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{{short description|Music production effect developed by Phil Spector}}
{{about|Phil Spector's music production formula}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2020}}
[[File:Phil Spector with MFQ 1965.png|thumb|upright=1.5|Spector (center) at [[Gold Star Studios]] with [[Modern Folk Quartet]] in 1965 ]]
{{Wiktionary|wall of sound}}
The '''Wall of Sound''' (also called the '''Spector Sound'''){{sfn|Moorefield|2010|p=10}}<ref>{{cite web|editor-first1=Robert|editor-last1=Birkline|last1=Hoffman|first1=Frank|title=Survey of American Popular Music|url=http://www.shsu.edu/lis_fwh/book/brill_building/Spector%20Sound2.htm|publisher=Sam Houston State University|access-date=October 17, 2014|year=2003|archive-date=September 18, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140918065826/http://www.shsu.edu/lis_fwh/book/brill_building/Spector%20Sound2.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> is a music production formula developed by American record producer [[Phil Spector]] at [[Gold Star Studios]], in the 1960s, with assistance from engineer [[Larry Levine]] and the conglomerate of [[session musician]]s later known as "[[the Wrecking Crew (music)|the Wrecking Crew]]". The intention was to [[Recording studio as an instrument|exploit the possibilities of studio recording]] to create an unusually dense [[orchestral]] aesthetic that came across well through radios and [[jukebox]]es of the era. Spector explained in 1964: "I was looking for a sound, a sound so strong that if the material was not the greatest, the sound would carry the record. It was a case of augmenting, augmenting. It all fit together like a jigsaw."<ref name=Buskin2007 />

A popular misconception holds that the Wall of Sound was created simply through a maximum of noise and distortion, but the method was actually far more nuanced.<ref name="HinckleyLiner"/><ref name=Buskin2007 /> To attain the Wall of Sound, Spector's arrangements called for large ensembles (including some instruments not generally used for ensemble playing, such as electric and acoustic guitars), with multiple instruments doubling or tripling many of the parts to create a fuller, richer tone.{{sfn|Zak|2001|p=77}} For example, Spector often duplicated a part played by an [[acoustic piano]] with an [[electric piano]] and a [[harpsichord]].{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989|pp=185–186}} Mixed well enough, the three instruments would then be indistinguishable to the listener.{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989|pp=185–186}}<ref name="Harris"/>

Among other features of the sound, Spector incorporated an array of orchestral instruments ([[String instrument|strings]], woodwind, [[Brass instrument|brass]] and percussion) not previously associated with youth-oriented pop music. [[Reverb]] from an [[echo chamber]] was also highlighted for additional texture. He characterized his methods as "a [[Wagnerian]] approach to rock & roll: little symphonies for the kids".{{sfn|Williams|2003}} The combination of large ensembles with reverberation effects also increased the average [[audio power]] in a way that resembles [[Dynamic range compression|compression]]. By 1979, the use of compression had become common on the radio, marking the trend that led to the [[loudness war]] in the 1980s.<ref name="loudness-war-background">{{cite conference |url=https://www.sfxmachine.com/docs/loudnesswar/loudness_war.pdf |title=The Loudness War: Background, Speculation, and Recommendations |last=Vickers |first=Earl |date=4 November 2010 |conference=129th Audio Engineering Society Convention |conference-url=https://www.aes.org/events/129/ |publisher=[[Audio Engineering Society]] |location=[[San Francisco]] |id=8175 |access-date=17 November 2020 |section=A Brief History of the Loudness War |archive-date=January 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117165201/https://www.sfxmachine.com/docs/loudnesswar/loudness_war.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

The intricacies of the technique were unprecedented in the field of sound production for popular music.<ref name=Buskin2007 /> According to [[Beach Boys]] leader [[Brian Wilson]], who used the formula extensively: "In the '40s and '50s, arrangements were considered 'OK here, listen to that [[French horn]]' or 'listen to this string section now.' It was all a definite sound. There weren't combinations of sound and, with the advent of Phil Spector, we find sound combinations, which—scientifically speaking—is a brilliant aspect of sound production."<ref name="Harris">{{cite web|title=INTERVIEW WITH BRIAN WILSON OF THE BEACH BOYS IN EARLY 1980'S|url=http://www.globalimageworks.com/clip-brian-wilson-interview-beach-boys-1874_023?id=45092|publisher=Global Image Works|access-date=July 18, 2014|year=1976|archive-date=July 26, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726074318/http://www.globalimageworks.com/clip-brian-wilson-interview-beach-boys-1874_023?id=45092|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Etymology==
[[Andrew Loog Oldham]] coined the phrase "Phil Spector's Wall of Sound" within advertisements for [[the Righteous Brothers]]' 1964 single "[[You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin']]".{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989|pp=401}} An earlier usage of the phrase "wall of sound" was made in reference to the instrumentation of jazz artist [[Stan Kenton]], who utilized numerous brass instruments to create a vibrating sound that jolted human ears.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sparke |first1=Michael |title=Stan Kenton: this is an orchestra! |date=2010 |publisher=University of North Texas Press |location=Denton, Tex. |isbn=978-1-57441-284-0 |page=50 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r2CiSIXxpYIC&dq=wall+of+sound&pg=PA50 |access-date=8 February 2022 |chapter=7. The Artistry Orchestra (1946)}}</ref>

