Ronettes ( The ) - Baby, I Love You

First performance: 04/11/1976

Coverinfo

Bruce performed the song 5 times:
 
The song featured a guest appearance by Ronnie Spector. She sang vocals and was backed by Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.
 
1976-11-04 - PALLADIUM, NY
Final show of a six-night run in New York City.  Carl D'Errico (co-writer of "It's My Life") is in the audience and Bruce delivers one of his finest-ever performances of the song. A stunning cover of The Animals' "We Gotta Get Out Of This Place" is also featured, and to top it all off Ronnie Spector guests on three of her most famous Ronettes-era hits, all given inspired arrangements by the E Street Band. A pre-show bomb hoax results in Bruce jokingly asking the audience to look under their seats. 
 
1977-02-17 - RICHFIELD COLISEUM, RICHFIELD
Magical show, with Ronnie Spector, along with Flo and Eddie, as unadvertised guests on four songs; three classics from her Ronettes period plus her about-to-be-released single "Say Goodbye To Hollywood", the studio version of which had been recorded with Bruce & The E Street Band just a few weeks earlier (with Miami Steve producing). 
 
Two concerts tonight were originally scheduled (along with the two shows the following night) as regular Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes gigs. However Southside became ill (suffering from a recurring throat ailment) and couldn't perform so Steven Van Zandt came to the rescue by organizing The Asbury Park All-Star Revue - a combination of The Asbury Jukes, The E Street Band, Ronnie Spector and Springsteen. Due to Southside's illness and a lack of time for Van Zandt to prepare to lead, tonight's two shows were rearranged into a single concert starting at midnight. Van Zandt was the lead vocalist (with Bruce on guitar/background vocals) on most of the tracks .
 
THIS TIME IT'S FOR REAL / GOT TO GET YOU OFF MY MIND / WITHOUT LOVE / SHE GOT ME WHERE SHE WANTS ME / LOVE ON THE WRONG SIDE OF TOWN / LITTLE BY LITTLE / IT AIN'T THE MEAT (IT'S THE MOTION) / WHEN YOU DANCE / BABY, I LOVE YOU (with Ronnie Spector) / WALKING IN THE RAIN (with Ronnie Spector) / SAY GOODBYE TO HOLLYWOOD ( with Ronnie Spector) / BE MY BABY (with Ronnie Spector) / THE FEVER / I DON'T WANT TO GO HOME / HAVING A PARTY / YOU MEAN SO MUCH TO ME (with Ronnie Spector) / THUNDER ROAD / RENDEZVOUS / BACKSTREETS / BORN TO RUN 
 
 
 
Photo Billy Smith 
 
1977-05-13 - MONMOUTH ARTS CENTER, RED BANK
During both the early (first show) and  Late (second show):  
 
Two separate admission shows. Independent recollections from those present indicate that Springsteen was on stage for the entirety of both shows. The gigs were originally scheduled as a standard Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes gig. However Southside became ill and couldn't perform so Steven Van Zandt came to the rescue by organizing The Asbury Park All-Star Revue - a combination of The Asbury Jukes, The E Street Band, Ronnie Spector and Springsteen. Van Zandt was the lead vocalist (with Bruce on guitar/background vocals) on most of the tracks .
 
 
 
Late  
 
 
 
Thanks Daniel Dee for helping on this page
 

Songinfo

"Baby, I Love You" is a song originally recorded by The Ronettes in 1963 and released on their debut album Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes (1964). The song was written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector, and produced by Spector. After their lack of success under contract to Colpix Records between 1961 and 1963, the Ronettes ended their Colpix contract and signed with Phil Spector's Philles Records in early 1963. During their first few months with Phil Spector, the Ronettes achieved mainstream success with the release of "Be My Baby" However, a problem arose when the Ronettes were booked to appear on Dick Clark's "Caravan of Stars" tour across the country. Phil Spector decided to keep lead singer Ronnie Bennett in California to record "Baby, I Love You" while the other two Ronettes, Estelle Bennett and Nedra Talley, went out on the tour with Dick Clark. Ronnie's cousin, Elaine, took her place on the tour while Ronnie recorded the song at Gold Star Studios in California. Since the other Ronettes were unavailable for recording, Spector used Darlene Love and Cher to complete the backing vocals. 
 
 
 

Other cover versions

Bruce on the artist

In January 1977, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band joined Ronnie Spector at CBS Studios in New York City, NY, for the recording of Billy Joel's Say goodbye to Hollywood and Steven Van Zandt's Baby please don't go. "Say Goodbye To Hollywood / Baby Please Don't Go" was Cleveland International Records' first single. Label's founder Steve Popovich had the idea that Ronnie Spector records the single with the E Street Band. "Lifelong best friend," Steven Van Zandt said about him in 2017. "I told him E St was in big trouble. Broke. He had the idea. Then overpaid us. Saved the band." The E Street Band received its first official recording credit on Say goodbye to Hollywood and Baby please don't go, and to date, it remains the band's only non-Springsteen credit. Both tracks were arranged and produced by Steven Van Zandt (credited as "Sugar Miami Steve"), who also wrote the B-side. The single's picture sleeve features an outdoor shot of Ronnie Spector, Bruce Springsteen, and the entire E Street Band, most probably taken during the January 1977 recording sessions in New York. Bruce Springsteen appeared only on Say goodbye to Hollywood, playing acoustic guitar. However, his involvement in the recording was not credited due to the lawsuit with Mike Appel that enjoined Springsteen from recording at the time. Both Steven Van Zandt and Ronnie Spector have later verified Springsteen's contribution on the recording of the track.
 
 
 
offical releases: see Springsteenlyrics
 
 
Bruce : " We got a special, a special... somebody really special with us tonight, somebody who, who I love and wanted to marry ever since I heard her first record, and I still do. And... I'm gonna her bring out to sing some songs with us. Miss Ronnie Spector...."
 

Lyrics

Woa-oh, woa-oh oh oh
Have I ever told you
How good it feels to hold you
It isn't easy to explian
And though I'm really trying
I think I may start crying
My heart can't wait another day
When you kiss me I've just got to say
Come on baby
(Baby I love you)
Oh-ee baby
Baby I love only you
Woa-oh, woa-oh oh oh
I can't live without you
I love everything about you
I can't help it if I feel this way
Oh I'm so glad I found you
I want my arms around you
I love to hear you call my name
Oh tell me that you feel the same
Come on baby
(Baby I love you)
Oh-ee baby
Baby I love only you
Woa-oh, woa-oh oh oh