Throwbacks: The Ronettes - Be My Baby

In August 1963, a four-beat drum intro changed American pop music forever. Recorded at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, "Be My Baby" opens with Hal Blaine hitting a kick-kick-snare pattern that has since been borrowed by everyone from the Jesus and Mary Chain to Billy Joel.

But the heart of the record belongs to Ronnie Bennett (later Spector). Her lead vocal is a masterclass in yearning, sliding effortlessly from tough-girl confidence to tender vulnerability with her signature "whoa-oh-oh-oh." Behind her, producer Phil Spector, along with co-writers Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, constructed his ultimate "Wall of Sound." It wasn't just loud; it was dense—a meticulously stacked army of acoustic guitars, multiple pianos, castanets, and a backing choir that included a young Cher. The result was a symphonic teenage drama that felt as vast as the Grand Canyon. Brian Wilson famously became so obsessed with the single's sonic architecture that he would pull his car over to listen to it, eventually writing "Don't Worry Baby" as a direct response. Sixty years later, that opening drum beat still sounds like a heartbeat.