Post by sacrilegend on May 30, 2007 12:50:55 GMT -5
The Ramones were an American rock band often regarded as the first punk rock group.
After forming in Forest Hills, Queens, New York in 1974, they performed and played 2,263 concerts, touring virtually non-stop for 22 years. In 1996, after a tour with the Lollapalooza music festival, the band went on a brief club tour and then disbanded. Three of the band's four founding members—Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone and Dee Dee Ramone— died within eight years of the break up.
The Ramones never achieved much commercial success during their years of recording and performing. Their only album to reach certified gold status in the U.S. was their compilation album Ramones Mania. Appreciation of the band has grown since the 1980s, and they now regularly appear on "all-time greatest" lists, such as Rolling Stone’s list of Immortals: 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, and Mojo's 100 Greatest Albums. In 2002, the Ramones were voted the second greatest rock and roll band ever in Spin Magazine, trailing only The Beatles.
On March 2, 2002, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Members:
Joey Ramone – lead vocals (1974–1996)
Johnny Ramone – guitar (1974–1996)
Dee Dee Ramone – bass, vocals (1974–1989)
Marky Ramone – drums (1978–1983, 1987–1996)
C.J. Ramone – bass, vocals (1989–1996)
Tommy Ramone – drums (1974–1978)
Richie Ramone – drums, vocals (1983–1987)
Elvis Ramone – drums (1987)
Musical style:
The Ramones' musical style was influenced by various parts of rock and pop music of the 1950s and 1960s; bands such as The Beach Boys, The Who, The Kinks, The Troggs, the Yardbirds, and primarily The Beatles, on whom they based their image (bowl haircuts, four members). The Ramones recorded cover songs of such "garage" classics as "Surfin' Bird" and "California Sun." Joey often cited Ronnie Spector as one of his favorite singers; the various love songs he sang for the band are reminiscent of the 1960s girl group sound. This type of material alternated with harder rock songs in the vein of proto punk bands The Stooges, MC5 and The New York Dolls.
The Ramones pioneered a straightforward, stripped-down sound that was a far cry from the virtuosic musicianship and complex instrumentation that 1970s rock music had become known for. Joey Ramone has stated the Ramones were rather taken with the Bay City Rollers' hit song "Saturday Night", and set out to imitate its catchy, singalong quality, inspiring the "Hey-ho, let's go" chant from their first single, "Blitzkrieg Bop". Johnny disliked guitar solos, and played only a handful of them in his more than two decades with the group; his simple, direct playing, consisting almost exclusively of distorted barred major chords (Often confused with power chords) with downstrokes, set the standard for many subsequent punk guitarists.
On stage, the band adopted a focused approach directly intended to increase the audience's concert experience. Johnny's instructions to C.J. when preparing for his first live performances with the group were to look and play at the audience, stand with the bass slung low between spread legs, and to walk forward to the front of stage at the same time as he did. Johnny Ramone was not a fan of guitarists who performed facing their drummer, amplifier or other band members.
Due to a similar musical style, many bands were claimed "an answer to the Ramones" by critics in the late 70's. There were the "English answer" (The Lurkers), the "Irish answer" (The Undertones), the "Canadian answer" (Teenage Head), and the "Mexican answer" (The Zeros).
Tom Verlaine described the Ramones as the first band in the world to play a white urban form of rock'n'roll, removing the solos and blues patterns associated with earlier forms of rock music.
Acts influenced:
The Ramones' first British concerts on July 4-5, 1976, are widely credited with inspiring many the first wave of English punk groups: Buzzcocks (first concert July 20, 1976), The Damned (first concert July 6, 1976), The Clash (first concert July 4, 1976) and others.
Likewise, early shows in California and Washington, D.C. inspired hardcore punk groups like the Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, and Bad Brains.
Some pop punk bands became so taken by the Ramones that a whole subgenre now dubbed "Ramones-core" has appeared. Bands in this subgenre Screeching Weasel, The Vindictives, The Queers, The Mr. T Experience, and the Beatnik Termites, have all recorded covers of entire Ramones albums with Ramones, Leave Home, Rocket to Russia, Road to Ruin, and Pleasant Dreams, respectively. Others like The Riverdales and The Hanson Brothers based their entire sound on Ramones-inspired rock.
We're A Happy Family, the bestselling Ramones tribute album.The first Ramones tribute album by multiple bands was released in 1991 under the title ''Gabba Gabba Hey'', featuring tracks recorded by such notable bands as L7, Mojo Nixon, and Bad Religion. Many more tribute albums followed, such as Blitzkrieg Over You (with Motörhead and Die Toten Hosen performances), and all-star tribute We're a Happy Family with artists such as Green Day, U2, Kiss, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Offspring, and Rob Zombie, who also did the album's cover artwork; the liner notes were written by noted Ramones fan Stephen King. Around that time Metallica recorded five Ramones' songs, scattered among St Anger-era singles, one of which is found on We're a happy family. A Russian 29-track tribute album called Ramoneskidz was released in 2005.
Additionally, the group Bad Brains took its name from a Ramones song. While members of Green Day have gone as far as naming their children in honor of the band. Billie Joe Armstrong named his son Joey as tribute to Joey Ramone, and Tre Cool's daughter was named Ramona after the famous pseudonym.
Discography
Ramones April 23, 1976
Leave Home January 10, 1977
Rocket to Russia November 4, 1977
Road to Ruin September 22, 1978
End of the Century February 4, 1980
Pleasant Dreams July 29, 1981 58 -
Subterranean Jungle February, 1983
Too Tough to Die October, 1984
Animal Boy May, 1986
Halfway to Sanity September 15, 1987
Brain Drain May 18, 1989
Mondo Bizarro September 1, 1992
Acid Eaters December, 1993
¡Adios Amigos! July 18, 1995
After forming in Forest Hills, Queens, New York in 1974, they performed and played 2,263 concerts, touring virtually non-stop for 22 years. In 1996, after a tour with the Lollapalooza music festival, the band went on a brief club tour and then disbanded. Three of the band's four founding members—Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone and Dee Dee Ramone— died within eight years of the break up.
