60s Singer Ronni Spector Dies at 78

Ruthanne

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Ronni Spector Link click here

NEW YORK (AP) — Ronnie Spector, the cat-eyed, bee-hived rock ‘n’ roll siren who sang such 1960s hits as “Be My Baby,” “Baby I Love You” and “Walking in the Rain” as the leader of the girl group The Ronettes, has died. She was 78.

Spector died Wednesday after a brief battle with cancer, her family said. “Ronnie lived her life with a twinkle in her eye, a spunky attitude, a wicked sense of humor and a smile on her face. She was filled with love and gratitude,” a statement said. No other details were revealed.

Tributes flooded social media, with Stevie Van Zandt saying it was an honor to produce her, to Brian Wilson, who wrote on Twitter: “I loved her voice so much and she was a very special person and a dear friend.” Diane Warren called her “The voice of a million teenage dreams including mine.”

The Ronettes’ sexy look and powerful voices — plus songwriting and producing help from Phil Spector — turned them into one of the premier acts of the girl-group era, touring England with The Rolling Stones and befriending the Beatles.

Spector, alongside her sister Estelle Bennett and cousin Nedra Talley, scored hits with pop masterpieces like “Baby, I Love You,” “Walking in the Rain,” “I Can Hear Music” and “Be My Baby,” which was co-written by Spector, Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich.

“We weren’t afraid to be hot. That was our gimmick,” Spector said in her memoir. “When we saw The Shirelles walk on stage with their wide party dresses, we went in the opposite direction and squeezed our bodies into the tightest skirts we could find. Then we’d get out on stage and hike them up to show our legs even more.”
 

Eddie Money, "Just like Ronnie said: Be my little Baby", Take me home tonight".

"Baby I love you" also covered by Andy Kim, Jeff Barry's song writing partner with the Archies. They wrote 3 top 40 Billboard hits for them.

Ellie GreenwIch was Jeff Barry's wife at that time, Ellie was a great Lyricist, who came up with the words, "Doo wah diddy".

Edited, changed song titles, wrong one.

 
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[Pepper! You're from Brooklyn? Cool!]

Unlike Pepper, we didn't get many big rock-n-roll shows in Podunk, West Virginia but I loved Ronnie and danced wildly to her records at all the school parties.

I read her memoir and what a life she had, toured in England with the Beatles, had a fling with John, married crazy-controlling Phil Spector and survived it, and kept her sense of humor all her life.
 
When I was about 8 we would sneak into a local swimming pool/picnic place called "Blackberry Farm". They had loud speakers that played the Ronettes and the top 40 hits. I have vivid memories of the suntan lotion smells and all the pretty girls sunbathing, the chlorinated pool and raiding the picnic areas when people had left. I wood run through a plum orchard barefoot and ready to swim. There was a hole in the chain link fence that opened to a big tree with a lot of cover. Sometimes we would run into a couple making out there. That frightened us, so we beelined back home. (We also paid to get in too.) :)


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