Ronnie Spector: Be My Baby singer of The Ronettes dies at 78

Ronnie Spector, the trail-blazing lead singer of the 1960s all-girl group the Ronettes, has died.

The pop star found fame with hits such as Be My Baby, Baby I Love You and Walking in the Rain.

A statement from her family said she passed away at age 78 "after a brief battle with cancer".

"Ronnie lived her life with a twinkle in her eye, a spunky attitude, a wicked sense of humour and a smile on her face," the statement said.

"She was filled with love and gratitude. Her joyful sound, playful nature and magical presence will live on in all who knew, heard or saw her."

Born in 1943 in Manhattan as Veronica Yvette Bennett, she shot to fame aged just 18 while performing with her older sister and cousin.

With their beehive hairstyles and liberal use of mascara, the multi-racial group caught the attention of record producers while performing in New York clubs.

In 1968, she wed Phil Spector, who pioneered the "wall of sound" recording technique. They were married for six years and adopted three children before their divorce.

It was under him that the group recorded smash hits like Be My Baby, Walking In The Rain and Baby I Love You.

But he was violent and abusive. In her memoir, Spector wrote that Phil kept a coffin in the basement of their house to let the singer know that he would kill her if she left him. In 1972, she escaped their house barefoot.

The Ronnettes later sued the producer for unpaid royalties. He died in prison in 2021 while serving a murder sentence.

The Ronettes' bad-girl personas are credited with paving the way for future female musical artists.

"We weren't afraid to be hot. That was our gimmick," Spector wrote in her memoir in 2004, titled Be My Baby: How I Survived Mascara, Miniskirts, and Madness.

"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."

But it wasn't just their outfits. Spector's voice - full of yearning, tenderness and toughness - was a revelation, with a street-wise spirit other girl groups lacked.

The huge sound of Be My Baby stopped other musicians in their tracks.

"I was driving [the first time I heard it], and I had to pull over to the side of the road - it blew my mind," said the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson in 2013.

"I felt like I wanted to try to do something as good as that song, and I never did. I've stopped trying. It's the greatest record ever produced. No one will ever top that one."

The group's only album, Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica, was released in 1964 by Philles Records.

It contained standards like Chapel of Love, I Wonder and a cover of Ray Charles' What'd I Say; and five of its 12 songs have made it to the US Billboard charts.

Be My Baby also made the UK's top five, and Spector's vocal style influenced everyone from The Rolling Stones to The Beatles. The latter hand-picked The Ronettes to join their US tour in 1966 but a jealous Phil Spector wouldn't let Ronnie go, and the band played the dates without her.

After escaping her abusive marriage, the singer recorded a cover of Billy Joel's Say Goodbye to Hollywood with Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band; and was introduced to a new generation of fans when she contributed vocals to Eddie Money's Take Me Home Tonight in 1986.

Be My Baby was also used in the opening sequence of films Dirty Dancing and Martin Scorsese's 1973 Mean Streets; and The Ronettes were inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.

Spector's final record was 2016's English Heart, in which she covered classics by her 1960s contemporaries, including The Kinks' Tired Of Waiting and Nina Simone's Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood.

"Every song is a little piece of my life," she said in 2007. "I'm just a girl from the ghetto who wanted to sing."

By Mark Savage, BBC Music Correspondent

Ronnie Spector had one of the greatest voices in pop.

Sweet but sharp, strong but vulnerable, she could capture the giddy highs and the desperate yearning of teenage love in one vocal run. When she first sang Be My Baby in an LA recording studio, the session musicians dropped their instruments and stared at her in awe. Phil Spector said she was "the final brick" in his Wall Of Sound.

Ultimately, the producer's jealousy and abuse ended her chart career, but she continued to record music into her 70s - and her vocal power remained undimmed. Here are some of her greatest performances.

1) Be My Baby (1963)

Aged just 16, Ronnie Spector rehearsed this song for weeks, but that didn't stop Phil Spector insisting on 42 takes in the studio before he was satisfied. Maybe that adds to the desperation in her voice as she pleads, "won't you be my baby?" - but there's also a strength and determination that could only have come from Ronnie.

2) Baby, I Love You (1963)

In the follow-up to Be My Baby, Ronnie has got her man and the hormonal rush of young love has never sounded more thrilling. Bruce Springsteen once described the song as "the sound of universes colliding".

3) Try Some, Buy Some (1971)

The Beatles effectively killed off the girl group craze in the US - but George Harrison tried to make up for it by gifting Spector this off-cut from his All Things Must Pass album. A story of religious epiphany, Spector imbues it with requisite drama, as choirs soar and mandolins flutter around her. It's also worth checking out the brilliantly daft b-side, Tandoori Chicken, a tribute to the delights of an Indian takeaway.

4) Say Goodbye To Hollywood (1977)

After the end of her marriage, Spector was coaxed back into the studio by Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, who made no secret of their love of The Ronettes' sound. Together, they recorded a cover of Billy Joel's Say Goodbye to Hollywood - and from the moment Clarence Clemons' saxophone heralds her return, Spector sounds revitalised.

5) How Can You Mend A Broken Heart (2016)

On her last album, Spector gave a soulful and moving rendition of the Bee Gees' How Can You Mend A Broken Heart? After recording the track, she "went in the ladies' room and cried my eyes out ," she told Rolling Stone. "Because that song is about my life, you know? My heart's been broken so many times. I mean, I was in lawsuits over royalties with my ex for 20 years. It took away a lot of the things I really wanted to do."

Tributes to the star have flooded in since her death was announced on Wednesday night.

"She had the most unique voice," said her friend and Crystals singer, La La Brooks.

"Fans should know, when Ronnie hit the stage, she was the most happiest."

Songwriter Diane Warren, who had been working with Spector on a planned biopic, wrote on Instagram: "Ronnie Spector was the voice of a million teenage dreams including mine. The voice that turned pop songs into pop symphonies.

"There are just too many greats leaving us right now. Sing in power forever Ronnie. Make the angels feel like teenagers again."

"I loved her voice so much and she was a very special person and a dear friend," wrote Brian Wilson on Twitter. "This just breaks my heart. Ronnie's music and spirit will live forever."

Joan Jett said: "She was the sweetest person you could ever know. And her mark on rock and roll is indelible."

"This totally blows," said Go-Go's bassist Kathy Valentine. "Thank you for the music, for being so freaking cool."