Ellie Greenwich biography

It was a whole different thing. I'd go in, think of the background parts, and put them down myself. I learned about overdubbing. Back then they'd call me the Demo Queen. Many different publishers would hire me to record demos of other writers' songs." Greenwich eventually specialized in writing hit songs for girl groups,

penning some of the most famous female-driven hits of the decade.

Greenwich and Barry collaborated with legendary producer Phil Spector on hits such as "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "And Then He Kissed Me" for The Crystals and "Be My Baby" for The Ronettes. When asked which of her countless hits were most memorable, Greenwich replied, "I would say dear to my heart where it affected me in a very incredible way was definitely '(Today I Met) The Boy I'm Gonna Marry' [by Darlene Love]. I was hysterical when it first came out. 'Be My Baby' was an interesting story because Phil had recorded a couple of things that we had written for the Ronettes. And I preferred 'Why Don't They Let Us Fall In Love' to 'Be My Baby.' So when Phil went back to California… and said 'Be My Baby' was gonna be it, I… was so disappointed. Is that hysterical? And you know what's happened to me… back then I was just doing what I was doing. I was young, it was exciting, and I cried when I heard my songs on the radio. But I don't think it was until many years later—when I see how the songs have lived on—that I really understood. When I hear 'Be My Baby' now—when I hear that "Boom! Ch-chik! Boom!" intro—I get goose bumps. I really do."

In 1964, Leiber and Stoller left the Brill Building to form Red Bird Records, taking Greenwich and Barry along as fellow songwriters. The combined talent and drive of Leiber, Stoller, Greenwich, Barry, and producer George "Shadow" Morton virtually defined the dominant girl-group sound of the era. In the mid-1960s, Greenwich wrote much of her greatest material, records such as "River Deep, Mountain High" for Tina Turner and a remake of "Chapel of Love" for The Dixie Cups (originally performed by the Ronettes). It was also during this time that Greenwich penned her most famous song, "Leader of the Pack," which she and Barry co-wrote for The Shangri-Las. To this day, it remains her most enduring hit.

In 1965, Barry and Greenwich recorded their own song, "Our Love Can Still Be Saved," which won decent airplay. But the song's title said it all: Their marriage was on the rocks and by the end of the year, the couple divorced. They continued to work together for several years after the breakup, but by the end of the decade their songwriting partnership had dissolved like their marriage had done earlier. Ellie Greenwich struck out on her own.

The late 1960s and 1970s were a time of creative and artistic expansion for Greenwich, as she furthered her career as a producer at a time when female producers were scarce. She wrote Clio Award-winning jingles for TV commercials and theme songs for television shows like The Hardy Boys, even while singing in demo sessions and arranging vocals for artists such as Dusty Springfield, Ella Fitzgerald, Leslie Gore, Aretha Franklin, and Frank Sinatra.