The Ramones never achieved much commercial success during their years of recording and performing. Their only album to reach certified gold status in the U.S. was their compilation album Ramones Mania. Appreciation of the band has grown since the 1980s, and they now regularly appear on "all-time greatest" lists, such as Rolling Stone’s list of Immortals: 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, and Mojo's 100 Greatest Albums. In 2002, the Ramones were voted the second greatest rock and roll band ever in Spin Magazine, trailing only The Beatles.
On March 2, 2002, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Members:
Joey Ramone – lead vocals (1974–1996)
Johnny Ramone – guitar (1974–1996)
Dee Dee Ramone – bass, vocals (1974–1989)
Marky Ramone – drums (1978–1983, 1987–1996)
C.J. Ramone – bass, vocals (1989–1996)
Tommy Ramone – drums (1974–1978)
Richie Ramone – drums, vocals (1983–1987)
Elvis Ramone – drums (1987)
Musical style:
The Ramones' musical style was influenced by various parts of rock and pop music of the 1950s and 1960s; bands such as The Beach Boys, The Who, The Kinks, The Troggs, the Yardbirds, and primarily The Beatles, on whom they based their image (bowl haircuts, four members). The Ramones recorded cover songs of such "garage" classics as "Surfin' Bird" and "California Sun." Joey often cited Ronnie Spector as one of his favorite singers; the various love songs he sang for the band are reminiscent of the 1960s girl group sound. This type of material alternated with harder rock songs in the vein of proto punk bands The Stooges, MC5 and The New York Dolls.
The Ramones pioneered a straightforward, stripped-down sound that was a far cry from the virtuosic musicianship and complex instrumentation that 1970s rock music had become known for. Joey Ramone has stated the Ramones were rather taken with the Bay City Rollers' hit song "Saturday Night", and set out to imitate its catchy, singalong quality, inspiring the "Hey-ho, let's go" chant from their first single, "Blitzkrieg Bop". Johnny disliked guitar solos, and played only a handful of them in his more than two decades with the group; his simple, direct playing, consisting almost exclusively of distorted barred major chords (Often confused with power chords) with downstrokes, set the standard for many subsequent punk guitarists.
On stage, the band adopted a focused approach directly intended to increase the audience's concert experience. Johnny's instructions to C.J. when preparing for his first live performances with the group were to look and play at the audience, stand with the bass slung low between spread legs, and to walk forward to the front of stage at the same time as he did. Johnny Ramone was not a fan of guitarists who performed facing their drummer, amplifier or other band members.
Due to a similar musical style, many bands were claimed "an answer to the Ramones" by critics in the late 70's. There were the "English answer" (The Lurkers), the "Irish answer" (The Undertones), the "Canadian answer" (Teenage Head), and the "Mexican answer" (The Zeros).
Tom Verlaine described the Ramones as the first band in the world to play a white urban form of rock'n'roll, removing the solos and blues patterns associated with earlier forms of rock music.
Acts influenced:
The Ramones' first British concerts on July 4-5, 1976, are widely credited with inspiring many the first wave of English punk groups: Buzzcocks (first concert July 20, 1976), The Damned (first concert July 6, 1976), The Clash (first concert July 4, 1976) and others.
Likewise, early shows in California and Washington, D.C. inspired hardcore punk groups like the Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, and Bad Brains.
Some pop punk bands became so taken by the Ramones that a whole subgenre now dubbed "Ramones-core" has appeared. Bands in this subgenre Screeching Weasel, The Vindictives, The Queers, The Mr. T Experience, and the Beatnik Termites, have all recorded covers of entire Ramones albums with Ramones, Leave Home, Rocket to Russia, Road to Ruin, and Pleasant Dreams, respectively. Others like The Riverdales and The Hanson Brothers based their entire sound on Ramones-inspired rock.
We're A Happy Family, the bestselling Ramones tribute album.The first Ramones tribute album by multiple bands was released in 1991 under the title ''Gabba Gabba Hey'', featuring tracks recorded by such notable bands as L7, Mojo Nixon, and Bad Religion. Many more tribute albums followed, such as Blitzkrieg Over You (with Motörhead and Die Toten Hosen performances), and all-star tribute We're a Happy Family with artists such as Green Day, U2, Kiss, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Offspring, and Rob Zombie, who also did the album's cover artwork; the liner notes were written by noted Ramones fan Stephen King. Around that time Metallica recorded five Ramones' songs, scattered among St Anger-era singles, one of which is found on We're a happy family. A Russian 29-track tribute album called Ramoneskidz was released in 2005.
Additionally, the group Bad Brains took its name from a Ramones song. While members of Green Day have gone as far as naming their children in honor of the band. Billie Joe Armstrong named his son Joey as tribute to Joey Ramone, and Tre Cool's daughter was named Ramona after the famous pseudonym.
Discography
Ramones April 23, 1976
Leave Home January 10, 1977
Rocket to Russia November 4, 1977
Road to Ruin September 22, 1978
End of the Century February 4, 1980
Pleasant Dreams July 29, 1981 58 -
Subterranean Jungle February, 1983
Too Tough to Die October, 1984
Animal Boy May, 1986
Halfway to Sanity September 15, 1987
Brain Drain May 18, 1989
Mondo Bizarro September 1, 1992
Acid Eaters December, 1993
¡Adios Amigos! July 18, 1995