== Origins ==
{{quote box|align=right|width=25%|quote=We were working on the transparency of music; that was [[the Teddy Bears]] sound: you had a lot of air moving around, notes being played in the air but not directly into the mics. Then, when we sent it all into the [[echo chamber|chamber]], this air effect is what was heard—all the notes jumbled and fuzzy. This is what we recorded—not the notes. The chamber.|source=—[[Marshall Leib]]{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989|p=44}}}}

During the late 1950s, Spector worked with [[Brill Building]] songwriters [[Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller]] during a period when they sought a fuller sound by the use of excessive instrumentation, using up to five electric guitars and four percussionists.{{sfn|Moorefield|2010|p=10}} Later this evolved into Spector's Wall of Sound, which Leiber and Stoller considered to be very distinct from what they were doing, stating: "Phil was the first one to use multiple drum kits, three pianos and so on. We went for much more clarity in terms of instrumental colors, and he deliberately blended everything into a kind of mulch. He definitely had a different point of view."{{sfn|Moorefield|2010|p=10}}

Spector's first production was the self-penned 1958 song "[[Don't You Worry My Little Pet]]", performed with his group [[the Teddy Bears]]. The recording was achieved by taking a demo tape of the song and playing it back over the studio's speaker system to overdub another performance over it.{{sfn|Smith|2007|p=57}} The end product was a cacophony, with stacked harmony vocals that could not be heard clearly.{{sfn|Howard|2004|p=5}} Spector spent the next several years further developing this unorthodox method of recording.

In the 1960s, Spector usually worked at [[Gold Star Studios]] in Los Angeles because of its exceptional [[echo chamber]]s. He also typically worked with such [[audio engineer]]s as [[Larry Levine]] and the conglomerate of [[session musician]]s who later became known as [[The Wrecking Crew (music)|The Wrecking Crew]].

== Process ==

===Layering===
[[File:The Ronettes 1966.JPG|alt=|thumb|[[The Ronettes]], one of the several girl groups Spector produced in the early to mid-1960s]]

The process was almost the same for most of Spector's recordings, with Spector starting by rehearsing the assembled musicians for several hours before recording. The backing track was performed live and recorded monaurally; a bass drum overdub on "[[Da Doo Ron Ron]]" was the exception to the rule.<ref name=Buskin2007 />

Songwriter [[Jeff Barry]], who worked extensively with Spector, described the Wall of Sound as "by and large ... a formula arrangement" with "four or five guitars ... two basses in [[perfect fifth|fifths]], with the same type of line ... [[string section|strings]] ... six or seven [[horn section|horns]] adding the little punches ... [and] percussion instruments—the little bells, the shakers, the [[tambourine]]s".{{sfn|Williams|2003}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.myspace.com/philspectorrr|access-date=June 16, 2009|title=Featured Content on Myspace|work=Myspace|archive-date=July 15, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090715090648/http://www.myspace.com/philspectorrr|url-status=live}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|date=October 2019}}

