Loss on top of loss: Ellie Greenwich, the pioneering femalesongwriter who wrote some of the most flat out brilliant songs of the1960s, including "Be My Baby," "And Then He Kissed Me," "Da Doo RonRon," "River Deep, Mountain High," and "Leader of the Pack," died thismorning at the age of 69. Brooklyn born, Long Island raised, Greenwichreleased her first record at the age of 17, and got her start as asongwriter in the Brill Building, where Jerry Leiber initially mistookher for Carole King.
Afterwriting "(Today I Met) The Boy I'm Gonna Marry" and "Why Do LoversBreak Each Others' Hearts?" with Tony Powers and Phil Spector,Greenwich married Jeff Barry in 1962. The Greenwich-Barry team had,within a year, written "Be My Baby" and "Baby, I Love You," asperformed by the Ronettes and "Then He Kissed Me" and "Da Doo Ron Ron,"as performed by the Crystals. Phil Spector co-wrote and produced allfour songs. The next year, Greenwich and Barry teamed with theShangri-Las mastermind George 'Shadow' Morton to pen "Leader of thePack," still one of the most stunning, bizarre, and creative songs inthe history of pop music.
Barry and Greenwich would go on to divorce, but they continued towork together. Before the decade was out they'd discovered Neil Diamondand written "I Can Hear Music" for the Ronettes and "River Deep,Mountain High," for Ike and Tina Turner. In late '60s and early '70s,Greenwich released two solo albums and sang background on countlessothers, working with Sinatra, Dusty Springfield, and Bobby Darin. In aneat bit of trivia, she wrote "Right Track Wrong Train with CyndiLauper in 1983, a record that became the B-side to "Girls Just WannaHave Fun." A Broadway show, 1984's Leader of the Pack,memorialized her life and music, and in 1991, she was inducted into theSongwriters Hall of Fame. Her total body of work is at once one of themost appealing and also, at times, avant garde in all of pop music. Shedeserves a bit of your time today.
I just saw this online.
https://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/archives/2009/08/rip_ellie_green.php
Loss on top of loss: Ellie Greenwich, the pioneering femalesongwriter who wrote some of the most flat out brilliant songs of the1960s, including "Be My Baby," "And Then He Kissed Me," "Da Doo RonRon," "River Deep, Mountain High," and "Leader of the Pack," died thismorning at the age of 69. Brooklyn born, Long Island raised, Greenwichreleased her first record at the age of 17, and got her start as asongwriter in the Brill Building, where Jerry Leiber initially mistookher for Carole King.
Afterwriting "(Today I Met) The Boy I'm Gonna Marry" and "Why Do LoversBreak Each Others' Hearts?" with Tony Powers and Phil Spector,Greenwich married Jeff Barry in 1962. The Greenwich-Barry team had,within a year, written "Be My Baby" and "Baby, I Love You," asperformed by the Ronettes and "Then He Kissed Me" and "Da Doo Ron Ron,"as performed by the Crystals. Phil Spector co-wrote and produced allfour songs. The next year, Greenwich and Barry teamed with theShangri-Las mastermind George 'Shadow' Morton to pen "Leader of thePack," still one of the most stunning, bizarre, and creative songs inthe history of pop music.
Barry and Greenwich would go on to divorce, but they continued towork together. Before the decade was out they'd discovered Neil Diamondand written "I Can Hear Music" for the Ronettes and "River Deep,Mountain High," for Ike and Tina Turner. In late '60s and early '70s,Greenwich released two solo albums and sang background on countlessothers, working with Sinatra, Dusty Springfield, and Bobby Darin. In aneat bit of trivia, she wrote "Right Track Wrong Train with CyndiLauper in 1983, a record that became the B-side to "Girls Just WannaHave Fun." A Broadway show, 1984's Leader of the Pack,memorialized her life and music, and in 1991, she was inducted into theSongwriters Hall of Fame. Her total body of work is at once one of themost appealing and also, at times, avant garde in all of pop music. Shedeserves a bit of your time today.