Be My Baby — The Ronettes — Be My Baby — The Ronettes

The opening drum pattern creates immediate depth, then piano, percussion, strings, and backing voices build a room around Ronnie Spector's lead. The production is dense but never shapeless; contrast between exposed phrases and huge returns gives the record its lift.

It begins this sequence because modern pop's sense of sonic scale is already present, achieved through arrangement and room sound rather than digital abundance.