[[Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans]]' version of "[[Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah]]" formed the basis of Spector and Levine's future mixing practices, almost never straying from the formula it established.<ref name=Buskin2007 /> For the recording of "[[You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin']]", engineer [[Larry Levine]] described the process thus: they started by recording four acoustic guitars, playing eight bars over and over again, changing the figure if necessary until Spector thought it ready. They then added the pianos, of which there were three, and if they didn't work together, Spector started again with the guitars. This is followed by three basses, the horns (two trumpets, two trombones, and three saxophones), then finally the drums.  The vocals were then added with [[Bill Medley]] and [[Bobby Hatfield]] singing into separate microphones and backing vocals supplied by [[the Blossoms]] and other singers.<ref name=Buskin2007 /><ref name=mix>{{cite web |url=http://www.mixonline.com/news/profiles/classic-tracks-righteous-brothers-youve-lost-lovin-feeling/365140 |title=Classic Tracks: The Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" |date=March 1, 2002 |author=Dan Daley |work=Mix |access-date=December 5, 2015 |archive-date=November 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117031850/http://www.mixonline.com/news/profiles/classic-tracks-righteous-brothers-youve-lost-lovin-feeling/365140 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Daniel Lanois]] recounted a situation during the recording of the track "Goodbye" from [[Emmylou Harris]]'s ''[[Wrecking Ball (Emmylou Harris album)|Wrecking Ball]]'': "We put a huge amount of [[Dynamic range compression|compression]] on the piano and the mandoguitar, and it turned into this fantastic, chimey harmonic instrument. We almost got the old Spector '60s sound, not by layering, but by really compressing what was already there between the melodic events happening between these two instruments."{{sfn|Zak|2001|p=77}} Nonetheless, layering identical instrumental parts remained an integral component of many of Spector's productions, as session musician [[Barney Kessel]] recalled:

{{blockquote|There was a lot of weight on each part... The three pianos were different, one [[electric piano|electric]], one not, one [[harpsichord]], and they would all play the same thing and it would all be swimming around like it was all down a well. Musically, it was terribly simple, but the way he recorded and miked it, they’d diffuse it so that you couldn't pick any one instrument out. Techniques like distortion and echo were not new, but Phil came along and took these to make sounds that had not been used in the past. I thought it was ingenious.{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989|pp=185–186}}}}

All early Wall of Sound recordings were made with a three-track [[Ampex]] 350 tape recorder.<ref name=Buskin2007>{{cite web|last1=Buskin|first1=Richard|title=CLASSIC TRACKS: The Ronettes 'Be My Baby'|url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/apr07/articles/classictracks_0407.htm|work=Sound on Sound|access-date=August 19, 2014|date=April 2007|archive-date=September 24, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140924124638/http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/apr07/articles/classictracks_0407.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Levine explained that during mixing, "I [would] record the same thing on two of the [Ampex machine's] three tracks just to reinforce the sound, and then I would erase one of those and replace it with the voice. The console had a very limited equalizer for each input ... That was basically it in terms of effects, aside from the two [[echo chamber]]s that were also there, of course, directly behind the control room."<ref name=Buskin2007 />

=== Echo ===
Microphones in the recording studio captured the musicians' performance, which was then transmitted to an echo chamber—a basement room fitted with [[Loudspeaker|speakers]] and [[microphone]]s. The signal from the studio was played through the speakers and reverberated throughout the room before being picked up by the microphones. The echo-laden sound was then channeled back to the control room, where it was recorded on tape. The natural [[reverberation]] and echo from the hard walls of the echo chamber gave Spector's productions their distinctive quality and resulted in a rich, complex sound that, when played on [[AM radio]], had a texture rarely heard in musical recordings. Jeff Barry said: "Phil used his own formula for echo, and some overtone arrangements with the strings."{{sfn|Williams|2003}}

=== Spill ===
{{Main|Spill (audio)}}
During the mixing for "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah", Spector turned off the track designated for electric guitar (played on this occasion by [[Billy Strange]]). However, the sound of the guitar could still be heard [[spill (audio)|spilling]] onto other microphones in the room, creating a ghostly ambiance that obscured the instrument. In reference to this nuance of the song's recording, music professor Albin Zak has written:

{{blockquote|It was at this moment that the complex of relationships among all the layers and aspects of the sonic texture came together to bring the desired image into focus. As long as Strange's unmiked guitar plugs away as one of the layered timbral characters that make up the track's rhythmic groove, it is simply one strand among many in a texture whose timbres sound more like impressionistic allusions to instruments than representations. But the guitar has a latency about it, a potential. Because it has no microphone of its own, it effectively inhabits a different ambient space from the rest of the track. As it chugs along in its accompanying role, it forms a connection with a parallel sound world of which we are, for the moment, unaware. Indeed, we would never know of the secondary ambient layer were it not for the fact that this guitar is the one that takes the solo. As it steps out of the groove texture and asserts its individuality, a doorway opens to an entirely other place in the track. It becomes quite clear that this guitar inhabits a world all its own, which has been before us from the beginning yet has somehow gone unnoticed.{{sfn|Zak|2001|p=83}}}}

