1970 - Phil Spector

50 musicians recorded the orchestral scores for The Beatles tracks 'The Long And Winding Road' and 'Across The Universe' for the Phil Spector produced sessions. The bill for the 50 musicians was £1,126 and 5 shillings, ($1.914). When released 'The Long and Winding Road' became a US No.1 hit.

Gold Star Oldies USA pays tribute to Phillies Records in April the Wall of Sound  Phil Spector 

🎙️ What Was the Wall of Sound?

The Wall of Sound was a groundbreaking music‑production technique created by Phil Spector in the early 1960s at Gold Star Studios in Hollywood. It used large ensembles, dense layering, natural echo, and mono mixing to create a massive, emotional, orchestral pop sound that jumped out of AM radios.

The Life of Phil Spector 

🎼 How Phil Spector Developed the Wall of Sound

(This is the real origin story, not the simplified textbook version.)

🎧 1. He was chasing the emotional punch of early rock & roll

Spector grew up idolizing:

• Leiber & Stoller

• Jerry Wexler

• The Drifters / Coasters productions

• Ray Charles’ big-band R&B

Those records had weight—horns, percussion, backing vocals—but they were still relatively sparse. Spector wanted something denser, something that felt like a tidal wave.

He once said he wanted records that sounded like “a Wagner opera for teenagers.”

2. Gold Star Studios gave him the missing ingredient

When Spector first walked into Gold Star, he heard the echo chambers and realized he’d found the “instrument” he’d been missing.

Gold Star’s chambers weren’t just reverb—they were:

• thick

• swirling

• harmonically rich

• slightly distorted in a musical way

They turned a simple handclap into a cathedral. This is where the Wall of Sound truly begins.

3. The Wrecking Crew could play anything in unison

Spector discovered that if you put:

• 3 pianos

• 3 guitars

• 2 basses

• multiple percussionists

• strings

• horns

…all playing the same part, the sound didn’t get messy—it got massive.

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 " April 15, 1939 — The Ink Spots, a pop vocal group who would harmonically branch into R&B, prefigure doo wop, and greatly influence the Platters, debut on the pop chart with the first of 46 hits, "If I Didn't Care," which reaches #2. (Group guitarist Charlie Fuqua's nine-year-old nephew at the time, Harvey, grows up to become co-founder of the 1950s doo wop group Moonglows, discoverer of Marvin Gaye, and a Motown producer.) 

                                                                           1894 — Bessie Smith, called "The Empress of the Blues," is born in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She inspires countless blues, R&B, and rock singers for generations after her 1923 recording debut and is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989 as an Early Influence.

Sources:
Eight Days a Week (Ron Smith)
On This Day in Black Music History (Jay Warner)
Chronology of American Popular Music, 1900-2000 (Frank Hoffman)

Birthdays Singers and Song Writers 

1939 - Dusty Springfield

English singer Dusty Springfield who had her first solo UK hit single in 1963 with ‘I Only Want To Be With You’, which reached No.4, the 1966 UK No.1 & US No.4 single with 'You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me’ plus over 15 other UK Top 40 singles. With her brother Dion O'Brien ("Tom Springfield") and Tim Feild, Springfield formed the folk-pop vocal trio The Springfields. Two of their five 1961–63 top 40 UK hits 'Island of Dreams' and 'Say I Won't Be There' reached No. 5 on the charts. Her image, marked by a peroxide blonde bouffant/beehive hairstyle, heavy makeup and evening gowns, made her an icon of the Swinging Sixties. She died on 3 March 1999 age 59.

1935 - Bobby Vinton

American singer and songwriter Bobby Vinton who had the 1963 US No.1 single & 1990 UK No.2 single 'Blue Velvet', (a cover of Tony Bennett's 1951 hit) plus 29 other US Top 40 hits. As a teen idol, he became known as "The Polish Prince", as his music paid tribute to his Polish heritage and he hosted his own self-titled TV show in the late 1970s.

1929 - Ed Townsend

American singer, songwriter, producer and attorney Ed Townsend. He performed and composed 'For Your Love', a rhythm and blues doo-wop classic, and co-wrote 'Let's Get It On' with Marvin Gaye. He died on 13 August 2003.

1929 - Roy Hamilton

American singer Roy Hamilton who had the 1955 US No.6 single Unchained Melody and recorded 'You'll Never Walk Alone'. Hamilton died of a stroke on 29th July 1969.

Early Beatles News

Music History  UPDATE

Those born on this date include: Henry Mancini, Grammy and Academy Award-winning film and television composer (Peter Gunn; Pink Panther films), arranger, and conductor in 1924

Edie Adams [Edith Enke], businesswoman, singer, actress and comedian (Murial Cigar) in 1927

Ed Townsend, doo-wop singer, songwriter, and producer ("For Your Love"; Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On") and Roy Hamilton, singer in 1929

Herbie Mann, jazz flutist ("Hijack"; Push Push; Memphis Underground) in 1930

Perry Botkin Jr, arranger, composer ("Nadia's Theme"(won Grammy best instrumental arrangement), and producer (Incredible Bongo Band) in 1933

Robert Stigwood, Australian-British music entrepreneur (RSO Records), stage (Jesus Christ Superstar) and film (Saturday Night Fever; Grease; Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band) producer in 1934

Bobby Vinton, pop singer, known as "The Polish Prince" ("Roses Are Red (My Love)"; "Blue Velvet"; "My Melody Of Love") in 1935

Dusty Springfield [Mary O'Brien], British pop vocalist ("I Only Want To Be With You"; "Son Of A Preacher Man") in 1939

"Lonesome Dave" Peverett, British rock singer and musician (Foghat - "Slow Ride"; Savoy Brown, 1967-70) in 1943

Mike Mitchell, rock guitarist (The Kingsmen -"Louie, Louie") in 1944

Gerry Rafferty, Scottish guitarist and vocalist (The Humblebums), (Stealers Wheel - "Stuck In The Middle With You"; solo -"Baker Street") and Lee Kerslake, British drummer (Uriah Heep; Ozzy Osbourne) in 1947

Jimmy Osmond, pop singer ("Long Haired Lover from Liverpool")(Osmond Brothers) in 1963

***Those we lost on this date include: Alexander "Skip" Spence, Windsor, Ontario born drummer, guitarist, singer and songwriter (Jefferson Airplane – first album / Moby Grape / Quicksilver

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