John Lennon hired the producer consecutively, from his Plastic Ono Band to the Some Time in New York City albums. He returned to Spector in 1973 for a record of “oldie but moldy” rock ‘n’ roll cover songs. The sessions floundered as Spector set his own time table, and showed up high in special wardrobes. From karate master to plastic surgeon, every costume accommodated a holster, usually sheathing a loaded weapon. If not, it was drawn to make noise in the studio.
Spector fired a revolver inches from Lennon’s ears in the confines of a mixing console. “Phil, if you’re going to kill me, kill me,” Lennon screamed, according to Crime of the Century: Classic Rock and True Crime, by Angie Moon. “But don’t fuck with my ears.” This wasn’t an isolated incident. Spector yelled threats and pulled a weapon on Lennon as he was chasing the former Beatle through the studio hallways. Spector ultimately ransomed the master tapes to Capitol Records for $90,000. When a messenger came to collect, Spector greeted him at the door brandishing an ax.
“[Phil Spector] said a couple of things to Cher that made her cry,” Andy Kim, who co-wrote and sang The Archies’ 1968 smash “Sugar, Sugar,” told Goldmine in 2016. “Then had that gun pointed at me. I just thought, you know what? This is a good headline. Andy Kim, shot and killed by Phil Spector.” While songwriting sessions for Leonard Cohen’s 1978 album Death of A Ladies’ Man went smoothly, arrangement differences turned to battles, and Spector came “armed to the teeth,” according to Cohen, per Tearing Down the Wall of Sound.
Debbie Harry didn’t even get to the studio before Spector “pulled a gun,” Blondie’s iconic singer told NME. During discussions for a possible project, “He stuck it in my boot and went, ‘Bang.’ I thought, ‘Get me outta here. I just wanna go home.’ Why would anyone be carrying a .45 automatic in their home?” The Ramones hired Spector in 1979, for the album End of the Century. In Commando: The Autobiography of Johnny Ramone, Johnny Ramone remembers facing the wrong end of a revolver, but says bassist Dee Dee Ramone got the worst of it. At the end of sessions, Spector disappeared with the master tapes for six months.
Imprisoning a Singing Legend
Ronnie Spector’s 1990 autobiography, Be My Baby: How I Survived Mascara, Miniskirts And Madness, is a harsh indictment of the man behind the console. Veronica Bennett led The Ronettes when she met Spector. Before becoming his second wife, the production run of their union yielded, among many other hits, “Be My Baby,” which The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards calls “one of the greatest songs ever recorded.” When The Ronettes toured England with The Rolling Stones, Spector ordered Bennett confined to her hotel room.
The couple’s 1968 wedding day ended with a physical fight and accusations about marrying for money. Ronnie filed for divorce three months after the marriage. After a reconciliation, Spector held the singer hostage, derailing any musical output. Ronnie’s autobiography describes barbed wire fences, and details being tied up, locked in a closet, and having all shoes hidden so she couldn’t walk out. Spector gifted a gold coffin with a glass top to his eternal bride. He threatened to kill her if she left him, saying he would display her corpse in it so “I can keep my eye on you after you’re dead.”