Clifford about music: History of "THE RAMONES"
Created | Updated Jun 6, 2003
Working with various producers and, even more important, learning how to play, changed the Ramones' sound from album to album.
While "Ramones" and "Leave Home", the first two records, were kind of minimalistic garage punk by four guys who loved the beach boys but were too drugged and unskilled to sound like them, the record company made them play some pop songs in the early eighties. E.g.: on "Too Tough to Die", one of their hardest albums, the song "Howling at the Moon" even features a synthesizer! Still, the rest of that record ist first class kick-ass punk rock.
The sound of the Ramones was a huge influence on Punk, Rock, and Alternative Bands of the 80s and 90s.
After great 20 years, the Ramones finished their careers with a brilliant and modern punk rock album (called "Adios Amigos", as their biggest success was in south america) and the "Final Tour" 1995/96.
Dee Dee Ramone, the bass player who left the Ramones in the early nineties ('93 replaced by C.Jay) released a solo album (featuring the duet "Lass mich in Ruhe" with german punk singer Nina Hagen).
Marky Ramone founded "The Intruders" (referred to by Joey Ramone as a badly done Ramones rip-off).
There is also a movie with, and about, the Ramones: "Rock and Roll High School", a cheap but funny comedy movie about - yes, a high school and rock'n'roll.
Johnny, Joey, Marky, Tommy, Dee Dee, C.Jay....
Thanks for two decades of great music!
Appendix:
For funny Ramones rip-off records, check out....
The Hanson Brothers (featuring members of Nomeansno, D.O.A. and Weezer),
Ramonez '77 (from Hamburg),
Ne Luumaet (Ramones songs translated into Finnish)
LP Albums:
Ramones (self-titled)*, Leave Home, Road to Ruin*, Rocket to Russia, Subterranean Jungle, It's alive, End of the Century, Halfway to Sanity, Ramones Mania, Too Tough to Die*, Brain Drain, Loco Live, Mondo Bizarro, Acid Eaters, Adios Amigos*.
The marked ones (*) are recommended for a taste of the best punkrock they ever played.
Get an impression of the C.B.G.B.'s club in Spike Lee's latest movie "Summer of Sam"! (or visit it in NYC)
I also recommend the book "The Ramones - an american band", published in the U.S. of A.
A lot of information in this article is from that book but I couldn't look up any facts because somebody stole it....
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