AES London 2011
AES/APRS Event—The Recording Legacy of Phil Spector
Sunday, May 15, 14:30 — 16:15 (Room 3)
AES/APRS Event—The Recording Legacy of Phil Spector
Presenter:
Barry Marshall
Abstract:
The First Producer? Phil Spector and the Legacy of the Svengali Producer
This lecture will explore the career of Phil Spector, the legendary figure who arguably created the role of the record producer as we know it today. It will trace Spector’s historical development from his early career as an artist, his apprenticeship with Atlantic Records and Leiber & Stoller (the first credited producers), his flowering as a producer-mogul with his Philles record label, his initial “retirement” in 1967, his re-invention as the producer of John Lennon and George Harrison to his later sporadic (yet sometimes still seminal) work with artists like the Ramones. The emphasis of the lecture will be on the development of the role of the producer—through Spector’s initial creation of his “Wall of Sound” and his Svengali approach to artist development—and then through his sublimation of the Svengali role into a more measured approach with his work with the gigantic talents of artists like Lennon and Harrison. The lecture will include lots of examples of Spector’s work.
