Now, Johnny Ramone is dead. Like a chilling, not-so-funny answer to Spinal Tap—the fictional rock band whose drummers kept dying in absurd ways—only the Ramones’ drummers, three of them in 20 years, still survive. (OK, CJ, the late-in-the-game replacement bassist, is still walking and talking, but that’s like counting Kenny Jones in the history of The Who.) First Joey, the Frankenstein-monster… return to article
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Reader Comments (10)Page 1 of 1 pagesif there’s one thing i hate (and i hate many things), it’s psedo-intellectualizing ala rolling stone magazine about rock music and its iconoclasts. since the early 70s, i’ve come to loathe all this kulturewissenschaft cum philosophizing about rock bands like the rolling stones, bob dylan and in this case, the ramones. it’s rock and roll, for god’s sake. there is no hegelian dialetic involved here. there’s no major political themes or life-changing apparatus at play. there’s no marxist underscoring or cryptic mysticism when you play the record backwards. it’s about young kids and the wand of youth with its infantile rebelliousness and vigor. it’s about drugs, frustration, sex, hormones and most importantly, money. i’m not going to get into a lengthy diatribe about this other than to admonish ‘in these times’ for publishing academic hogwash like this, and on its front cover, to boot! please stick to the issues you deal with best: politics, corruption, the economy and the little guy being messed over by the powers that be. leave this musical crank yanking to the pseudo intelligentsia who need something to write about for the village voice, rolling stone and the chicago reader!
Posted by mb on Oct 21, 2004 at 4:57 PM Snore. Lame music, uninteresting people. Must be an East Coast thing. I only wish this had been written about the Beastie Boys.
Posted by opeluboy on Oct 21, 2004 at 10:07 PM i totally agree with mb (the first comment). am still trying to read these intellectual-rock critiques without getting a headache. Why do I keep thinking writers like Mr. Atkinson just makes this stuff up? If they are making it up, what for?
More clever rhetorical questions: Couldn’t we do this with other popular American entertainment sources? Was my favorite Star Wars action figure my favorite because i was a kid, or because he was secretly a Freudian (add your own shit here)? Why was Robin Yount my favorite baseball player? Was I just a kid? or I mean… ok, write me back if you want im not trying to rant.
Posted by tom w on Oct 22, 2004 at 5:40 AM Okay, fine, critize the Ramones for whatever the hell kulturewissenschaft means. The only over-intellecutalizing I see here is in the responses. You really have to consider the Ramones from where they came. When they literally hit the music world, Led Zeppelin was overproducing Physical Graffiti, ELO was being ELO and the Bee Gees were hypnotizing millions into a huge, hustle-dancing robot army. Shaun Cassidy was actually pulling down a paycheck by singing. The Ramones kicked them all in the balls and didn’t even pause while segueing into the next minute-and-a-half masterpiece. 1-2-3-4ever!!!!!!
Posted by Jackalope on Oct 22, 2004 at 1:16 PM To those who have insecurity issues and need to belittle the Ramones or their fans, I have one statement that ought to let you know where you stand: The Ramones were great, famous, and millions enjoyed ther music. None of this can be said for you. Your life sucks. ;)
Posted by Ryan Conover on Oct 23, 2004 at 4:45 PM The Ramones were important around the world, and no less so for political reasons. Many in the punk world were disturbed by the conservative leanings of some-skinheads and the like. Others were overboard leftists to a 1930s Eric Blair before the Spanish Civil War degree. The Ramones were America. Big, Dumb, Loud, Congenial, and Unapologetic. When “My Brain is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo goes to Bitburg)” was released, it was not only a radio hit but a searing indictment of Reagan’s bizarre tribute to the SS Stormtroopers buried there. It is impossible to overstate the impact that a clear endorsement of Nazism on the part of an American icon had on young people who wanted to believe in American exceptionalism in spite of the fact that our government was, on our behalf, murdering priests and nuns in Central America to import drugs to destroy the inner city to send money and weapons to Iran, who had held our people hostage for over a year. The Reagan years were a nihilistic period in our history from which we have never, as a nation, recovered. While the DKs, MDC, Reagan Youth, and hundreds of other bands opposed the Reagan-Bush administration, The Ramones were much more widely acceptable and less threatening; when they turned against Reagan, moderate college geeks were more likely to do so. First rule is: obey the laws of Germany. Second Rule is: don’t talk to commies. Third rule is: be nice to mommy. Fourth rule is: eat kosher salamis.
Posted by Erik D. Hilsinger on Oct 24, 2004 at 9:17 PM ryan conover, i’ve noticed your name here often on these billboards, and sorry to say, you’re usually very abusive. you know, something, my life is just fine and it doesn’t suck as you say. if you wish to respond to my views or anyone else’s here, please do so with a civil tongue and with intellectual restraint and intelligence. there is no need to be abrasive and overbearing just because you don’t agree with another person’s views. part of the democratic enterprise is to give voice to intelligence and to respect other people’s opinions even if they don’t exactly coincide with yours. if you have nothing decent to say or all you care to do is berate, belittle and wear your ego on your sleeve, then please refrain from talking to the intelligent among us who seek truth through civilized dialogue. as for you, erik, i don’t quite understand what you’re trying to say. again, this pop music rhetoric has always knocked me for a loop. sorry, ryan, but we can’t all be geniuses such as yourself. a thousand pardons!
Posted by mb on Oct 28, 2004 at 3:43 PM I don’t frequent the billboard section here, except when the topic is the Ramones. I like Vonnegut’s articles, mostly, but I am rather new to this site. So I cannot speak for ryan elsewhere, but here he seems to be right. Well, maybe not the whole “your life sucks.” I know lots of people whose lives suck and they maintain a postive outlook. The fact that mb failed to address my statements implys that maybe I hit too close to home. C’mon, I’m a big boy. I can take criticism and dish it back.
Posted by Jackalope on Oct 29, 2004 at 7:58 PM As the great Sgt. Hulka in “Stripes” told Francis…
“LIGHTEN UP!!”
Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Of course not, and just because the Ramones didn’t invent, perfect or otherwise implement rocket science in no way diminishes their contribution to music and culture. I admit I don’t own any of their albums, and was never a huge fan but we ALL know a tune or three from these misfits, and they influenced too many musicians - many still in play - to count.
Jesus H. Christ already…
Posted by g-love on Nov 2, 2004 at 9:00 PM Page 1 of 1 pages -
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