Levine disliked Spector's penchant for [[Spill (audio)|mic bleeding]], accordingly: "I never wanted all the bleed between instruments – I had it, but I never wanted it – and since I had to live with it, that meant manipulating other things to lessen the effect; bringing the guitars up just a hair and the drums down just a hair so that it didn't sound like it was bleeding."<ref name=Buskin2007 /> In order to offset the mixing problems percussion leakage caused, he applied a minimal number of microphones to the drum kits, using [[Neumann U 47|Neumann U 67]]s overhead and an [[RCA Type 77-DX microphone|RCA Type 77]] on the kick to establish a feeling of presence.<ref name=Buskin2007 />

=== Mono ===
{{Main|Monaural}}

According to Zak: "Aside from the issues of retail and radio exposure, mono recordings represented an aesthetic frame for musicians and producers, who had grown up with them."{{sfn|Zak|2001|p=148}} Despite the trend toward multi-channel recording, Spector was vehemently opposed to stereo releases, claiming that it took control of the record's sound away from the producer in favor of the listener, resulting in an infringement of the Wall of Sound's carefully balanced combination of sonic textures as they were meant to be heard.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6467441.stm |title=Entertainment &#124; Phil Spector's Wall of Sound |work=BBC News |date=April 14, 2009 |access-date=October 14, 2011 |archive-date=March 26, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326190524/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6467441.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> Brian Wilson agreed, stating: "I look at sound like a painting, you have a balance and the balance is conceived in your mind. You finish the sound, dub it down, and you’ve stamped out a picture of your balance with the mono dubdown. But in stereo, you leave that dubdown to the listener—to his speaker placement and speaker balance. It just doesn't seem complete to me."<ref>{{cite AV media notes|title=Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys|title-link=Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys|last=Leaf|first=David|others=[[The Beach Boys]]|year=1993|type=Liner notes|publisher=[[Capitol Records]]}}</ref>

== Misconceptions ==
===As a maximum of noise===
{{listen
 | filename    = Righteous Brothers - You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'.ogg
 | title       = The Righteous Brothers – "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin{{'"}}
 | description = [[The Righteous Brothers]]' 1965 single "[[You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin']]" stands as an example of a Spector production with open spaces, contradicting the Wall of Sound's reputation as pure noise. 
}}

It has been inaccurately suggested in critical shorthand that Spector's "wall of sound" filled every second with a maximum of noise.<ref name="HinckleyLiner"/>  Levine recalled how "other engineers" mistakenly thought that the process was "turning up all the faders to get full saturation, but all that achieved was distortion."<ref name=Buskin2007 /> Biographer David Hinckley wrote that the Wall of Sound was flexible, more complex, and more subtle, elaborating:

{{blockquote|Its components included an [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]]-derived rhythm section, generous echo and prominent choruses blending percussion, strings, saxophones and human voices. But equally important were its open spaces, some achieved by physical breaks (the pauses between the thunder in "[[Be My Baby]]" or "[[Baby, I Love You]]") and some by simply letting the music breathe in the studio. He also knew when to clear a path, as he does for the sax interlude and [[Darlene Love|[Darlene] Love's]] vocal in "(Today I Met) The Boy I'm Gonna Marry".<ref name="HinckleyLiner">David Hinckley; ''[[Back to Mono (1958–1969)]]''; 1991; ABKCO music, Inc.</ref>}}

The Wall of Sound has been contrasted with "the standard pop mix of foregrounded solo vocal and balanced, blended backing" as well as the airy mixes typical of [[reggae]] and [[funk]].{{sfn|Middleton|1989|p=89}} Musicologist [[Richard Middleton (musicologist)|Richard Middleton]] wrote: "This can be contrasted with the ''open'' spaces and more ''equal'' lines of typical funk and reggae textures [for example], which seem to invite [listeners] to insert [themselves] in those spaces and actively participate."{{sfn|Middleton|1989|p=89}} Supporting this, Jeff Barry said, "[Spector] buried the lead and he ''cannot stop'' himself from doing that ... if you listen to his records in sequence, the lead goes further and further in and to me what he is saying is, 'It is ''not'' the song... just listen to those ''strings''. I want ''more'' musicians, it's ''me''.{{'"}}{{sfn|Williams|2003|p=149}}

Closer reflection reveals that the Wall of Sound was compatible with, even supportive of, vocal protagonism. Such virtuosity was ultimately serving of Spector's own agenda—[[The Righteous Brothers]]' vocal prowess provided him a "secure and prosperous headrest", such as in Bobby Hatfield's rendering of "[[Unchained Melody]]".{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989|pp=192}}

