Just got Ike & Tina Turner's River Deep/Mountain High album remastered on 180 gram vinyl for the first time and I gotta say I'm not a big fan of the "wall of sound" Phil Spector was so vaunted for in the 60s. On the first song "River Deep/Mountain High" it sounds overproduced (what would be called brickwalled now--although I've heard this song many times since I was a kid LOL). The other song with a big "Wall of Sound" is a "Love Like Ours." On the other hand, "I Idolize You" sounds amazing, as does "A Fool In Love." Now, I know Ike made a deal with Phil Spector that Phil would produce some of Tina's songs on the album and Ike would do others. Gonna have to check which songs were prduced by who. Gotta say I much prefer the original "River Deep/Mountain High" on the Nutbush City Limits LP. Phil Spector was over produced on sound IMO.

Well, the only name after the awesome "I Idolize You" on the album is Ike Turner's... After a second listen, it's clear (sound wise ) who produced what track on this album. Ike's production is way better IMO than Phil Spector.

[Edited 8/22/23 15:29pm]

It had its moments. "River Deep" is a great example. Would I want a whole album of it? Definitely not, no more than I want an album full of "DMSR" or "When Doves Cry."

I think if there was a compilation of those types of songs, some by Phil, some by those who mimicked it well, then I'd be down for that.

As far as what he came up with, I think it was revolutionary at the time. It was intuitive and provocative considering the flatter mono productions that AM radio clamored for. The wall of sound had to have speakers shaking left and right.

His methods for capturing the echos and reverbs, etc., remind me a lot of when Led Zeppelin were recording in some mansion, and Bonham had set up his drums in a hallway or something, and they had placed mics near him, above him, below him, in the other room, and captured all this tile-ridden echoing. It's where big sounds like those on "Kasmir" came about. Ingenius stuff.

Hell, half the 80s wouldn't have sounded like it did except for a mistake that inadvertently created the gated reverb sound. So - these studio experiments that really turn into something big, I can fully appreciate. There's room for everyone's sound when it comes to stuff like that.