Record producer Phil Spector charged with murder
ALHAMBRA, California (AP) --Record producer Phil Spector, the 1960s recording-studio wizard who created pop music's Wall of Sound, was charged Thursday with murder in the shooting death of a woman at his home last February.
Spector, 63, was expected to be arraigned Thursday afternoon in the slaying of 40-year-old Lana Clarkson, a B-movie actress and model found dead in the foyer of his Alhambra mansion.
He has been free on $1 million bail since his arrest for investigation of murder shortly after the shooting February 3.
Spector has denied he killed Clarkson, suggesting in an Esquire magazine interview that she may have shot herself. After more than six months of investigation, authorities concluded Spector shot her.
Spector is famous for creating the Wall of Sound that involved overdubbing of multiple instruments, vocals and sound effects create a full, dramatic effect. The technique changed the way pop records were produced while bringing fame to groups like the Ronettes and the Crystals.
Among the hits bearing his signature style are "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Then He Kissed Me" by the Crystals; "Walking in the Rain" by the Ronettes and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin"' by the Righteous Brothers.
He also worked with Elvis Presley and Ike and Tina Turner, produced the last Beatles album, "Let It Be," in 1970, worked with John Lennon on his "Plastic Ono Band" and "Imagine" records, and handled the Ramones' record "End of the Century."
