A glimpse behind the wall of sound -- the life and times of Phil Spector

Tearing Down the Wall of Sound: The Rise and Fall of Phil Spector by Mick Brown


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
As a kid, I remember listening to AM radio while riding in the car with my parents.  Invariably, we would be serenaded by catchy pop confections -- Da Do Run Run, Be My Baby, -- to name just a few.  The music found a place deep in my soul.  When I stumbled upon Mick Brown's Tearing Down the Wall of Sound  I was intrigued -- it combined two of my favorite things -- biographies and musical history.  Brown did not disappoint.

Tearing Down the Wall of Sound is a well written and engaging biography of the arc of Phil Spector's life and musical career.  Brown tears down the wall of sound, exposing the multiple layers and complexity of the man behind the music.  The book begins with his early days in tragic detail giving the reader a glimpse of the musical genius as a wounded child of an absent father (who committed suicide when Spector was a boy) and an overbearing mother.

Brown is at his finest when he traces the early history of rock 'n roll and the music industry.  Through Spector's life story, the reader gets a tour through the inner sanctum of the Brill Building and its cadre of songwriters and into the recording studio's where Spector crafted what came to be known as "the Wall of Sound" -- a bigger than life ensemble of layered sound that characterized his contribution to pop music.

The last third of the book follows Spector's spiral into madness and ultimately up to the moment a young actress, Lana Clarkson, is found dead of a gunshot to the face in his home.  It stops short of the resolution of the trial and sentencing. 

Overall, this book is highly recommended.  It is filled with behind-the-scenes tidbits and anecdotes of the history of pop music in the second half of the twentieth century as seen through the lens of "the rise and fall of Phil Spector." Those seeking a glimpse behind the wall of sound will find much to enjoy.

One of Spector's most well-known hits featuring the "Wall of Sound":  "By My Baby" by the Ronettes (1965) -- for your listening pleasure.



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The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
As an amateur history buff, I can usually get drawn into a well told story of a riveting episode from our past. I must admit that reading about the Puritans has never made it to the top of my list. They always struck me as a stuffy, humorless people hellbent on suffering.

Sarah Vowell's book, The Wordy Shipmates, changed all that. First of all, for those of you unfamiliar with Vowell, she writes about the past with an engaging mix of expansive intelligence and wit. Who knew one could laugh out loud while reading about the exploits of this motley crew of Bible thumping religious zealots?

While Vowell does provide keen analysis and much humor, her greatest achievement is in making the Puritans' story relevant to us today. A long line of American Presidents (such as JFK, Reagan, etc.) and politicians have made use of John Winthrop's "City on the Hill" metaphor. This idea has been twisted into a call for American Exceptionalism that has caused us to turn to a blind eye toward our flaws and overemphasize our superiority over other nations (and led us into numerous wars to prove it).

Those who have narrowly focused on this aspect of Winthrop's thinking fail to acknowledge that deeply embedded within the "City on the Hill" is a profoundly "communitarian ethos" -- the well-being of the least among us is inextricably bound up with our own. It is ironic that in this Christian land, there are some who troll through the past, selectively choosing tidbits to support their claims of greatness while missing this important point entirely.

Highly recommend for those in search of a good laugh while at the same time gaining a deeper understanding of the roots of our current political discourse and conflicts. Enjoy!

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I am currently reading...

Sarah Vowell's book, The Partly Cloudy Patriot which consists of a collection of essays of her observations about historical happenings, life and her unique view of the world. In places, it is laugh out loud funny. In others, it is deeply thought-provoking.

From editorial reviews on Amazon.com:

"Sarah Vowell travels through the American past and, in doing so, investigates the dusty, bumpy roads of her own life. In this insightful and funny collection of personal stories Vowell -- widely hailed for her inimitable stories on public radio's This American Life -- ponders a number of curious questions: Why is she happiest when visiting the sites of bloody struggles like Salem or Gettysburg? Why do people always inappropriately compare themselves to Rosa Parks? Why is a bad life in sunny California so much worse than a bad life anywhere else? What is it about the Zen of foul shots? And, in the title piece, why must doubt and internal arguments haunt the sleepless nights of the true patriot?

Her essays confront a wide range of subjects, themes, icons, and historical moments: Ike, Teddy Roosevelt, and Bill Clinton; Canadian Mounties and German filmmakers; Tom Cruise and Buffy the Vampire Slayer; twins and nerds; the Gettysburg Address, the State of the Union, and George W. Bush's inauguration.

The result is a teeming and engrossing book, capturing Vowell's memorable wit and her keen social commentary."