Joey Ramone

Joey Ramone (Jeffry Hyman) died ten years ago yesterday. I loved the Ramones. Everybody should love the Ramones. Every juke box in New York City seems to have the Ramones in it. Every time one of their songs are played, everybody in the bar seems to bop their heads to the music. The Ramones appealed to everybody. They were punk. They were metal. They were pop. They were indie. Simply put they were an all-american band. I associated the Ramones with New York City and CBGB's and they were one of the reasons why i wanted to live here.

One of the last times I saw Joey perform was late 2000 at CBGB's in what was titled 'A night with Joey Ramone and friends'. Tickets were not sold in advance. Doors opened at 8 pm so not knowing what time Joey would come on, I got there not long after. There was a long list of bands set to play, a few which I was familiar with, so I was cool with the early arrival. Joey hung out near the stage most of the night, watching all the bands like he was the fan there to see them. One of the bands was the Independents, a band Joey was managing and also producer of their forthcoming album titled 'back from the grave'. For this big night, they were set to make a grand entrance to the stage. Joey had one of the guys get in a coffin that they would put on the stage while the smoke machine pumped out massive amounts of smoke. Watching Joey orchestrating the whole thing next to stage, in full view of the crowd was a classic Spinal Tap moment. It was funny and cool at the same time.

More bands/friends rolled thru, including The Huntingtons, a Ramones like band who all used Huntington as their last name, wore black leather biker jackets and played 2 two minute and 30 second punk songs. At one point in their career they even put out a Ramones cover album. I was already a fan of these guys but it was my first time seeing them. They were fantastic and we would be seeing more of them later. The one friend that I was really excited to see tonight was Ronnie Spector, the former lead singer of the Ronettes. She was such a doll performing mostly songs from her classic album 'she talks to rainbows' which Joey also produced. This would also be Joeys entrance to the stage performing a number of sweet duets with Ronnie. I could have easily left an extremely happy guy after her set but there were a few more bands to go before Joey would hit the stage.

As the night wore on, the crowd started to diminish. It was a weeknight and a lot of people had been there since the doors opened. I was hungry and wanted something to eat. I asked the doorman how long till Joey would come on. He said "he is coming on at 1 am". I looked at my watch and it was 1:45 am. The doorman smiled and said "Joey has too many friends" I went to a deli down the street, ate a sandwich and when I came back the doorman told Joey would be on 'soon'.

It was well after 2 am when Joey and band hit the stage. I had been there for 6 hours at that point. At best there was maybe 150 people left in the crowd. He told us he was working on a solo album and was going to play a bunch of those songs first. He said to tell him what we thought and if they sucked, he wouldn't put them on the new album. Then he said he would bring out the Huntingtons he would take request the rest of the night. Standing right up front it seemed like Joey Ramone was playing for me and a few friends except my friends got tired and left about two hours earlier. The new stuff was great. A song about Maria Bartiromo was one my my favorites as was a killer cover of 'what a wonderful world'. These songs weren't a departure from the Ramones style and that's just how we wanted it. By the time the Huntingtons joined him, it was after 3 am. Request after request was shouted out followed by "1,2,3,4" leading into the song. It was a barrage of non stop Ramones mania. At one point Joey needed a breather. He had the band stop, looked at them, giggled then in that NYC accent said 'youth' and giggled some more. These were just some anxious kids playing the songs as they should be played. Fast and furious. Problem was Joey was fighting lymphoma, it was 4 am and he had been there tonight longer than we had.

Joey died probably eight months later and that solo album, titled 'don't worry about me', would come out a year after he left us. Eleven years later I still have vivid memories of that night. It is one of my favorite rock n' roll experiences.

