The night Ronnie Spector smuggled The Beatles into Harlem
By 1964, The Beatles couldn’t go anywhere unseen. Beatlemania had soared to new heights, blanketing them in screams and hysteria no matter how hard they tried to remain out of the spotlight. As it turns out, dominating charts and capturing the hearts of the nation wasn’t without its challenges, and sometimes, the Fab Four just wanted to be away from it all.
The Beatles’ rise to fame became as much of a burden as it was a cause for celebration. While they reaped the rewards of being the most famous band in the world, they also found it difficult to keep up with the pressure of reaching their own standards and often found themselves desiring anonymity or even just a brief moment away from the spotlight.
In early 1964, some of their major milestones included occupying both the number one and number two spots in the charts, performing to a television audience of 73 million people on The Ed Sullivan Show, and travelling around the world, singing for die-hard fans who believed they each had healing powers. As a result of the hard work they put in during this time, John Lennon later described the band as “more popular than Jesus”.
Enjoying downtime was almost non-existent for the band members. Although they could enjoy privacy from time to time, much of their lives were televised or lived with a microphone to their mouths as outlets worked tirelessly to gain a slice of The Beatles. The intensity grew so high that Lennon once made an important phone call in the hopes that he would find an out.
Dialling Ronnie Spector’s number, Lennon asked The Ronettes frontwoman if she would be able to help, explaining that The Beatles wanted to get away from the chaos and try some New York food. In response, Spector told Lennon and the gang to go uptown for something to eat in Harlem, where no one would know who they were.
Heading to Sherman’s BBQ at 1835 Amsterdam Ave, they enjoyed the indifference to their fame and got stuck in some real hearty food, embellishing the fact that, for one night only, they were just a group of friends wanting to hang out. Reality set in afterwards, however, especially for the manager of Sherman’s BBQ, who would always remember Spector as the girl who brought in The Beatles.
Throughout her life, Spector maintained a soft spot for Lennon, probably because she saw through the playful façade and understood the difficult nature of show business. “He was so nice, and his mind was really intact,” she once explained, noting the fact that he would return the favour, showing her around Carnaby Street so that she could enjoy returning to America “looking all English”.