rocket to russia

The Ramones hit the trifecta with the power and the passion of this polished punk projectile.  'Rocket to Russia' completes a trilogy of albums with their eponymous debut and 'Leave Home', all of which contained songs written before they got a record contract and feature the same lineup of Joey (Jeffry Hyman) Ramone on lead vocals, Johnny (Cummings) Ramone on guitar, Dee Dee (Douglas Colvin) Ramone on bass and backing vocals, and Tommy (Erdelyi) Ramone on drums and production.  Tommy  co-produced with Tony Bongiovi (Jon Bon Jovi's second cousin) with Ed Stasium engineering with assistance from Don Berman.  

Tommy remembers:  "Basically, here we were making all these great albums that weren't going anywhere. And I thought from the second album on, especially Rocket to Russia, that they'd be a natural fit - that nationally the albums would be accepted. Certainly 'Rocket to Russia''s not, you know.. So I guess they figured that they had to turn into some kind of a commercial band. They were always going for something that would give them a hit or whatever, so they were on that road and they pretty much stayed on that road on and off for the rest of their career."

Johnny considered:  "You always get pressure to, you know, come up with something. But you can't be worrying about that kind of stuff. The record companies don't know what they are doing. I mean, they're ideal with you when you are a success. But that's not what the Ramones do best. We want to put out records for our fans and do what we like best. What we're identified with is hard, fast, crazy songs and we're not worried about any sort of commercialism. We can worry about commercialism on one song on the album, but the other ten songs should be left alone. So we make them hard ... The Ramones were never anti-Led Zeppelin. Maybe "anti-groups-who-just-aped Led Zeppelin." Everything in the ‘70s was moving towards all that. FM radio was promoting an album rock format. We wanted to record something kids could dance to. But, Jimmy Page: His playing is truly amazing. I could never play at that level. I don’t try to imitate him, but I listen to him a lot."

Dee Dee revealed:   "I loved being in a band, because the band became like famous locally in New York, almost overnight, as a cult phenomenon. And we were like the darlings of the New York underground scene, and we kind of took over from where the Dolls had left off, and we were gaining a big following, playing these clubs in Manhattan.  And along with the clubs came a ticket to a drug addict's way of life. I could stop hustling, and I still wasn't making enough money to support my drug habit, because the band didn't have a hit record or anything, they were just a club band ...  I was just so weak, crying into my beer. I tried to act tough so I became tough. It’s pretty absurd. I should have just been able to be a clerk in bank. I’m a pretty meek person...I thought I was nicer than I was, I was real awful. I wasn’t dishonest, I wasn’t mean. I wanted drugs. I wanted women. I got mad. I was mad. I had no self-control and I'm still trying to learn that one. I had crazy bad examples and I was stupid, I believed everything I saw. How would I know?"

Joey would proclaim:  "I think we're the greatest rock 'n' roll band in the world. I mean, it's very frustrating at times. We're the only band that kept the guts, and kept the excitement, and kept the belief, you know. We never side-tracked...I don't personally like sappy, wimpy bullshit from other artists. I like things from the gut. I write and it just comes out. I don't say, 'I'll try to write about this.' I mean...you just know when it's right."

'Rocket to Russia' went to number sixty in the UK, forty-nine in the US, and peaked at number thirty-one in Sweden.  It was their last album with Erdelyi as drummer.  





http://www.ramones.com/









'Sheena Is A Punk Rocker' was their first chart single to number eighty-one in the US and twenty-two in the UK.





'Rockaway Beach' became their highest charting single on the US pop chart, peaking at number sixty-six.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xaegu_the-ramones-rockaway-beach_music

The Ramones - Rockaway Beach by LeBalayeur






'Do You Wanna Dance' hit number eighty-six in the US.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWfpn_q6318









'Rocket to Russia'
full album:



All songs were written by the Ramones, except where noted.

Side one
1. "Cretin Hop"     1:55
2. "Rockaway Beach"     2:06
3. "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow"     2:47
4. "Locket Love"     2:09
5. "I Don't Care"     1:38
6. "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker"     2:49
7. "We're a Happy Family"     2:40
Side two
8. "Teenage Lobotomy"     2:00
9. "Do You Wanna Dance?" Bobby Freeman 1:52
10. "I Wanna Be Well"     2:28
11. "I Can't Give You Anything"     1:57
12. "Ramona"     2:35
13. "Surfin' Bird" (The Trashmen cover) Carl White, Alfred Frazier, John Harris, Turner Wilson 2:37
14. "Why Is It Always This Way?"     2:32