What A Wonderful World:


Sheena Is a Punk Rocker:

The National Anthem

The United States National anthem made sports news this week. The first time was when former track & field star Carl Lewis announced that he is considering a run for the New Jersey State Senate. What does that have to do with the national anthem? Well, turns out the fleet footed one is an avid singer and at one point in the 1990's butchered the anthem at a New Jersey Nets basketball game. So in true ESPN kick 'em while their down fashion, they dug into the archives to remind us that Carl Lewis is no Marvin Gaye. Yes, it was hilarious but it's a shame that pretty much the only time the national anthem makes the news is when somebody is screwing it up. Speaking of Marvin, he performed arguably the greatest version ever sexing it up for the 1983 NBA All Star game.(see below)

Eighty-one words. That's how many words make up our national anthem. It is a song that even the best singers stress over singing. Last night Major League Soccer's newest team, the Portland Timbers, had their first ever home game. Who did they get to sing the national anthem for this ground breaking occasion? Their fans. And if there was a roof on the place, they would have blown it off. People posted it on Facebook. News channels talked about it. Yes, even ESPN showed it. It was one of those moments that gave you chills, made you proud to be an American and assured everyone that yes, professional soccer is alive and well in the United States.

Here it is:


And here is Marvin Gaye singing the best version ever (sorry about the chatter at the start):

Good Uncle, Bad Spaghetti...

APRIL 2, 2011
EDDIE SPAGHETTI w/ UNCLE LEON & THE ALIBIS
EUROPA-BROOKLYN, NY

A 7 o'clock start on a Saturday evening is a tough start time especially when you are competing with probably the nicest day of the year so far and the Final Four. Regardless, we were there for for some cowpunk/country music and Uncle Leon backed by his Alibis set us off in the right direction. Leon brings a boozy country with a little bit of a rowdy side that blends an attitude of all the greats like Cash, Hank, Merle & Waylon. Their song 'Roller Derby Saved My Soul' garnered them praise from roller derby clubs world wide asking them to come play their events. Roller derby leagues in the midwest will never be the same following Leon & The Alibis tours there the past two summers. These guys will give you an education on gritty country, drink you under the table then help you up and give you a free copy of their recent live release 'Thats My Shit'. That's just how they roll. It was shame that they only had an hour to play tonight since once their 'Beer Train' gets rolling the show just gets better and better. Catch their two upcoming shows at the Rodeo Bar in NYC (May 8 & June 5) where they will be playing two sets each night. They are also putting together a tour that will take them to the Heavy Rebel Weekender festival in Winston-Salem NC over July 4th weekend. Heavy Rebel is a rock n roll dream weekend with 'over 90 bands, kustom cars & bikes, burlesque, mud wrestling, beer drinking competition and more'. I'm not sure I would need MORE, but sign me up and go see Uncle Leon & The Alibis.

Roller Derby Saved My Soul:


Beer Train:


Up next was Eddie Spaghetti. Eddie is the lead singer of punk & roll band, The Supersuckers, which I absolutely love. I will make this review as simple as he made his show:
He introduced himself as 'one quarter of the greatest rock n roll band in the world, The Supersuckers'.
**This is a self proclaimed statement that the band has always used and is only the beginning of kitchy things to come during the set.
Told us he would end each song with 'Cha Cha Cha' so we knew that the song had ended then raised his hand up showing the rock n roll devils horn. Over and over and over.
**Uhh, Eddie. It's 8:30 on a Saturday night and there are 75 people here. This isn't the type of venue where people just walk in off the street because they hear music blaring. We're fans. We are here to see you. We know your songs. Don't treat us like we are idiots.
Took request most of the set and played a lot of Supersuckers songs.
**Whew!
Told a funny story about being on Willie Nelsons bus and getting high with him
**Everybody loves a good Willie story
Played more songs about smoking weed than you would hear at a Cypress Hill show.
**Real rock stars graduate to heroin
Introduced a song by saying "this is probably the only song ever written referring to Jesus as a fuckin' faggot"
**Oh no! He didn't just say that? Mind you this is a cover song by someone called the Lee Harvey Oswald Band. You don't include that song on your album and make that statement without trying to get some publicity a big reaction from the crowd. Tonight's reaction was the sound of crickets.
Thanked the opening band as Uncle uhh Leo and the uhhhh Alabees.
**Leo? Alabees? Nice. Way to disrespect the band that just opened up for you. Should you ever meet Jesus, here's hoping he refers to you as Eddie Meatball then raises his hand up giving you the Rock n Roll Devils horns

Simply put. The other three quarters of the greatest rock n roll band in the world were missing tonight.

Cha Cha Cha

The Replacements!!!

