The originator of the Wall of Sound production technique, Spector was a pioneer of the 1960s girl group sound (The Ronettes and The Crystals a.o.) and produced over twenty-five Top 40 hits between 1960 and 1965 alone. After this initial success, Spector later worked with artists including Ike and Tina Turner, John Lennon, George Harrison, and the Ramones with similar acclaim.
He produced the Beatles' Academy Award-winning album Let It Be, and the Grammy Award-winning Concert for Bangladesh by former Beatle George Harrison. In 1989, Spector was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer. The 1965 song You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin', produced and co-written by Spector for The Righteous Brothers, is listed by BMI as the song with the most U.S. airplay in the 20th century.
Dubbed the "First Tycoon of Teen", Spector's records helped engender the role of the studio as an instrument, the integration of pop art aesthetics into music (art pop), and the art rock genre. His multi-artist compilation album "A Christmas Gift for You from Philles Records" (1963) is widely considered to be the finest Christmas record of all time. Spector's honors include the 1973 Grammy Award for Album of the Year for co-producing Harrison's Concert for Bangladesh (1971), a 1989 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and a 1997 induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Spector number 63 on their list of the greatest artists in history.
The 2003 shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson in his Alhambra, California home led to his being charged with murder in the second degree. After a 2007 mistrial, he was convicted in 2009 and given a prison sentence of 19 years to life. Spector died in prison due to complications of the COVID-19 virus.
Uptown
Phil Spector Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And he goes downtown
Where everyone's his boss
And he's lost in an angry land
He's a little man
But then he comes uptown
Each ev'nin' to my tenement
To pay much rent
And when he's there with me
He can see that he's everything
Then he's tall, he don't crawl
He's a king
Downtown he's just one of a million guys
He don't get no breaks
And he takes all they got to give
'Cause he's got to live
But then he comes uptown
Where he can hold his head up high
Uptown he knows that I am standing by
And when I take his hand
There's no man who could put him down
The world is sweet
It's at his feet when he's uptown
Whoa oh oh oh, oh oh oh
Yeah yeah, yeah yeah, yeah yeah yeah
Let me tell ya now
Uptown where he can hold his head up high
Uptown he knows that I am standing by
And when I take his hand
There's no man who could put him down
The world is sweet, it's at his feet
When he's uptown
Whoa oh oh oh, oh oh oh
Yeah yeah, yeah yeah, yeah yeah yeah
Let me tell ya now, uptown
The lyrics to Phil Spector's "Uptown" speak to the experience of a man who feels beaten down by life in the city. The first verse describes how he wakes up each day and goes downtown, where he feels like just another face in the crowd. He's stuck working for people who don't appreciate him, and he feels lost in the "angry land" of the city. However, the chorus of the song reveals a different side to this man. When he comes uptown in the evenings to visit the singer, he's able to relax and feel like a king. Here, he's not just a little man lost in the crowd - he's a confident, capable human being who is capable of achieving great things.
Essentially, the lyrics of "Uptown" are about the transformative power of love and the importance of community. The man in the song is able to find a sense of belonging and purpose when he's in the singer's company, and the world looks much brighter and sweeter from that vantage point.
Overall, "Uptown" is a song that speaks to the enduring human desire for connection and meaning, and it does so in a way that is catchy and vibrant.
Line by Line Meaning
He gets up each morning
Every morning, he wakes up from his sleep
And he goes downtown
He visits a place where there are many people
Where everyone's his boss
In that place, every person he meets is superior to him
And he's lost in an angry land
He feels like he's in a place full of frustration
He's a little man
He's not significant in that environment
But then he comes uptown
Later, he goes to a different place
Each ev'nin' to my tenement
Every night, he comes to my residential building
Uptown where folks don't have
It's an area where people do not have to spend a lot of money
To pay much rent
In that neighborhood, rent is affordable
And when he's there with me
When he's in my company
He can see that he's everything
He realizes his self-worth
Then he's tall, he don't crawl
He becomes assertive and confident
He's a king
He feels powerful and in control
Downtown he's just one of a million guys
In the other location, he's insignificant and unimportant
He don't get no breaks
He produces little result from his efforts
And he takes all they got to give
He accepts everything people offer him
'Cause he's got to live
He needs to make a living to survive
Where he can hold his head up high
In uptown, he can feel confident
Uptown he knows that I am standing by
He's aware that I'm there for him when he needs me
And when I take his hand
When I hold his hand
There's no man who could put him down
Then he feels invincible and not afraid of anyone
The world is sweet
The world seems pleasant and lovely
It's at his feet when he's uptown
He feels like he's on top of the world when in uptown
Whoa oh oh oh, oh oh oh
Vocalization interlude
Yeah yeah, yeah yeah, yeah yeah yeah
Vocalization interlude with more emphasis
Let me tell ya now
An introduction to additional information
Uptown where he can hold his head up high
Uptown is a place where he can feel confident in himself
Uptown he knows that I am standing by
He's aware that I'm there for him in uptown
And when I take his hand
When I hold his hand
There's no man who could put him down
No person can make him feel inferior when I'm with him
The world is sweet, it's at his feet
The world seems lovely and magnificent under his feet
When he's uptown
He feels confident, powerful, and in control when he is in uptown
Whoa oh oh oh, oh oh oh
Vocalization interlude
Yeah yeah, yeah yeah, yeah yeah yeah
Vocalization interlude with more emphasis
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BARRY MANN, CYNTHIA WEIL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
greyhound7815
Heard this one in Fall 1991 on the radio when I was then 15. A very good group from the early 1960's. Have no problem listening to the Crystals. Better than today's trash.
Kevin Reffitt
Oh, I forgot to say this is probably the most intriguing Spector production ever created.
Brutha Dnubian
The first Crystals hit from early 1962.....what a GEM.
Tony Russi
this was their 2nd hit "Theres' No Other(Like My Baby)" their first record hit #20 on the HOT 100.Barbara Alston is the lead-singer of the first 2 hits.
Gregory Fitzpatrick
a masterpiece ..1962 !!! ..so much DNA from these sessions made it's way into The Beatles and The Beach Boys ..fab period in American music
Train's a'comin'
great observation
jennifur sun
the Wrecking Crew again
Brutha Dnubian
Fell in love with this song as a teenager some 30years ago. It has a haunting and mysterious sound. Back then i didnt appreciate the meaning of the lyrics but i sure do now.
Denny M
Possibly the very first ong that I believe subtly addresses the issue of social/racial injustice. Uptown being a metaphor for Harlem in New York where Spector and most if not all of his artists lived. I was fortunate to have once met him at a recording session in LA. I wouldn't go as far as to say he was friendly but In my mind he is nothing less than a musical genius. His music completely innovative at the changed pop music forever.
San2507
You’re right.
The song talks about the difficult part of that life. But when you put a little bit of a love history and context there you can make a great hit.