"Be My Baby" is a 1963 single written by Phil Spector, Jeff Barry, and Ellie Greenwich, performed by the Ronettes and produced by Spector. When released as a single, the song reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard Pop Singles Chart and #4 on the UK's Record Retailer. "Be My Baby" also peaked at number four on the R&B chart ^[1].

As sung by The Ronettes the song is #22 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.^[2] In 1999 it was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame, and in 2006, the Library of Congress honored their version by adding it to the United States National Recording Registry.

Often cited as the ultimate embodiment of Spector's Wall of Sound, "Be My Baby" is one of the best-known and most enduring songs of its era. Critic Jason Ankeny writes, "No less an authority than Brian Wilson has declared 'Be My Baby' the greatest pop record ever made — no arguments here."^[3]

In her autobiography, lead vocalist Ronnie Spector relates that she was on tour with Joey Dee and the Starlighters when "Be My Baby" was introduced by Dick Clark on American Bandstand as the "Record of the Century."

The drums were played by Hal Blaine.

[edit] Legacy and influence

The song has been covered many times by artists including Andy Kim (a 1970 chart hit produced by Jeff Barry), John Lennon, The Lightning Seeds, the Bay City Rollers, Blue Öyster Cult, We Are Scientists, Psyched Up Janis, Maroon 5. Glasvegas, Ivy, Linda Ronstadt, Whigfield, Ultima Thule, Jason Donovan for the album "Let It Be Me" (2008),Travis and Remi Nicole. Additionally, the opening beat has been appropriated by Asia for "Heat of the Moment", the Jesus and Mary Chain for their song "Just Like Honey", Bat For Lashes for "What's a Girl To Do?", The Pipettes for "Sex", Deerhunter for "Vox Humana", and Girls for "Ghost Mouth".

Brian Wilson considers his song "Don't Worry Baby" (performed by The Beach Boys) to be the 'male answer' to this song. In 1986, Eddie Money's "Take Me Home Tonight" included the lyrics "Just like Ronnie sang" and Ronnie Spector herself singing part of the chorus to "Be My Baby". Mutya Buena and Amy Winehouse recently recorded a derivative song "B Boy Baby" based around the chorus for Mutya's debut album Real Girl.

The song is played over the opening credits of the 1973 Martin Scorsese film, Mean Streets, and in Dirty Dancing.

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Classic Tracks: The Ronettes 'Be My Baby'