Phil Spector, Dead at 81

[VolverseLoco]

Good. Not really a fan of his production work, in the grand scheme of things. I think he is highly overrated as a producer. And I have pretty negative feelings about gun-pullin', woman-abusing murderers too.

As a funny note, though, the "Pyrenees Castle," in which he murdered Lana Clarkson, was one street over and a few houses up from my high school (and early adult) girlfriend of seven years. More times that I can count, and often in the dead of night/very early morning, I climbed onto the estate's wall and walked the top of it to cut from one street over to the next, saving me about a half mile walk taking the streets around. The estate was heavily overgrown, and had vicious guard dogs outside, which followed me, barking violently as I walked along the top of the wall. But at that time, it was not owned by Spector. Later on, we saw that it was for sale, and that it eventually sold. We had no idea it was sold to Phil Spector. We just knew that whoever bought it seriously cleared out the overgrowth, and the dogs were no longer there. The murder occurred some years later, after she and I were no longer together. It was only then that we found out he was the "new" owner.

Article about the "castle" from when it was put up for sale a few years ago:

Phil Spector’s infamous Alhambra hilltop estate asks $5.5 million

You had me at 'Vicious Guard Dogs', lol!! Like the ones at Robin Masters estate. Zeus and Apollo. Lol!

 

[KevinDBassist]

 

[JW56789]

Don't know the particulars or the people involved, and while he produced some fabulous sides ( . . . . when Bill Medley starts 'You never close your eyes . . . .' in 'You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin', it still sends a chill down my back all these years later . . . .) for some great artists, aside from all the crazy-train stories about him, I don't know a lot about the man. It's now up to God to sort this out, as it usually always is.

I would think, however, that he's one more bad actor in the 'Big Time Music Business' where really unfortunate, straight-up dog and dangerous behavior is quietly and discreetly tolerated, because everybody has their hand out, and we got to keep the hits coming, keep them out on the road, because everybody GOT to get paid ! ! !

Do it right, and Sharon can keep Ozzy on the road till he's King Tut, then get cover stories in PEOPLE magazine about rehab and keeping their marriage after all these years. Wow, innit great?

Do it wrong, well . . . . . why do you think Forest Lawn in Los Angeles is one of the biggest cemeteries in the world? Then YOU TOO can be as successful as Elvis, and Michael, and Whitney.

Comfortably Numb, indeed.

And children, as always:

Ethel Merman - There's No Business Like Show Business - YouTube

Now That's Entertainment !

 

[LowActionHero]

I thought he was already dead. . .

 

[cnltb]

ok

 

[Mantis Tobaggan]

good riddance

 

[Lagado]

"Like a lot of people who knew Spector, Pitney seemed horrified yet oddly unsurprised at this turn of events, as if something like that was bound to happen sooner or later: the booze, the drugs, the evident instability, the obsession with guns and the history of violence towards women. Spector, he suggested, had been in trouble from the start. "I had dinner with him the first day he arrived in New York, and he said to me that his sister was in an asylum and she was the sane one in the family," he recalled. "I thought, ‘Wow, where did that come from?’

Phil Spector brought joy to pop music – and misery to so many lives | Music | The Guardian

It seems that most thought it was just a matter of time. You have to ask yourself how this man who was clearly seriously mentally ill, was allowed to keep guns.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

He was a murderer. If there's a hell, he'll burn there forever.

 

[retslock]

I wonder what Darlene Love is thinking right now.

 

[jouneyman111]

You know, I need to tread carefully here because I have a lot of history with this crap. My mother was schizophrenic. One of my closest friends is bipolar. One my my husband's close friends is schizophrenic.

None of them ever serially abused a spouse or murdered anyone.

I feel bad for anyone whose mental illness drives them toward those kinds of outcomes. But hopefully they can get help. My bipolar friend has had trouble with angry outbursts when he's in a manic phase. He's on medicaid, and sometimes when he's tried to get into treatment it seems like being lucid enough to want to get treated at those facilities means that they think he's not sick enough to need treatment, so he gets hung out to dry until he does something so dramatic that they have to do something to help him. That's not a good situation.

But Spector? Here's a guy who could have walked into any private treatment facility, paid the $50,000 and had himself a nice vacation with all the good drugs. Maybe he was resistant to treatment, but maybe he also didn't belong on the street.

Drug and alcohol abuse is a symptom with people like this. They do this because they can't get themselves right, and it's an attempt to self-medicate. It's not a cause. So let's be sympathetic for a minute and ask, if this is the case with Spector, what failed him?

Has he now not served his sentence? Had he been reformed?
Sure the guy committed awful crimes. However if you listen to or work in music you have heard his influence and probably unknowingly been influenced by his work. To deny that he was a great at what he did is naïve at best.
If he was reformed (which I expect nobody here knows) why shouldn't his work be celebrated.

 

[40Hz]

hadn't Spector served his time?

All the time going forward can’t fix or atone for one millisecond of the pain and injury you caused in the past. The notion of “paid your ‘debt’ to society” is one of the silliest phrases found in the English language. You can’t “repay” a wrong. The most you can hope for is to be forgiven. And forgiveness is something entirely dependent on the injured party. Your redemption is a thing that’s completely out of your hands.

 

[MegaSwing]

A high-functioning sociopath if there ever was one. Amazing songs, however. He deserves that the truth be told about his personal and professional practices. No more, no less. You cannot make him any more of a pariah. He’d already been one for some time.

 

[CryingBass]

I have always said ( pre Covid! ) that there is one good thing about getting a really bad cold. And that’s how good you feel when it goes away.

I have faith that humans are basically good people. And that times heal, and that there are many lessons in life that we all need to learn, at our own clip.

For instance, in my case, intonation!

 

[Lagado]

People practically rejoicing over another person's death. It's shameful!
I was lamenting my own mortality overnight & how it might bring some daft human some relief.

It's called Karma folks!
(and it doesn't just work in one direction)

Some are far more accountable than others. Take Josef Mengele for instance.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

Seems no matter what I comment it will get twisted, so I'm out.

 

[bobyoung53]

Correct. To establish whether a suspected someone is a psychopath (formerly called "sociopath"), said someone must be assessed. The most widely used test today is Robert Hare's Psychopathy Checklist PCL–R™: 2nd Edition.

I read this book by him, it was a pioneering book in the field I believe. I was a psych RN.

 

[bobyoung53]

Sociopath. There is a fine line between genius and madness. But, this producer pulled guns on people time after time, yet incidents were swept under the rug because of his legendary status. Then came the night he not only pulled the gun, but also pulled the trigger and killed somebody. Wall of what now? Mental illness is no joke. Seek some help- especially if you're rich enough to buy gold plated lawn furniture.

He was never diagnosed as a sociopath and did not exhibit any of the symptoms. Sociopaths are not inherently violent any more than anyone else. We have many sociopaths in the business world and political world.

 

[Lagado]

We have many sociopaths in the business world and political world.

And look at the devastation they have brought.

 

[bobyoung53]

And look at the devastation they have brought.

Yep.

 

[Valvehead]

Seems no matter what I comment it will get twisted, so I'm out.

The killing of Lana - be it by mistake or not - can not be forgiven. Phil was completely nuts by that time. Wigs, handguns, firing those inside the studio? I don't know wether to blame fame or drugs, or both for his downfall. Either way it is a crying shame. I hope he will finally find peace.