===As a generic term===
According to author Matthew Bannister, Spector's Wall of Sound is distinct from what is typically characterized as a "wall of sound" in rock music. Bannister writes that, during the 1980s, "Jangle and drone plus reverberation create[d] a contemporary equivalent of Spector's 'Wall of Sound' – a massive, ringing, cavernous noise and a device used by many indie groups: [[Flying Nun Records|Flying Nun]], from [[Sneaky Feelings]]' ''[[Send You]]'' to [[Straitjacket Fits]] and [[the JPS Experience]]". He cites 1960s psychedelic and [[garage rock]] such as [[the Byrds]]' "[[Eight Miles High]]" (1966) as a primary musical influence on the movement.{{sfn|Bannister|2007|p=39}}

== Legacy and popularity ==

=== Phil Spector ===
{{See also|Phil Spector#Musicianship}}

The Wall of Sound forms the foundation of Phil Spector's recordings. Certain records are considered to have epitomized its use.<ref name=Buskin2007 /> Spector himself is quoted as believing his production of [[Ike and Tina Turner]]'s "[[River Deep, Mountain High]]" to be the summit of his Wall of Sound productions,{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989}} and this sentiment has been echoed by [[George Harrison]], who called it "a perfect record from start to finish".{{sfn|Ribowsky|1989|p=250}}

{{Clear}}

=== Brian Wilson ===
{{See also|Brian Wilson#Production style}}
{{listen|filename=Beach Boys-wouldn t it be nice.ogg|title=The Beach Boys – "Wouldn't It Be Nice"|description="[[Wouldn't It Be Nice]]" from ''[[Pet Sounds]]'' (1966) features an assortment of pianos, accordions, and guitars augmenting each other.}}
Outside of Spector's own songs, the most recognizable example of the "Wall of Sound" is heard on many classic hits recorded by [[The Beach Boys]] (e.g., "[[God Only Knows]]", "[[Wouldn't It Be Nice]]"—and especially, the psychedelic "pocket symphony" of "[[Good Vibrations]]"), for which [[Brian Wilson]] used a similar recording technique, especially during the ''[[Pet Sounds]]'' and ''[[Smile (The Beach Boys album)|Smile]]'' eras of the band.{{sfn|Moorefield|2010|p=16}} Wilson considers ''Pet Sounds'' to be a [[concept album]] centered around interpretations of Phil Spector's recording methods.<ref name="Harris" /> Author [[Domenic Priore]] observed, "The Ronettes had sung a dynamic version of [[The Students]]' 1961 hit '[[I'm So Young]]', and Wilson went right for it, but took the Wall of Sound in a different direction. Where Phil would go for total effect by bringing the music to the edge of cacophony – and therefore rocking to the tenth power – Brian seemed to prefer audio clarity. His production method was to spread out the sound and arrangement, giving the music a more lush, comfortable feel."{{sfn|Priore|2005}}

According to Larry Levine, "Brian was one of the few people in the music business Phil respected. There was a mutual respect. Brian might say that he learned how to produce from watching Phil, but the truth is, he was already producing records before he observed Phil. He just wasn't getting credit for it, something that in the early days, I remember really used to make Phil angry. Phil would tell anybody who listened that Brian was one of the great producers."<ref name="Levine1997">{{cite AV media notes|chapter=Musician Comments: Larry Levine|title=The Pet Sounds Sessions|others=[[The Beach Boys]]|year=1997|publisher=[[Capitol Records]]|type=Booklet|chapter-url=http://albumlinernotes.com/Larry_Levine.html|access-date=December 27, 2014|archive-date=December 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227005406/http://albumlinernotes.com/Larry_Levine.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/14/arts/music/shoegaze-slowdive-ride.html/ |title=Shoegaze, the Sound of Protest Shrouded in Guitar Fuzz, Returns |date=14 August 2017 |website=New York Times |access-date=17 December 2019 |archive-date=18 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218003247/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/14/arts/music/shoegaze-slowdive-ride.html/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Others ===
{{Category see also|Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements}}
{{specific section|date=April 2022}}
[[File:The Walker Brothers.png|thumb|right|[[The Walker Brothers]] recorded "[[The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)]]" (1966), an existential [[ballad]] influenced by Spector's Wall of Sound<ref>{{cite news|last1=Dennis|first1=Jon|title=10 of the best: Scott Walker|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2014/mar/05/10-of-the-best-scott-walker|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=March 5, 2014|access-date=December 18, 2016|archive-date=August 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822111900/https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2014/mar/05/10-of-the-best-scott-walker|url-status=live}}</ref>]]

