I have a burned audio CD that I'm trying to rip using iTunes on a recent vintage iMac (with a slot loading SuperDrive).
I was able to import about two-thirds of the tracks before the inserted disc started spinning more noisily in the drive. (eventually sounded like very fast consecutive "swoosh"ing noises.) This spinning got gradually slower until it stopped altogether, and the progress of the import matched this slowdown and halt. At this point, you can hear the laser head seeking back and forth, but as the disc isn't spinning, no data is read.
After stopping the import of the CD and ejecting it, the drive rejects the disk outright upon reinsertion. What could be causing this behavior? Is it possible for burned CDs to break down, or for data read from the disc to cause the drive to spin down?