Ronnie Spector (August 10, 1943 – January 12, 2022) – You'd Be Good For Me (1975)
Here's why an amazing disco anthem by Ronnie Spector never caught fire and remained overlooked. Spoiler alert: her ex-husband Phil had a history of sabotaging her records.
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The sixties girl group icon Ronnie Spector seemed ready to re-launch her career in 1975 as a disco diva with the amazing dancefloor anthem “You'd Be Good For Me.” But her ex-husband Phil had a history of sabotaging her records. Here's why it never caught fire and remained overlooked.
On September 6, 1975, Billboard magazine published its weekly list of recommended records. One was the latest single by Ronnie Spector, “You'd Be Good For Me,” an upbeat disco anthem with stellar backing vocals. It was the Ronettes sound updated for the disco era.
The following week, Billboard again spotlighted the single in its Club Dialog column:
"Looks like Ronnie Spector of Ronettes fame is going to have a strong disco entry on her hands w/ 'You'd Be Good For Me' on RCA-distributed Tom Cat Records."
- Billboard, 9/13/75.
The lucky ones who heard this record loved it. Promotional 12" copies intended for disco DJ's were pressed on distinctive red vinyl.
Yet it never even charted. Disco was hot in 1975 and even mediocre records were selling and becoming hits. Why not this great one?
Ronnie escaped from her oppressive life with Phil Spector in 1972 and divorced him two years later. She moved back to New York to rebuild her career. But Phil tried to stop her, including legal threats to keep her from singing her hits and denying her royalties.
In 1975, Phil Spector's connections still ran deep in the music industry. He oversaw a label in partnership with Warner Brothers and formed a similar joint venture with Polydor Records UK. More than likely, he used his clout to help stop Ronnie's new record cold.
At the time of Phil Spector's death in January 2021, Ronnie's friend and fellow singer Darlene Love said, "Everybody he touched he was trying to destroy to make his name bigger. It wasn't about his artists, ever. It was always about him, 'I'm the one that did it.'"
But just as Ronnie overcame her abusive marriage to Phil, she didn't let the lack of success for “You'd Be Good For Me” stand in her way. Instead she re-emerged in the rock world, collaborating with Steven Van Zandt and touring with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. In later years she worked with Eddie Money and Joey Ramone.
After Ronnie's sad passing on January 12, 2022, “You'd Be Good For Me” was belatedly recognized in multiple tributes and obituaries as one of her most overlooked songs. Now it can be rediscovered and enjoyed like it should have been all along.
#soul #disco #Ronettes #PhilSpector #RonnieSpector