Nedra Talley Ross, the last surviving member of the 1960s “Be My Baby” girl group the Ronettes, died Sunday. She was 80.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of Nedra Talley Ross’ passing. She was a light to those who knew her and loved her,” the group’s official Instagram account said Sunday. “As a founding member of The Ronettes, along with her beloved cousins Ronnie and Estelle, Nedra’s voice, style and spirit helped define a sound that would change music. Her contribution to the group’s story and their defining influence will live forever.”
Ross’ daughter Nedra K. Ross confirmed her mother’s death to the Associated Press.
The Ronettes included Estelle Bennett, left, Veronica Bennett and Nedra Talley.
(Hulton Archive / Getty Images)
Born Nedra Talley on Jan. 27, 1946, in New York City, Ross started singing as a child and joined cousins Veronica and Estelle Bennett to form the family act the Darling Sisters. The trio later took the name Ronnie and the Relatives and finally, in 1963, they became the Ronettes. They auditioned that year for “Wall of Sound” music producer Phil Spector, who signed them to his Philles Records and had them sing backup for other artists until they put out their own music.
The group released only one album, 1964’s “Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes,” but recorded nearly 30 songs under Spector’s watch. Nine of those landed in the Billboard Hot 100, with “Baby I Love You,” “(The Best Part of) Breakin’ Up” and “Walkin’ in the Rain” among those that made the Top 40. “Be My Baby” peaked at No. 2.
They toured with the Rolling Stones when the legendary rock band was just starting and the Ronettes were the stars. They befriended the Beatles before the foursome got huge.
“They could sing all the way through a Wall of Sound,” Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones said of the Ronettes in 2007, the year they were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. “They didn’t need anything.”
“Show business is a thing that can be great, but it can be bad, too,” Ross said in the induction speech that followed. “For us, we had a family that gave us a core to help stabilize us in a very difficult crazy world. It was a fun time. I thank God truly for it.”
She said she “didn’t have any idea” at the time what the young group was giving the world.
“I didn’t know that we were setting styles for girls … but I thank every fan that kept us in their hearts and in their minds for all these years,” Ross said. “Thank you for playing the music to your children and your children’s children.”
The Ronettes disbanded in 1967 as Motown and the British Invasion were edging out singing groups and Spector’s grip on the group increased. The producer married Ronnie in 1968, but they separated in 1972 and divorced acrimoniously in 1974. Phil Spector was later convicted of second-degree murder in the 2003 death of Lana Clarkson and died in prison in 2021.
Ross in 1967 married DJ and TV personality Scott Ross, who died in 2023. She also went into Christian music, releasing the album “Full Circle” in 1978.
The three women who made up the Ronettes wound up suing Spector for $11 million for breach of contract and past and future earnings, finally winning the case in 1998. A New York court decided in 2000 that the Ronettes were owed $2.6 million in back pay from Spector for selling rights to use the group’s music in movies, TV, advertising and elsewhere in addition to the record sales specified in a 1963 contract. That judge, however, allowed the producer to keep ownership of the group’s master recordings. After being upheld by one lower court in 2001, the decision was ultimately thrown out by New York’s highest court in 2002. The women got nothing.
Ross is survived by four children.
Ronnie Spector died at 78 in 2022, and Bennett died at 67 in 2009.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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