There was a significant part of the mid to late 80's in which I listened to The Replacements probably every day. They were a band that, like many of my other favorite bands, my old brother turned me onto. There was something oh so cool about these guys. They were punkers. They were rockers. They played poppy tunes. They played sloppy tunes. Seeing them live (which I never did) was always a question mark. One night they would put on the best show you have ever seen, the next night they would play bits and pieces of random cover songs since they were too drunk to play they own. They were a lit firecracker and they were an inspiration. Green Day, The Hold Steady, Gaslight Anthem, Goo Goo Dolls and many others state that they wouldn't be here if it weren't for The Replacements.

They broke up due to all the other rock n' roll cliches. Drugs and alcohol were probably the leading reason and power struggle was the other. Guitarist Bob Stinson was kicked out for being too drunk and for not liking to play the more mellow stuff that lead singer Paul Westerberg was pushing the bands direction in. He played the guitar fast and loud and died, exhausted, at the young age of 34 . Bob's brother Tommy was only 14 when they released their first cd and much like Bob he lived and played the same way. He eventually moved on to start other bands and is currently playing bass for Guns N Roses?!? Drummer Chris Mars, much like the Stinson brothers, split the band not appreciating the power struggle with Westerberg and is now an accomplished painter and chooses not to talk about his days in the band. Slim Dunlap, who took over for Bob Stinson, has kept a low profile sticking to the Minneapolis music scene. Lead singer Paul Westerberg has had a solid solo career releasing 14 albums, some of under the name 'Grandpaboy' and his last 4 have been self released. A few years ago he severely injured his hand attempting to removed candle wax with a screwdriver and hasn't played much since.

So why am I writing about this band if they haven't done anything in years? There is a movie that is coming about about them and it is getting great reviews. The movie is called 'Color Me Obsessed, the potentially true story of the last best band'. One interesting thing about this film is they say that it doesn't contain any of their music. Huh?

Below you can find info about the film, which I took from its website: www.whatwerewethinkingfilms.com/colormeobsessed/ There are some promo items, trailers and some good quality videos from one of their early shows in 1981 which I found on Youtube. Thanks Youtube!!! Watch, enjoy and go see the movie when it comes to your town. Tell your friends! I'm very excited for this! Enjoy:

ABOUT:
With COLOR ME OBSESSED, the first documentary on the influential '80s
indie-rock band, The Replacements, director Gorman Bechard brings an
extraordinary vision to a unique filmmaking challenge. Told through
the eyes of fans, friends, and contemporaries, the film breaks from
the traditional music documentary format of music and performances.
“Not wanting to make a VH1/where-are-they-now style documentary, I
decided to present the band in a more iconic way,” the director
explains. “I thought, people believe in God without seeing or hearing
him but rather through the passion, faith, and stories of others.
After watching COLOR ME OBSESSED, I’m pretty sure music fans will
believe in The Replacements in much the same way.”

Telling the band’s story was a project close to the heart for Bechard.
Like many who were weaned on punk music he latched onto this brash
young Minneapolis band with fervor.  Dubbed “the last best band” by
Spin Magazine, their live shows could be miraculous or downright
disasters. Their fans, unwaveringly faithful. As critic’s darlings,
their albums were wrought with angry guitars and passionate
well-written lyrics that hinted at potential commercial success. Yet,
somehow, the band managed to continually shoot themselves in the foot.
Their relative obscurity was a motivating factor in presenting their
story on film.  “The Replacements should have been the next Rolling
Stones,” Bechard says, “And to the people who loved them, I think they
were.”

Combining over 140 interviews with rockers (Colin Meloy of The
Decemberists, Craig Finn of The Hold Steady, Tommy Ramone, Grant Hart
and Greg Norton of Husker Du, all three members of Goo Goo Dolls),
journalists (Robert Christgau, Legs McNeil, Ira Robbins, Greg Kot, Jim
DeRogatis), and fans both famous (Tom Arnold, Dave Foley, George
Wendt) and not, Bechard delivers the obsessive tale of the most
influential band you've never heard of, to many the greatest rock band
of all time, The Replacements. And though containing not a note of
their music, COLOR ME OBSESSED is a documentary that really rocks.

Name Dropping Trailer:


Another Trailer:


Goddamn Job & Juniors got a gun:


Kids don't listen:


Something to du (giving props to Husker Du):


Dope smokin' moron/skip it:


Maybelline (Chuck Berry cover):


Hey Good Lookin (Hank Williams cover):