Be My Baby: How I Survived Mascara, Miniskirts, and Madness, or My Life as a Fabulous Ronette [Deluxe Hardcover Edition with B&W and Color Photos] Hardcover – July 5, 2015

Because I had briefly met the Ronettes back in 1969 at a Beatles concert in Washington D.C., I was always curious to read a biography about the group. I knew that Veronica married Phil Spector ~ and it was a disaster. But, Veronica writes very openly and honestly about her whole life. Altho' she had every right to, she doesn't crucify Phil Spector. She just states the disaster matter-of-factly. Most of it is her personal search for acceptance in the rock music industry. She writes about all her interactions, her failures, etc. Reading this honest account, I really felt for her. I was sad she suffered so many disasters ~ when all she wanted was to be a rock star! I absolutely loved this book ~ and I think you will, too.

I hesitate to say "I love it" which five stars indicate because Ronnie Spector has led a very hard life primarily during her marriage to the erratic and eccentric Phil Spector who heaped severe emotional abuse upon her. It's fair to say that Phil Spector was a musical genius with his Wall of Sound but he was very possessive of his wife Ronnie to the extent that he kept her imprisoned in their 23 room California mansion while cutting off her singing career. He wanted her all to himself and was deathly afraid she would become involved with someone else.Ronnie, herself, hesitated to leave her insecure husband but eventually sanity prevailed with her escaping with her mother from her reclusive husband's clutches along with their three adopted children. This book is not a pleasant story to read, yet it is an interesting one. Ronnie Spector is a survivor while many of her contemporaries have passed away. Her bout with alcoholism was one she battled for many years but she eventually found a loving husband with who they had two children of their own. This updated version of her story mentions the death of her sister Estelle Bennett but gives no mention to her ex-husband Phil Spector and his conviction of murder. The book has a happy ending for Ronnie but most of the book is an emphasis on her trials and tribulations with her now-infamous husband Phil Spector.

I found this book to be engaging and enlightening. Ronnie comes across as likable, talented, and caring - and the survivor of horrible, ruthless abuse by a sick and evil man. Her perspective of the personality and behavior of Phil Spector illuminates how a person can be both brilliantly talented and a despicable human being. Lesson: just because a person is a genius - artistic, musical, scientific, whatever - doesn't mean that person qualifies as a hero.I'm very glad Ronnie was able to escape from the clutches of this terrible man, and that she chose to tell her story. Well worth reading, in my opinion. Thank you, Ronnie Spector!

I really enjoyed reading this and learning about Ronnie’s life. Well written and enjoyable.

Fans of Veronica and the fabulous Ronettes will certainly appreciate and be grateful for this biography. It is informative, captivating and towards the final sections very emotional. It says a lot about Veronica’s kind if somewhat wild heart, strength and courage to overcome a very bad case of alcoholism, and get her life back on a very deserving track to happiness. Although extended absences from singing, alcohol, and smoking took the edge off that exceptional voice of her Ronette years we can all be happy she finally got back on track. She is a great American rock and roll superstar who has helped define American culture and who’s works live on as charming delightful emotive classics with the beautiful voice of lark or better yet the happy feisty confident mocking bird. Way to go Ronnie - love and kisses!

What an easy read this was! Like most Baby Boomers, I thought Ronnie was hot and her music was hotter. Little did I know that when I saw the Ronettes perform in 1966 at JFK Stadium in Philly as an opening act to The Beatles, that she wasn't singing with the group that night. I learned in the book that her sick boyfriend and producer at the time (later her husband), Phil Spector, insisted she pass up the tour--he was incredibly insecure and didn't want her hanging out with John Lennon, who apparently had the hots for her. Why she stayed with this mentally sick man for so many years is hard to fathom. Thankfully, she is enjoying her life now with her new family. This book should be a must-read for anyone in an abusive relationship (not physical abuse, however).

I have always loved The Ronettes and Ronnie's voice was always one of the most recognizable voices in Rock history still to this day. I did have some knowledge about her career and life with Phil Spector but not to the extent of what she really went through as detailed in the book. Phil basically destroyed her career and took away many years that she could have been singing live as well as recording. Thankfully she got away from him with her sanity intact. I truly enjoyed Ronnie's recollections and stories from the Peppermint Lounge all the way through her career. She will always Be My Baby especially after seeing her live on a few occasions. Thanks Ronnie keep on going.

Ronnie's story made for compelling, if uncomfortable, reading. Being the same age, I adored her---but would have pitied her instead had I known that the beautiful child with the million dollar voice was as much victim as star. To share her experiences vicariously was to wish she could have had a "normal" life and spared the choices that she made. That she survived the sordid aspects of fame and overcame enough to tell about it was truly the biggest success story---and was due in no small part to her brave mother.

amazing book one of musics best voices

Excellent - where's part 2?

Love it

Loved reading this from start to finish. The song Be My Baby would still have to be my all-time favourite from that era. Always great to learn the personal stories of the people behind the music.

Good read. Enough details and stories to be interesting but not drawn out.