Phil Spector, the eccentric and revolutionary music producer who transformed rock music with his “Wall of Sound” method and who later was convicted of murder, has died.
Spector was convicted of murdering actress Lana Clarkson in 2003 at his castle-like mansion on the edge of Los Angeles. After a trial in 2009, he was sentenced to 19 years to life.
Phil Spector 1939-2021: Genius music producer turned murderer
17 Jan, 2021 08:32 PM
11 minutes to read
AP
Phil Spector, the eccentric and revolutionary music producer who transformed rock music with his Wall of Sound method and who later was convicted of murder, has died. He was 81.
California state prison officials said he died Saturday of natural causes at a hospital. Spector was convicted of murdering actress Lana Clarkson in 2003 at his castle-like mansion on the edge of Los Angeles.
After a trial in 2009, he was sentenced to 19 years to life. While most sources give Spector s birth date as 1940, it was listed as 1939 in court documents following his arrest. His lawyer subsequently confirmed that date to The Associated Press.
Phil Spector in a Nov. 19, 2019 booking photo (California Department of Corrections via AP)
Clarkson, star of “Barbarian Queen” and other B-movies, was found shot to death in the foyer of Spector’s mansion in the hills overlooking Alhambra, a modest suburban town on the edge of Los Angeles.
Until the actress’ death, which Spector maintained was an “accidental suicide,” few residents even knew the mansion belonged to the reclusive producer, who spent his remaining years in a prison hospital east of Stockton.
Decades before, Spector had been hailed as a visionary for channeling Wagnerian ambition into the three-minute song, creating the “Wall of Sound” that merged spirited vocal harmonies with lavish orchestral arrangements to produce such pop monuments as “Da Doo Ron Ron,” “Be My Baby” and “He’s a Rebel.”
Kathy Michaels - Editor
Christopher Weber And Linda DeutschFILE - In this May 23, 2005 file photo music producer Phil Spector appears during his trial at the Los Angeles Superior Court in Los Angeles. Spector, the eccentric and revolutionary music producer who transformed rock music with his âWall of Soundâ method and who was later convicted of murder, died Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, at age 81.
Image Credit: AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File January 17, 2021 - 9:26 AM LOS ANGELES - Phil Spector, the eccentric and revolutionary music producer who transformed rock music with his “Wall of Sound” method and who later was convicted of murder, has died. He was 81.