The cover of this album is red-and-white. All three Ronettes grace the bottom center, with a larger image of Ronnie filling the background.
1. Be My Baby (2:40) - The group's signature song, somewhat faster than moderate, peaked at #2. One instrument featured here is a rattling percussion. The narrator so much wants the boy to be her boyfriend that she'll do anything to make him happy. She'll even return each of his kisses 3 times. And here's how I would have suggested she do it--once on his left cheek, once on his right cheek, and once on his lips.
2. Why Don't They Let Us Fall In Love (2:39) - That's one question any teenage boy and girl with stirring hormones would ask. This swing, moderately slow song was released before "Be My Baby" but comes after it on this disc; all subsequent songs are organized chronologically. Instruments include horns and chimes. The narrator and the boy are ALREADY in love. I think falling in love, by itself, is just a matter of emotions between the couple involved; keeping them physically apart is what their parents CAN do.
3. I Wonder (2:45) - This song has similar instrumentation and tempo to "Be My Baby." What the narrator wonders is who will be that boy with whom she is destined to fall in love by the time she reaches womanhood. The boy whose voice she hears in his dreams. Whoever he turns out to be, she hopes they'll never hurt each other nor say goodbye.
4. Baby I Love You (2:50) - The tempo is moderate. The rattling percussion plays so rapidly it sounds almost like jingle bells. The narrator can't explain her feelings for the boy; whenever she tries to, she cries. She can't wait any longer to embrace him and hopes he will feel the same way about her. I've also heard on the radio a version by a male artist.
5. The Best Part Of Breaking Up (3:01) - The tempo here is similar to the one 3 songs ago; toward the end it slows down briefly. A tambourine plays on almost every beat. As sad as breaking up tends to be, the narrator sees a bright side--she and the boy will make up later. My favorite parts of this song come when Ronnie sultrily sings, "Come on baby...don't say maybe."
6. So Young (2:35) - The tone of Ronnie's voice in this slow, 12/8 song matches her character's sadness at being too young to get married. For seasoning, we get vocal vibrations at the end of each line.
7. When I Saw You (2:43) - Like the previous song, this one has a slow, 12/8 tempo. At the narrator's first sight of the boy, she knew she would go nuts over him.
8. Do I Love You (2:51) - This moderately fast song is one of two Ronettes songs that were covered by Jay and the Americans.
9. You Baby (2:56) - This is a different song from the Turtles hit. The boy to whom the narrator is singing is the one she waited all her life to love; now she will live and die only for him. I hear a sax solo in the middle, but my favorite part is the ending sequence--a sultry sigh, a drum solo, and the chorus.
10. How Does It Feel (2:40) - This song, somewhat faster than moderate, features hand claps and a rattling percussion. The narrator's boyfriend once left her for another girl; then the other girl left the boy for another man. Now the narrator is asking the boy how it feels to be alone again. She asks him if he's crying, if the other girl's leaving has hurt him, for the narrator would gladly take him back.
11. Walking In The Rain (3:16) - The tempo is somewhat slower than moderate. Like many "rain" songs, this one contains thunderclaps and the sound of rain falling. Instruments include chimes and a tambourine. This is the other Ronettes song also sung by Jay and the Americans. (The link here is to the lyrics as sung by J and the A's.)
12. Born To Be Together (2:57) - The tempo is moderate. Instruments include a tambourine. Thus far we've heard what an excellent soprano Ronnie is; here she leans more toward the alto side (particularly in the verses). At first sight of the boy, the narrator sighed and was on the verge of tears. Then he kissed her and whispered that he loved her. The title says the rest.
13. Is This What I Get For Loving You (3:22) - The drum beats in this moderately slow song sound like gunshots, which is fitting, for the boy shot a hole in the narrator's soul. The boy once told the narrator he would never leave her, and she has done her best to satisfy him. Sadly, but truly, yes: being left IS what she's getting for all that love.
14. Paradise (3:36) - This slow song opens with the sound of seagulls chirping and ocean waves crashing. Instruments include a tambourine and a flute. The narrator can hardly wait for her boyfriend to whisk her away to the land where flowers grow, time stands still, and oceans roar.
15. Here I Sit (2:57) - The tempo is moderate. The narrator sits alone in her room, crying, with her head in her hand, now that her boyfriend has left her. After Ronnie sings "Too late, he's gone" twice, the backup singers sing, "Ron- Ron- Ronnie, don't you run, run, girl."
16. I Wish I Never Saw The Sunshine (3:48) - The tempo is slow. Chimes and horns play somberly just before Ronnie starts singing a tale of sunshine and blue sky (romance) taken away. "If I never saw the sunshine, I wouldn't mind the rain," the narrator laments.
17. Everything Under The Sun (3:42) - That's what the boy is to the narrator. Some of the background voices are male. As far as instrumentation goes, I hear hand claps and horns. And the tempo--moderate.
18. RONNIE SPECTOR SOLO RECORDING: You Came, You Saw, You Conquered (2:49) - This song, somewhat faster than moderate, features horns. The narrator had been hurt by love many times before and then resolved never to fall in love again. But then came the man to whom she's singing; he saw her, then conquered her heart. In fact, at first listen, every song on this album conquered MY heart.