The Ramones
The Ramones. The debut album. 1976. Say it again – 1976. Wings, ELO, Queen and their ilk stalked the airwaves back then. And then… da Brudders! From Noo Yoik. Wuntoofreefaw! Immortals. Except everybody on the album cover is now dead. Live fast, die young. Hard to believe that a leather jacket used to scare tha bejeezus out of people. The Ramones might be a one-trick pony, but what a trick. Fast downstroke guitar riffs, big splash cymbals, one note bass, caveman drums, handclaps when necessary, Joey’s ’singing’ and ‘dumb’ lyrics about gluesniffing, going into the basement, chain saws, turning tricks on 53rd and 3rd, beating on brats, blitzkrieg bops. All songs done in usually under two minutes. To be this dumb, especially in 1976, was a stroke of brilliance. Ever heard ‘Tales From Topographic Oceans’? I mean, really…
The Ramones loved simple rocknroll and Sixties pop. They played fast power pop punk with a dribbling smile and a sneer. Every punk band in England saw them play the Roundhouse in 1976. Gamechanger. The world would’ve been very different without them. If you haven’t heard them for a while, slap this on, crank it up and jump around. Hey-ho, let’s go.
The Ramones
The Ramones. The debut album. 1976. Say it again – 1976. Wings, ELO, Queen and their ilk stalked the airwaves back then. And then… da Brudders! From Noo Yoik. Wuntoofreefaw! Immortals. Except everybody on the album cover is now dead. Live fast, die young. Hard to believe that a leather jacket used to scare tha bejeezus out of people. The Ramones might be a one-trick pony, but what a trick. Fast downstroke guitar riffs, big splash cymbals, one note bass, caveman drums, handclaps when necessary, Joey’s ’singing’ and ‘dumb’ lyrics about gluesniffing, going into the basement, chain saws, turning tricks on 53rd and 3rd, beating on brats, blitzkrieg bops. All songs done in usually under two minutes. To be this dumb, especially in 1976, was a stroke of brilliance. Ever heard ‘Tales From Topographic Oceans’? I mean, really…
The Ramones loved simple rocknroll and Sixties pop. They played fast power pop punk with a dribbling smile and a sneer. Every punk band in England saw them play the Roundhouse in 1976. Gamechanger. The world would’ve been very different without them. If you haven’t heard them for a while, slap this on, crank it up and jump around. Hey-ho, let’s go.