After [[Sonny Bono]] was fired from Philles Records, he signed up with [[Atlantic Records]] and recruited some of Spector's colleagues to create "[[I Got You Babe]]" (which went to No. 1 on ''Billboard'' Hot 100) and "[[Baby Don't Go]]" (No. 8), both of which featured elements of the Wall of Sound, among other songs.<ref name="ribowsky2">{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00mark |url-access=registration |title=He's a Rebel: Phil Spector--Rock and Roll's Legendary Producer|author= Mark Ribowsky |page=[https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00mark/page/179 179] |publisher= Cooper Square Press|date=2 May 2000 |isbn=9781461661030 }}</ref> Similarly, when the Righteous Brothers ended their relationship with Spector and signed with [[Verve Records|Verve]]/[[MGM Records]] in 1966, they released "[[(You're My) Soul and Inspiration]]", which Medley produced using this approach<ref name="ribowsky">{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00mark |url-access=registration |title=He's a Rebel: Phil Spector--Rock and Roll's Legendary Producer|author= Mark Ribowsky |pages=[https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00mark/page/211 211]–[https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00mark/page/213 213] |publisher= Cooper Square Press|date=2 May 2000 |isbn=9781461661030 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vyyVGNycEA0C&pg=PT139 |title=Phil Spector: Out Of His Head|author= Richard Williams |publisher= Omnibus Press |edition= Revised |date=November 17, 2009 |isbn=9780857120564 }}</ref> and also reached No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and stayed at the top for three weeks.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00mark |url-access=registration |title=He's a Rebel: Phil Spector--Rock and Roll's Legendary Producer|author= Mark Ribowsky |pages=[https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00mark/page/213 213] |publisher=  Cooper Square Press|date=2 May 2000 |isbn=9781461661030 }}</ref>

One of the earliest persons outside of Spector's talent pool to adopt the Wall of Sound approach was British producer [[Johnny Franz]], specifically his work with [[Dusty Springfield]] and [[the Walker Brothers]], with songs such as "[[I Only Want to Be with You]]" and "[[You Don't Have to Say You Love Me]]" for the former and "[[Make It Easy On Yourself]]" and "[[The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)]]" for the latter (both of which were No. 1 hits in the United Kingdom).

Another was the productions of [[Shadow Morton]], such as his work with [[the Shangri-Las]], one of which, "[[Leader of the Pack]]", went to No. 1 in the United States.<ref name="Joel">{{cite web |title=Remember (Walking in the Sand) by The Shangri-Las |url=https://www.songfacts.com/facts/the-shangri-las/remember-walking-in-the-sand |website=www.songfacts.com |access-date=21 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Breihan |first1=Tom |title=The Number Ones: The Shangri-Las' "Leader Of The Pack" |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2004443/the-number-ones-the-shangri-las-leader-of-the-pack/columns/the-number-ones/ |website=Stereogum |access-date=21 January 2022 |language=en |date=5 July 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Lifton |first1=Dave |title=Shadow Morton, Legendary Producer, Dead at 72 |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/shadow-morton-dead-at-72/ |website=Ultimate Classic Rock |access-date=21 January 2022 |language=en |date=15 February 2013}}</ref> According to [[Billy Joel]] (who played piano in another Shangri-Las song, "[[Remember (Walking in the Sand)]]"), Morton aspired to become the Phil Spector of the East Coast.<ref name="Joel" />

Another prominent example that reached the top of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 was [[Simon and Garfunkel|Simon and Garfunkel's]] "[[Bridge over Troubled Water (song)|Bridge over Troubled Water]]", which utilized the Wall of Sound with great effect towards the end, with the help of the Wrecking Crew. The production was modeled on the Righteous Brothers' version of "[[Old Man River (song)|Old Man River]]",<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.artgarfunkel.com/articles/talks.html|publisher=Art Garfunkel Official Website|title=Across America Promotional CD Interview With Art|access-date=August 15, 2012|archive-date=July 16, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120716065125/http://www.artgarfunkel.com/articles/talks.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Art Garfunkel]] has explicitly compared it to the Spector-produced "Let It Be".<ref>{{cite book|last=Browne|first=David|title=Fire and Rain: The Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor, CSNY, and the Lost Story of 1970|publisher=Da Capo Press|year=2012|isbn=978-0-306-82072-4|url=https://archive.org/details/firerainbeatless00brow|url-access=registration}}</ref> Spector's work with the Righteous Brothers also influenced the R&B band [[Checkmates, Ltd.]], with songs such as "I Can Hear the Rain", "Please Don't Take My World Away", and "Walk in the Sunlight".<ref>{{cite web |title=Checkmates {{!}} Soul Express |url=https://www.soulexpress.net/checkmates_part1.htm |website=www.soulexpress.net |access-date=29 June 2022}}</ref> It was because of such experiments that their manager sought to secure Spector's involvement for their second album, ''[[Love Is All We Have to Give]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Checkmates Ltd Part 2 {{!}} Soul Express |url=https://www.soulexpress.net/checkmates_part2.htm |website=www.soulexpress.net |access-date=29 June 2022}}</ref>

