The Ramones, comprising Johnny Ramone
(b. John Cummings, 8 October
1948, Long Island, New York, USA; guitar), Dee Dee Ramone
(b. Douglas
Colvin, 18 September 1951, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; bass,
vocals) and Joey Ramone
(b. Jeffrey Hyman, 19 May 1951, New York City,
New York, USA, d. 15 April 2001, New York City, New York, USA; drums)
made their debut at New York's Performance Studio on 30 March 1974. Two
months later manager Tommy Ramone
(b. Tommy Erdelyi, 29 January 1952,
Budapest, Hungary) replaced Joey on drums, who then switched to vocals.
The quartet later secured a residency at the renowned CBGB's club where
they became one of the city's leading proponents of punk rock. The fever-paced
Ramones was a startling first album. Its high-octane assault drew from 50s
kitsch and 60s garage bands, while leather jackets, ripped jeans and an affected
dumbness enhanced their music's cartoon-like quality. The band's debut
appearance in London in July 1976 influenced a generation of British punk
musicians, while Leave Home, which included Suzy Is A Headbanger and
Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment , confirmed the sonic attack of its predecessor.
Rocket To Russia was marginally less frenetic as the band's novelty appeal
waned, although Sheena Is A Punk Rocker gave them their first UK Top 30 hit
in 1977. In May 1978 Tommy Ramone left to pursue a career in production and
former Richard Hell drummer Marc Bell
(b. 15 July 1956), remodelled as Marky
Ramone, replaced him for Road To Ruin, as the band sought to expand their
appealing, but limited, style. They took a starring role in the trivial Rock 'n' Roll
High School, a participation that led to their collaboration with producer Phil
Spector. The resultant release, End Of The Century, was a curious hybrid, and
while Johnny balked at Spector's laborious recording technique, Joey, whose
penchant for girl-group material gave the Ramones their sense of melody, was
less noticeably critical. The album contained a sympathetic version of the
Ronettes' Baby, I Love You , which became the band's biggest UK hit single
when it reached the Top 10. The Ramones were by now looking increasingly
anachronistic, unable or unwilling to change. Pleasant Dreams, produced by
Graham Gouldman, revealed an outfit now outshone by the emergent hardcore
acts they had inspired. However, Subterranean Jungle showed a renewed purpose
that was maintained sporadically on Animal Boy and Halfway To Sanity, and the
single Bonzo Goes To Bitburg , a hilarious riposte to Ronald Reagan's ill-advised
visit to a cemetery containing graves of Nazi SS personnel. Richie Ramone
(b.
Richie Reinhardt, 11 August 1957) occupied the drum stool from 1983 to 1987
before the return of Marky. Dee Dee, meanwhile, had adopted the name Dee Dee
King and left the band to pursue an ill-fated rap career. Although increasingly
confined to pop's fringes, a revitalized line-up - Joey, Johnny, Marky and new bass
player C.J.
(b. Christopher John Ward, 8 October 1965) - undertook a successful
1990 US tour alongside fellow CBGB's graduate Deborah Harry and Talking Heads
offshoot Tom Tom Club. In 1992 they released Mondo Bizarro, from which
Censorshit , an attack on Tipper Gore, head of the PMRC, was the most notable
moment. By 1995 and Adios Amigos!, rumours implied that the two-minute buzzsaw
guitar trail may have finally run cold, with the impression of a epitaph exacerbated by
the album's title. As Johnny conceded: I know that you have to deal with a life without
applause, and I m looking forward to trying it. A lot of musicians are addicted to it
and won't get out.' They announced their final gig on 6 August 1996, a tearful event
at The Palace club in Hollywood
(captured on the 1997 live album). Joey Ramone
succumbed to lymphatic cancer in April 2001. Whatever their record sales achieved,
the Ramones' contribution to popular music is monumental; history will show whether
such fame was influential.
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