Tearing Down the Wall of Sound [by Mick Brown]

TEARING DOWN THE WALL OF SOUND by Mick Brown (unabridged) is presented by Blackstone Audio and comes with what is perhaps the best audiobook app available (see FEATURES, below).

Phil Spector, born in the Bronx in 1940, grew up an outsider despised by his peers. Yet after his family moved to California, he learned everything he could about music, formed a band, and had a number-one hit with "To Know Him Is to Love Him.” He quickly became the top producer of early rock and roll, originator of such girl groups as the Ronettes, a millionaire by twenty-one, owner of his own label by twenty-two. Hit followed hit, and for all of them he used a new technique called the “wall of sound.”

But the reign of the boy-man who owned pop culture seemed doomed by the “British Invasion,” and he spiraled into paranoid isolation and peculiar behavior. Though he seemed to improve for a time, even returning to the recording studio to work, it didn’t last, and in 2003, the actress Lana Clarkson was found at his home, dead by gunshot.

Self-contained, this audiobook app is perfect for your commute, on a trip, or while relaxing. Based on a library-quality recording, this app was built especially for your iPhone and iPod Touch. No unreadable text, no endless scrolling on a tiny screen. The audio is of higher-than-normal quality, making for a great listening experience that will not tire your ears or grate on your nerves.

NOTICE: This app includes the exact same 5-star recording offered elsewhere at much higher prices. It was professionally recorded by Blackstone Audio’s Earphones® Award-winning narrator, Ray Porter. You are not buying yet another amateur or volunteer narration. No clicks, background noises, throat clearing, mispronunciations, tinny voices or monotones will be found here.

• EXPERIENCE. About 18 hours of narration. Created as a Folium enhancedAudio™ edition, this book includes extra functions and features not found on lesser players.

• PLAYER CONTROLS. Includes listen (play), pause, multi-speed fast forward/reverse, jump ahead/back, chapter skip, volume control, one-touch chapter- and bookmark browser. There is also a “scrub” bar that finds any point inside the chapter with just a tap.

• SLEEP TIMER. Have you ever fallen asleep watching TV or listening to a book? If so, youll love this feature. Once set, the book will stop, place a bookmark, and allow you to jump back to where you probably began dozing.

• CLEAR & ELEGANT DESIGN. Simple, clean, intuitive, and smarter than average.

• CHAPTER TIMINGS. Always know how much time it will take to finish a chapter. Plus, the progress bar at the top of the screen shows how far into the book you’ve come.

• OFFLINE LISTENING. You are airplane-ready! Once downloaded, listen uninterrupted without threat from a lost network connection. Downloads are usually just 5-10 minutes, but depend upon your network speed.

• AUTO-BOOKMARKING. The player remembers where you stopped listening and returns to that exact spot when you open the book again.

• TELL-A-FRIEND. An easy way to recommend the book to your friends or Twitter feed.

• FEEDBACK. Share your ideas for books, functions, and features. We are very responsive to our listeners and appreciate all feedback and ideas.


RATING: Suitable for adults who enjoy tragic biographies of musicians or histories of the music industry.

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“Browns passionate, über-detailed study of pops scariest visionary is just about as good as a music bio can get.” (Kirkus Reviews)

“[Phil Spector’s] story is spectacularly captured in Ray Porter’s narration…making the more bizarre and chilling passages even more so.” (AudioFile)

"[A] rare and wonderful mix of dogged research and vivid storytelling. Virtually every page carries a tale of farce or horror, or, more often than not, both." (Mail on Sunday)