In 1973, British band [[Wizzard]] revived the Wall of Sound in three of their hits "[[See My Baby Jive]]", "[[Angel Fingers]]" and "[[I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday]]".{{sfn|Williams|2003|pp=29–30}} "See My Baby Jive" later influenced [[ABBA]]'s song "[[Waterloo (ABBA song)|Waterloo]]".

ABBA also utilized the technique for songs starting with "[[People Need Love]]" and fully realized with songs such as "[[Ring Ring (ABBA song)|Ring Ring]]", "[[Waterloo (ABBA song)|Waterloo]]", and "[[Dancing Queen]]"; prior to recording "Ring Ring", engineer [[Michael B. Tretow]] had read [[Richard Williams (journalist)|Richard Williams]]' book ''Out of His Head: The Sound of Phil Spector'', which inspired him to layer multiple instrumental [[Overdubbing|overdubs]] on the band's recordings to simulate an orchestra, becoming an integral part of ABBA's sound.<ref name=salon>{{cite web |url=https://www.salon.com/2018/03/31/the-year-abba-channeled-phil-spector-and-conquered-the-world/ |title=The Year Abba channeled Phil Spector and conquered the world |last=Vincentelli |first=Elisabeth |date=31 March 2018 |website=[[Salon (website)|Salon]] |access-date=1 April 2018}}</ref> [[Bruce Springsteen]] also emulated the Wall of Sound in his album ''[[Born to Run]]'', starting with [[Born to Run (song)|the titular song]], backed by the [[E Street Band]].{{sfn|Williams|2003|pp=29–30}} The E Street Band would become famous practitioners of this method, with songs such as Ronnie Spector's cover of Billy Joel's "[[Say Goodbye to Hollywood]]" (itself conceived as a tribute to the Ronettes).

[[Jim Steinman]]<ref name=Rolling>{{cite magazine |last2=Browne |first2=David |last3=Greene |first3=Andy |last4=Hudak |first4=Joseph |last5=Martoccio |first5=Angie |last6=Sheffield |first6=Rob |last7=Shteamer |first7=Hank |last1=Spanos |first1=Brittany |title=From Meat Loaf to Celine Dion: 10 Essential Jim Steinman Songs |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/jim-steinman-best-songs-1158493/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=18 September 2021 |date=20 April 2021}}</ref> and [[Todd Rundgren]],<ref>{{cite web |last1=Siwek |first1=Daniel |title=Q&A with Todd Rundgren |url=https://www.musicconnection.com/todd-rundgren-the-individualist-and-the-star/ |website=Music Connection Magazine |access-date=18 September 2021 |date=27 April 2020}}</ref> composer and producer of [[Meat Loaf]]'s ''[[Bat Out of Hell]]'', respectively, utilized the Wall of Sound for the album. Steinman composed the songs based on Spector's productions as well as Wagner and Springsteen (also including the E Street Band's Roy Bittan and Max Weinberg on piano and drums, respectively), with the title track also being influenced by songs such as "Leader of the Pack". As with Brian Wilson, Steinman had aimed to create "anthems to the kind of feeling you get listening to 'Be My Baby{{'"}} for the album.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Segell |first1=Michael |title=What Makes Meat Loaf Cook |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/what-makes-meat-loaf-cook-106273/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=16 June 2022 |date=16 November 1978}}</ref> Steinman would later similarly utilize such instrumentation in his own productions for other songs, such as [[Bonnie Tyler]]'s "[[Total Eclipse of the Heart]]" (produced specifically in Spector's model), to the point that his discography ranging from [[Air Supply]] ("[[Making Love Out of Nothing at All]]") to [[Celine Dion]] ("[[It's All Coming Back to Me Now]]") has been described as an "alternate-universe Wall of Sound".<ref name=Rolling/> When asked about his involvement with Dion for songs such as "River Deep – Mountain High" in the album ''[[Falling Into You]]'', Spector denounced Steinman and other producers as "amateurs, students, and bad clones of yours truly", to which Steinman responded, "I’m thrilled to be insulted by Phil Spector. He’s my God, my idol. To be insulted by Phil Spector is a big honor. If he spits on me I consider myself purified."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Gordinier |first1=Jeff |title=Celine Dion takes on America |url=https://ew.com/article/1996/03/29/celine-dion-takes-america/ |website=EW.com |access-date=16 June 2022 |language=en |date=29 March 1996}}</ref>

