others who were taken aback to find he carried a piece around constantly, as if to intimidate in a way he felt his diminutive physical stature could not. We can rest assured the media and whatever enemies he's made through the years will dredge up every conceivable handful of dirt they can. Which, in the end, is where the karma comes in. Had he treated people better during his life, he would garner sympathy, rather than the contempt many feel toward him at this time. Personally, I hope he's vindicated; made so much great music that I love.

ED

 

[Steven J. Gross]

When the syndicated show "Celebrity Justice" hit the airwaves a few months ago, I asked myself how they could fill a show every day with bad celebs....but I guess there is a waiting list!

 

[Michael Hagerty]

In fact, buried in one of the stories I've read this week about Phil's guns was the fact that, during work on Lennon's "Rock N' Roll" LP at A&M, he fired a weapon in the studio and was banned for life from the 1416 N. LaBrea lot.

---Michael Hagerty

 

[Rudy]

Maybe it's better they just lock Spector up to keep the rest of the population safe! Music legend or not, nobody's going to want a trigger-happy ex-producer walking the streets.

Scary,

 

[Harry]

Phil Spector was officially charged with murder today after months of investigation.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/11/20/spector.charges/index.html

Harry

 

[Dave]

Easy to see how Phil had "just as many ENEMIES as he had FRIENDS in the music business", due to incidents like this, and other kinds of abnormal behavior...

That he fired off one of his guns at A&M Studios would sure warrant his being banned from the premises, just as he was so fortunate to have worked there with Ike & Tina, Sonny Charles and the Checkmates and The Ronnettes, in the first place.

And to quote John Lennon, at the recording session Spector fired off his pistol during...

"Shoot Me, If You Must, But Look Out For My HEARING!"

Dave

 

[snapcrotch]

Ed Bishop: "And we don't yet know who the woman is, do we?"
Yes, we do. She's 40-year-old Lana Clarkson, a former B-movie queen. You can find a studio photo of her (very nice) along with the full dish of what happened on February 3rd at Phil's mansion in this past June's 'Vanity Fair' article,'Legend With A Bullet' by Robert Sam Anson. It's the issue with the horrible cover photo of Drew Barrymore.

 

[Rudy]

Only took us nine months to get this far...seems like just yesterday it happened, but this thread started in February. Yikes! Time flies for us old farts.

 

[Brasil_Nut]

Yep. It did wonders for Claudine Longet's career, didn't it!

So true. However, according to a TV documentary I have on the Claudine case, she spent the majority of her time repainting the jail cell and enjoying the company of visiting celebrities -- many of which turned out to support Ms. Longet. What gets me is her gaul: she ended up marrying her lawyer and continues to reside in Aspen. Let her live where she wants, but if it were me, I'd high-tail it out of there as fast as I could. Oh well...that's the life of a celebrity fer 'ya!!

Jon

 

[thestitch]

Oh, my, Neil!! Whatever will you do when you get to be as old as me?!!!!

Marilyn, who's feeling every bit of her age today for some reason! Sigh!