The 25 Greatest Ramones Songs Ever

50 years ago todayJeffrey HymanJohn CummingsDouglas Colvin and Thomas Erdelyi got together in Forest HillsQueens and played their first-ever show together as a band at CBGB. They called themselves the Ramonesadopted pseudonyms ending in the surname Ramone (inspired by Paul McCartney’s longtime alias Paul Ramon) and soon started rambling through the New York City punk scene alongside bands like the New York Dollsthe DictatorsBlondie and Television. When we think about what JoeyDee DeeJohnnyTommy andlaterMarkyRichie and CJaccomplished as the Ramonesit’s easy to see that they wereperhapsthe most influential group to come out of that scene five decades ago.

From the release of their self-titled debut in 1976 to their farewell concert in Los Angeles 20 years laterthe Ramones hit the ground running and kept their foot on the gas well into the 1980s. They had one of the greatest five-album runs in rock ‘n’ roll historyspanning from Ramones through End of the Centuryand even continued to unleash nuggets of rock ‘n’ roll goodness well into the more middling years of their career. And few bands have ever so perfectly meshed the beauty of an American pop standard with blisteringpedal to the metal punk rock quite like the Ramones did. In an effort to pay respect to one of the best and most influential American rock bands everwe’ve gone ahead and ranked the Ramones’ 25 greatest songs of all time. Heyholet’s grab our leather jacketsripped jeansglue and go!

25. “Mama’s Boy” (1984)

Joey Ramone doing his best Ian Curtis impression shouldn’t workbut it does. “Mama’s Boy,” the tone-setting intro track on Too Tough to Dieis ferocious and maddening. The Ramones turned down the tempo andinsteadfocused on making Johnny’s guitars sound more crunching and more thunderous. While taking a line like “I don’t want to work in a hot dog stand” seriously is a tall order“Mama’s Boy” straightens out when Joey sounds like he’s staring straight into the camera lens. “You’re an imbecileyou’re an ugly dogthere’s nothing to gain,” he deadpans. “You couldn’t shut upyou had a badbad brain.”

24. “I Wanna Be Sedated” (1978)

I live happily in the “‘I Wanna Be Sedated’ is overrated” campbut there’s no denying that it’s one of the best-sounding Ramones songs ever. Marky was drumming in the group nowand their hooks were far more polished than ever before. “I Wanna Be Sedated” channels the intensity of Ramonesbut it doesn’t sound like it was recorded inside of a trash compactor anymore. InsteadJoeyJohnnyDee Dee and Marky bring a fancy edge to their once-raw-hemmed noise. There’s something rapturously funtooabout a song that levels its aim at taking some feel-good drugs before a flight or before a show. The “202024 hours to go” line is symbolic in Ramones lorebut “I can’t control my fingersI can’t control my brain” is an equally memorable lyrical standout.

23. “Pet Semetary” (1989)

As Paste‘s current assistant editor Olivia Abercrombie pointed out in her Brain Drain review“Pet Semetary” is the album’s “only saving grace.” The Ramones wrote it for the film of the same namewhich was based on Stephen King’s novel—and it became one the band’s most commercially popular song upon releasepeaking at #4 on Billboard’s Alternative Songs chart. Written by Dee Dee“Pet Semetary” features one of the Ramones’ greatest choruses (“I don’t want to be buried in a pet cemeteryI don’t want to live my life again.” Formulaicyesbut Joey makes it all sound heartfelt and powerful. While the back-half of the band’s catalog is very hit or miss“Pet Semetary” exists as a reminder thateven 13 years removed from turning the punk world inside outthe Ramones could make a damn good rock song.

22. “Teenage Lobotomy” (1977)

While Ramones is the record that went on to define the band’s legacy and place within the punk echelonsit’s time we all get on board with a different truth: Rocket to Russia is their best album. There are quite a few gems in the tracklistand we’ll be hitting a number of them before this list is overbut “Teenage Lobotomy” is the one Ramones song that feels like a Ramones leftover—and I mean that as sincerely as possible. Joey’s snarl is particularly perfect hereas he celebrates being “a real sickie” and admits that he’s “got no mind to lose.” “All the girls are in love with meI’m a teenage lobotomy,” he yells out. I love it when the Ramones put such out-of-pocket language in their songs. Only they could have cooked up a verse with snailsslugs and the word “cerebellum” in it.