[[Wagnerian rock]] derives its characterization from a merge between Spector's Wall of Sound and the operas of [[Richard Wagner]].<ref>{{cite news| last  = Crawford| first = Jeff | title = 'Old Ham' using his loaf| date  = March 3, 2004| work  = Messenger – Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| last  = Brearley| first = David |author2=Waldren, Murray |author3=Butler, Mark |author4=Shedden, Iain| title = 25 classic albums that never get played ... and the 25 good reasons why not – ROCK monuments| date  = August 9, 2003| work  = Weekend Australian}}</ref>

== Citations ==
{{reflist|20em}}

== General bibliography ==
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite book|first=Matthew|last=Bannister|title=White Boys, White Noise: Masculinities and 1980s Indie Guitar Rock|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4ckLKGTXRwQC&pg=PA38|year=2007|publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.|isbn=978-0-7546-8803-7|access-date=March 13, 2016|archive-date=July 23, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160723005300/https://books.google.com/books?id=4ckLKGTXRwQC&pg=PA38|url-status=live}}
* {{citation|last=Guthrie|first=Robin|title=Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins Talks about the Records That Changed His Life|journal=[[Melody Maker]]|date=November 6, 1993}}
* {{cite book|last=Howard|first=David N.|title=Sonic Alchemy: Visionary Music Producers and Their Maverick Recordings|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y4Sk0FNXkjcC|year=2004|publisher=Hal Leonard Corporation|isbn=978-0-634-05560-7|access-date=March 13, 2016|archive-date=May 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513001624/https://books.google.com/books?id=y4Sk0FNXkjcC|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|last=Moorefield|first=Virgil|title=The Producer as Composer: Shaping the Sounds of Popular Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PZ0R4_Oxr-4C|year=2010|publisher=MIT Press|isbn=978-0-262-51405-7|access-date=March 13, 2016|archive-date=February 10, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210193007/https://books.google.com/books?id=PZ0R4_Oxr-4C|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|last=Middleton|first=Richard|title=Studying Popular Music.|date=1989|publisher=Open University Press|location=Philadelphia|isbn=0-335-15276-7|edition=Reprint}}
* {{cite book|last=Priore|first=Domenic|author-link=Domenic Priore|title=Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson's Lost Masterpiece|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=81YIAQAAMAAJ|year=2005|publisher=Sanctuary|location=London|isbn=1-86074-627-6|access-date=March 13, 2016|archive-date=March 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160313120151/https://books.google.com/books?id=81YIAQAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|last=Ribowsky|first=Mark|title=He's a Rebel|url=https://archive.org/details/hesrebel00ribo|url-access=registration|year=1989|publisher=Dutton|isbn=978-0-525-24727-2}}
* {{cite book|last=Smith|first=Carlton|title=Reckless: Millionaire Record Producer Phil Spector and the Violent Death of Lana Clarkson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xeR-tetr45MC|year=2007|publisher=St. Martin's Press|isbn=978-1-4299-0890-0|access-date=March 13, 2016|archive-date=May 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513021137/https://books.google.com/books?id=xeR-tetr45MC|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|last=Williams|first=Richard|title=Phil Spector: Out of His Head|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a-F4AmTkYgwC|year=2003|publisher=Music Sales Group|isbn=978-0-7119-9864-3|access-date=March 13, 2016|archive-date=May 12, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160512203228/https://books.google.com/books?id=a-F4AmTkYgwC|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|last=Zak|first=Albin|title=Poetics of Rock: Cutting Tracks, Making Records|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DJM6FgvlWw0C|year=2001|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-92815-2|access-date=March 13, 2016|archive-date=May 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513013950/https://books.google.com/books?id=DJM6FgvlWw0C|url-status=live}}
{{refend}}

{{Music production}}
{{Phil Spector}}
{{Rock music}}
{{Pop music}}

[[Category:History of sound recording]]
[[Category:Music production]]
[[Category:Musical techniques]]
[[Category:Musical terminology]]
[[Category:Phil Spector]]
[[Category:Recording]]
[[Category:Sound production]]