LOVE NOTES
B ORN IN 1941, Darlene Wright started singing in high school in Los Angeles She later brought gospel sass and power to Phil Spector’s Wall Of Sound with her declamatory leads on The Crystals’ 1962 smash He’s A Rebel and solo singles (Today I Met) The Boy I’m Gonna Marry and Christmas (Baby Please Come Home). At the same time, as a member of The Blossoms, she sang back-up for The Ronettes, Righteous Brothers, Elvis and more. Recording solo from 1983, she’s also appeared in musical theatre on Broadway and starred in the Lethal Weapon movie franchise. Throughout, she’s heeded the lessons a six-decade-plus career imparts. “Early on Phil Spector taught me you can’t trust everyone,” she says. “People try to cheat you out of your money, and you have to take care of your own business.”