The Ronettes are no more: the last surviving member of the trio, Nedra Talley Ross, has died

Nedra Talley Ross, the last surviving original member of the Ronettes, has died at 80. The announcement came on Sunday, April 26th, through the group's official channels. Her passing definitively closes the story of the trio: Estelle Bennett died in 2009, Ronnie Spector in 2022.

In the message shared online, Nedra Talley Ross is remembered as a crucial presence in the group's identity: her voice, her style and her role in the lineup, alongside her two cousins, played a decisive part in shaping a sound destined to leave its mark on pop history.

Her musical career began in her teens alongside Bennett and Spector, between live performances and cover repertoires, going through various names — Darling Sisters, Ronnie and the Relatives — before the Ronettes were born. On several occasions she pointed to her mother, Susie Talley, as a defining figure in her artistic and personal journey, underlining the weight of family bonds even in the group's cohesion.

After a first, largely fruitless contract with Colpix Records in 1961, the turning point came in 1963 with her signing to Philles Records and her meeting with producer Phil Spector. It was Spector who oversaw the making of “Be My Baby”, the single that reached number two on the US charts and became the group's signature song.

The Ronettes released just one studio album, “Presenting The Fabulous Ronettes” (1964), cementing their success with singles like “Baby I Love You,” “(The Best Part Of) Breaking Up,” “Do I Love You” and “Walking In The Rain.” The group split in 1967, after a European tour, against a backdrop also marked by Spector's increasingly rigid control.

Afterwards, Nedra Talley Ross chose to step away from the project to focus on Christian music, later pursuing a solo career. In the years that followed, the Ronettes were engaged in a long legal battle against Phil Spector over unpaid royalties, which ended in 2000 with a ruling awarding them $2.6 million in damages.

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