21. “You Should Have Never Opened That Door” (1977)

If we were doing a list of the single greatest years for bandsthe Ramones’ 1977 output would be near the top of it. Between releasing Leave Home and Rocket to Russia within 10 months of each otherthey capitalized on the momentum of their self-titled debut by putting out two terrificdynamic records. Leave Home’s closing track“You Should Have Never Opened That Door,” is one of Dee Dee and Johnny’s best collaborationsneck and neck with another song from the same album that’s only a few places higher on this list. This songhoweverblisters at a break-neck pace of 114 seconds. “You don’t know what I can do with this axe,” Joey belts out. “Chop off your headso you better relax.” Johnny’s chords might sound like a machine gunbut it’s Joey’s singing that sharpens like a guillotine.

20. “Howling at the Moon (Sha-La-La)” (1984)

Too Tough to Die was the first Ramones album featuring Richie on drums and isby my accountthe best of the band’s later records. In factyou could argue that Too Tough to Die marked the beginning of the end for the Ramones as we knew and loved them. The heavy riffs were more streamlined and their edge was trimmed by a squeaky-clean production tone. But “Howling at the Moon” is what the Ramones wanted to be: a scathing punk band backed by girl group- harmonics. While Too Tough to Die is considered a reactionary album in the wake of the burgeoning hardcore punk scene“Howling at the Moon” is an air-tight pop gem with bombastic guitar-playing from Johnny thatat the end of the daysounds as good as anything the Ramones made after End of the Century.

19. “Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment” (1977)

“Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment”—goodness what a tune! One of the best songs the Ramones ever madeit islike “You Should Have Never Opened That Door,” a crisp token of Dee Dee and Johnny’s songwriting collaboration. There’s such a great measure of charm and wit on this oneespecially when Joey parades around the recording touting that “peace and love is here to stay and now I can wake up and face the day.” The best Ramones songs come barrelling at you with a wink—until the guitar riffs start bubbling like a pressure cooker ready to blow.

18. “The KKK Took My Baby Away” (1981)

If you think Fleetwood Mac’s interpersonal band troubles were badthen maybe you should sit with “The KKK Took My Baby Away,” perhaps the all-time greatest diss track a musician has ever written about his own bandmate. Johnny started dating Joey’s girlfriendso the latter wrote a song about it and likened his longtime collaborator to the Ku Klux Klan. At the timeit felt like a truly out-of-pocket comparison. Butknowing that Johnny was a lifelong Republican and knowing what the Republican party has become in the 43 years since “The KKK Took My Baby Away” came outit’s not so far-fetched anymore. Honestlyit makes Joey’s digs sink all the more deeper—and “Ring me up the FBI and find out if my baby’s alive” is one hell of a line to sing about your guitarist and ex.

17. “Blitzkrieg Bop” (1976)

Few bands in the history of rock ‘n’ roll have announced themselves like the Ramones did in 1976 when they kicked off their eponymous debut album with “Blitzkrieg Bop,” a two-minute nugget of punk royalty that has long been considered not just one of the band’s best tracksbut one of the most important rock songs of the last 50 years. Known famously for its “big dumb chant,” even the most novice Ramones enjoyers know that “Hey! Ho! Let’s go!” line anywhere. No one can say for sure what “Blitzkrieg Bop” is aboutthough Tommy Ramonewho wrote the songsaid it was about a young crowd at a rock concert. That part doesn’t matterreallyas the crudebombastic tower of sound is what stands out on every subsequent listen. It’s the most influential Ramones song for a reasonregardless of whether or not you think it’s their greatest. “Blitzkrieg Bop” will forever be enshrined in the halls of rock immortalityand for that we must bow down to its power.

16. “Do You Remember Rock ‘N’ Roll Radio?” (1980)

The opening track to my favorite Ramones recordthe Phil Spector-produced End of the Century“Do You Remember Rock ‘N’ Roll Radio?” was a swift introduction to the punk crew’s big foray into overdubsecho and pop orientation. Pairing arguably the greatest pop producer with a band as repetitive and structured as the Ramones may have been a bold leap—confirmed by the subsequent panning of End of the Century—but the collaboration worksand “Do You Remember Rock ‘N’ Roll Radio?” shines because it sounds so horribly forced. The Ramones may have had an affinity of their own for sugar-sweet Top 40 hitsand their blitzkrieg musical prowess may have been just a little too brash for Spector’s visionbut hearing them get syrupy and try their hand at jukebox rock sounds especially good when JoeyJohnnyDee Dee and Marky all harmonize with each other like they’re the Ronettes.

