Philip Harvey Spector was born on 26 December 1939, in The Bronx, New York USA of Jewish-Russian ancestry. Phil is a famous record producer and songwriter, perhaps most famous for his collaborations with such artists as “The Crystals”, John Lennon, Dion DiMucci, “The Ronettes”, The Righteous Brothers and many others, during a career in the music industry which began in the 50s.
Phil Spector Net Worth $100 Million
So how rich is Phil Spector? Sources have estimated that Phil’s net worth is $100 million, the main source of his wealth being his career as a record producer, during which he has influenced the music industry a lot and many artists can be thankful to him for their fame and fortune.
Phil Spector’s father committed suicide when he was 10, and the family then moved to Los Angeles. Phil was interested in music from a very young age, learned to play the guitar and participated in a talent show at Fairfax High School. Phil created a band called “The Teddy Bears” with Annette Kleinbard, Marshall Leib and Sandy Nelson. In 1958 the band recorded the song “Don’t You Worry My Little Pet” which helped them to sign a contract with “Era Records”. This was the time when Phil Spector’s net worth began growing. Despite the success the group had, they decided to disband in 1959.
Phil Spector then decided to concentrate on songwriting and becoming a producer. Hits produced by Phil became very popular and his net worth grew accordingly. In 1961 Phil with Lester Sill founded their own record company called “Philles Records”. One of their first projects produced the groups called “The Crystals” and “The Ronettes”, which became very successful. He co-wrote the Ben E. King top 10 hit “Spanish Harlem” with Jerry Leiber, and among other highlights of his 40 year career the 1965 song “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling”, produced and co-written by Spector for “The Righteous Brothers”, is listed by BMI as the song with the most US airplay in the 20th century. Phil was inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 1989, and into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1997. What is more, in 2008 he was named as the greatest record producer in music history by “The Washington Times”.
Phil’s plans for the future were shattered when in 2003 actress Lana Clarkson was found dead in his mansion, and in 2009 Phil was sentenced to 19 years to life in prison. A movie about this case was released in 2013 called “Phil Spector”.
While talking about his personal life, Phil was first married to Annette Merar. His second marriage was to Veronica Bennette (1968-74) and they adopted three children. Phil had twins with then-girlfriend Janis Zavala in the 80s. In 2006 Spector married his third wife, Rachelle Short. In the last 10 years, Phil has had health problems, including the onset of Parkinson’s disease, and that now he lost his ability to speak because of throat polyps. It is sad that this talented producer is unlikely to be able to create new hits and add more to the music industry.
