Phil Spector arrested

[laceyinthesky]

Music Producer Phil Spector Arrested in LA Murder

By Dan Whitcomb

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Legendary rock producer Phil Spector, who changed the course of pop music in the 1960s with his lush "Wall of Sound" recordings, was arrested for murder on Monday in the shooting death of a woman at his hilltop mansion.



Spector, the eccentric, reclusive genius behind a string of hits for girl groups the Ronettes and the Crystals as well as the Beatles, Cher and punk rockers the Ramones, was being held on $1 million bail pending an arraignment, Los Angeles County Sheriff's spokeswoman Faye Bugarin said.


Bugarin said officers were called at 5 a.m. (8 a.m. EST) to Spector's 10-bedroom, eight-bathroom "Pyrenes Castle," which stands behind wrought-iron gates on a private road in the Los Angeles suburb of Alhambra and found a woman who had been shot dead.


The white female victim was not immediately identified and police said they were trying to notify next-of-kin first.


Police took Spector, the recipient of two Grammy awards, into custody on suspicion of murder charges shortly after they arrived at the mansion.


Spokesmen for Spector, 62, did not immediately return calls seeking comment.


Neighbors said the producer was rarely seen at the replica castle, which was described as a huge home with a marble entrance overlooking a middle-class neighborhood and shielded by large pine trees, but was sometimes seen coming or going in a white Rolls Royce or another car. His black Mercedes sedan stood in the driveway on Monday morning.


Tom Mestaz, who lives near the castle, said that while Spector was not there often lately he had seen lights on in the residence at night. Several neighbors reported hearing dogs barking early on Monday morning.


WALL OF SOUND


A pioneer in pop record production, the Bronx-born Spector is famed for his "Wall of Sound" technique that featured lush orchestration with strings, horns and additional percussion added to the spare instrumentation of rock music.


Formerly married to Ronnie Bennett of the Ronettes, one of several girl groups he ushered into super-stardom, Spector developed a reputation as a temperamental, reclusive and erratic genius.


Spector got his start in the music business in 1958 as a songwriter, guitarist and backup singer for the Los Angeles group the Teddy Bears, which had a hit single with "To Know Him is to Love Him" and made him a millionaire by age 21.


Soon after the group split, Spector moved to New York to pursue a career as a songwriter and producer, working primarily with the Crystals and the Ronettes. He went on to produce records for the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Ike & Tina Turner, Eric Clapton and the Righteous Brothers. He was voted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1989.


He was hired by the Beatles to do post-production work on their "Let It Be" album, which Paul McCartney and many critics later criticized as overdone.


He also produced the first solo albums from John Lennon and George Harrison and shared a Grammy with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and others for producing the "Concert for Bangladesh" album, named album of the year for 1972. (Additional reporting by Gina Keating)

[TJL]

I heard about that on the radio today.

Phil Spector was always a little "out there," but I didn't think he'd do something like this...

[Pitooey]

Ronnie Spector always said he was missing alot of his marbles. No surprise here.......

[ABlairican Pie]

Ronnie Spector said he was very abusive and controlling. I see a connection there.

[AKA]

Yeah, Spector's a weird cat. First he kills "All Things Must Pass," now he's killing people?

[TJL]

The Entertainment Weekly websight mentions an incident where Phil Spector pulled a gun on one of the Ramones during a recording session.

Not exactly the picture of mental health here...

[Brian Damage]

I don't like to assume anyone's guilty before the facts come in, but it does sound like this guy has issues. I always heard about his abusive relationship with Ronnie, so who knows.

[Kay Scarpetta]

Yeah, I just read that.....

[ABlairican Pie]

Originally posted by TJL
The Entertainment Weekly websight mentions an incident where Phil Spector pulled a gun on one of the Ramones during a recording session.

Not exactly the picture of mental health here...

OMG I have two supervisors at work who are the BIGGEST Ramones fans on the planet and they would FREAK if they knew that Phil Spector did that to them!!!!

[TJL]

Originally posted by Captain ABlairica


OMG I have two supervisors at work who are the BIGGEST Ramones fans on the planet and they would FREAK if they knew that Phil Spector did that to them!!!!

No need to worry. According to the article, all the parties involved were really drunk, so that makes it okay...

[Janice]

It Felt Like a Kiss


Spector says Clarkson accidentally shot herself. The accused producer says the actress drunkenly ''kissed the gun'' by Gary Susman

Four months after the fatal shooting of B-movie actress Lana Clarkson at his California castle, reclusive record producer Phil Spector has spoken out for the first time about the incident. He tells Esquire magazine that Clarkson was drunk and that she accidentally shot herself. ''I have no idea why,'' he says.

Spector says he met Clarkson for the first time that night at Hollywood's House of Blues, where she was working as a hostess. ''She asked me for a ride home. Then she wanted to see the castle,'' he said, referring to his lavish mansion in a nearby suburb. ''She was loud and drunk even before we left the House of Blues. She grabbed a bottle of tequila from the bar to take with her.'' Once they reached his home, he says, ''I don't know where or how she got the gun.'' Then, he says, ''she kissed the gun,'' which suddenly went off. ''There is no case. She killed herself.''

Several musicians Spector worked with over the years -- from his ex-wife Ronnie Spector (of the Ronettes) to John Lennon to the Ramones -- have told stories about Spector waving guns at them. This time, however, he says, ''It's 'Anatomy of a Frameup.' There is no case. They have no case. I didn't do anything wrong.'' He was arrested the morning after the shooting, then released on $1 million bond, but police have yet to charge him formally with the crime, and their investigation is continuing. He says, ''If they had a case, I'd be sitting in jail right now.''

Entertainment Weekly Online

[TJL]

Originally posted by Janice
It Felt Like a Kiss

Once they reached his home, he says, ''I don't know where or how she got the gun.'' Then, he says, ''she kissed the gun,'' which suddenly went off. ''There is no case. She killed herself.''

What a lunatic.
The guy probably has more guns than the LAPD, and has a history of pointing them at people, but the gun that killed this woman magically appeared in his house.
I hope the "wall of sound" falls on his head.