15. “Something to Believe In” (1986)

Fit with the same bell-tolling as “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg,” “Something to Believe In” is the heartfelt closer on Animal Boy. Dee Dee and Jean Beauvoir co-wrote it togetherand it’s got some terrific synth work in there (courtesy of Beauvoir). Joey warmingly sings of loneliness and the imperfections of fameas if the Ramones had finally made it to a place where celebrity could no longer outmuscle a longing from within. “If I was stupid or naivetrying to achieve what they call contentness,” he admits. “If people weren’t such dicks and I never made mistakesthen I could find forgiveness.” The electronics blend into Johnny’s chords with easeas Joey announces an aching plea: “Take my handplease help meman.”

14. “Glad to See You Go” (1977)

After setting the punk world ablaze with Ramonesthe band sought out their next turn: Leave Home. The album’s first track“Glad to See You Go,” carries a similar chord progression as “Blitzkrieg Bop” but packs a far more melodic wallop. That “Glad to see you gogogogogoodbye” line from Joey is a lyrical sibling to the “Hey! Ho! Let’s go!” emblem that remains synonymous with the Ramones’ existence. Butwhat sets “Glad to See You Go” apart from “Blitzkrieg Bop” is the obvious uptick in production quality. The tempo remains just as fastwhile Joey’s singing is as frenetic as ever. Dee Dee wrote the tune about his then-girlfriend Conniewho was infamous in the NYC punk scene for trying to cut New York Dolls bassist Arthur Kane’s finger offas well as slicing Dee Dee’s ass with a beer bottle. With contextthe spite in Joey’s voice sounds even more poisonous. Without context“Glad to See You Go” is a splendid punk opener.

13. “You Sound Like You’re Sick” (1981)

With an opening riff that Green Day would certainly rip off 13 years later“You Sound Like You’re Sick” is the epic barnburner that Dee Dee wrote for Pleasant Dreams in 1981. He also penned the very good “All’s Quiet on the Eastern Front,” but this is the moment on the record where his penchant for juxtaposing brutality with pop splendor is on fullglorious display. “Everybody knows you’re a hopeless problem,” Joey sings outas Johnny’s guitar swirls and swirls around the pounding of Marky’s snare drum. If Neil Young was the “godfather of grunge,” then the Ramones were the godfathers of pop-punk on a song like “You Sound Like You’re Sick.” All of the bands that broke out on the coasts in the 1990s have them to thank for that. Pleasant Dreamsdespite not living up to the hype of its predecessorswas a blueprint for one of the most important musical movements of the last 30 years. “You Sound Like You’re Sick” was the first brick.

12. “BabyI Love You” (1980)

Made famous first by the Ronettes in 1963“BabyI Love You” is one of the best pop songs of its time—due in large part to a combination of Ronnie Bennett’s vocalsPhil Spector’s arrangements and instrumentation by the Wrecking Crew. Howeverin May 1979the Ramones covered the song for their 1980 LP End of the Century and completely rewrote the book on it. At the time of its releasecritics hated it. Kurt Loder wrote in Rolling Stone that it was a “sludged-out rehash of the Ronettes antiquity.” Contemporary assessments are more of the samewith Evan Minsker of Pitchfork calling it a “pound-for-pound attempt to relive Spector’s golden years.” I disagreethough. I think it’s one of the most charming takes on a pop classic—emphasized even more by the fact that a punk band is responsible for it. I’m not saying a full Ramones record of doo-wop tunes would’ve been a whopping successbut I can’t lie: Joey Ramone sounds incredibly good here as he labors to get the words out. With a string arrangement and some ensemble handclaps wisping around Joey“BabyI Love You” is an all-time entry into the Ramones’ canon.

11. “Beat on the Brat” (1976)

Ever since I heard “Beat on the Brat” in the Billy Madison soundtrack for the first timeI’ve loved it dearly. Godwhat a tune. It’s a shame that Ramones gets remembered for “Blitzkrieg Bop” first and foremost. If I had been some music industry overlord in 1976“Beat on the Brat” would have been my pick for the song that first made the Ramones immortal in the echelons of punk rock. Of coursethe “beat on the brat with a baseball bat” repetition is what enduresbut I very much love the way that Joey sings “What can you dowith a brat like that?” It sounds like such a beautiful kiss-off. The song is as nonsensical as it is ferocious—not uncommon when JoeyTommyDee Dee and Johnny are involved—but that’s why we love it.

10. “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg” (1985)

Heard first by me while watching School of Rock almost 20 years ago“Bonzo Goes to Bitburg” is a unique piece of the Ramones’ catalogif only because it was one of the band’s most political numbers. It’s funnyconsidering that Johnny identified as a Republicanbut Joey and Dee Dee (and Jean Beauvoir of the Plasmatics) wrote “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg” as a critique of then-president Ronald Reaganwho’d recently visited an SS soldiers cemetery in the titular German city. Johnny wanted to call the song “My Brain is Hanging Upside Down” on the album-version and he got his waybut “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg” exists in all of its glory perfectly. The phrase was coined by protesters who denounced Reagan’s visitas there were members of the atrocity-committing Waffen-SS combat arm buried in the Bitburg cemetery. Joeya Jewish manfamously said of Reagan’s visit: “How can you forget six million people being gassed and roasted?” As funny as it is seethingthe Ramones blow the president to smithereens—giving a wink and a snarl while doing so. “You’ve got to pick up the piecec’monsort your trash better” is one of the best opening lines the band ever dropped.

9. “Judy is a Punk” (1976)

Ramones is a perfect album. “Judy is a Punk” is a big reason for that. Maybe you’re like me and heard it for the first time when you watched The Royal Tenenbaumswhich was sometime after I bought a Ramones shirt from Hot Topic and wore it around like I was their biggest fan. “Judy is a Punk” is a minute-and-a-half longand all 95 seconds of it can reconfigure your understanding of rock ‘n’ roll in an instant. The Ramones were so good at packing tight punches into minimalist lyrics that it feels like a tectonic shift when Joey enunciates “Ice Capades” in the second verse (same as the first). The “perhaps they’ll dieoh yeah” line is out-of-pocket but hypnotically fun (especially once you realize Joey is not singing “ra-ta-da”—and sensicalgiven thatwellJackie was a punk and Judy was a runt. But who knew a punk track about two people joining the SLA in San Francisco could be so catchy?

8. “OhOhI Love Her So” (1977)

An underrated gem from the Ramones’ second albumLeave Home“OhOhI Love Her So” arrived straight from a ‘60s teen beach movie. It’s so bright and sits in stark contrast to some of those Ramones cuts that dare to split your skull. The way Joey sings the trackputting a feather on the end of his syllables and riffing on meeting a date at the Burger King and then riding the Coney Island coasterit’s so perfectly intimate and earnest. “No one’s gonna ever tear us apart‘cause she’s my sweetheart,” Joey announces to the worldand you know he means it. That final guitar strum from Johnnywhich sounds lifted straight from an Eddie Cochran trackis the kiss on the lips of “OhOhI Love Her So” and its pleasurable pop-rock sweetness.

7. “Questioningly” (1978)

When Tommy left the bandthere was an immediate shift in their sound—as he was the architect of their incredible balance of Wall of Sound pop and marauding coastal punk. Road to Ruinthough not as tough or eternal as the previous three Ramones albumsis all the more enchanting and pensive. The band injected the tracklist with ballads and acoustic guitarsstripping the product of Johnny’s typical penchant for soloing. It’s how something like “I Wanna Be Sedated” becomes so anomalous for its chaosand it’s how you get a career-best song like “Questioningly,” a sugar-sweet tune strung together by Dee Dee and turned immortal by one of Joey’s best-ever singing performances. “Aren’t you someone that I used to knowand weren’t we lovers a long time ago?” remains a potent coupletone that the Ramones rarely lived up to after Road to Ruin.

6. “Danny Says” (1980)

Written about their manager Danny Fields“Danny Says” is the Ramones’ lament of their time spent on the road. Joey sings about going to Idaho when it’s -20 degrees outside. “Soundcheck’s at 5:02record stores and interviews,” he logs. “Ohbut I can’t wait to be with you tomorrowbaby.” The song is full of nods to Get SmartLos Angeles hotels and spending Christmas on the hot west coast. “Danny Says” is full of juxtapositions you can only get when you’re criss-crossing the country over and over. Pair that tender longing with Phil Spector’s perfect productionwhich includes an incredibly ornate ensemble of acoustic guitar and a lingeringdistorted electric axe that crawls to the song’s surfaceand “Danny Says” is a sublime nugget of heavypoppy punk that sounds like the $200,000 it cost the Ramones to make the album in the first place.

5. “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend” (1976)

For an album like Ramones and all of its chaoticpumped-up furyone of its crown jewels is the down-tempostrumming “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend.” The guys turn the volume knob down and unload a dashingly sweet and catchy power-pop track that combines the guitar noise of the rest of the album with the bubblegum sensibilities they’d later test out in full on End of the Century. Only a band like the Ramones could make a record with “Blitzkrieg Bop,” “Beat on the Brat” and “Judy is a Punk” as its first three tracks and thenin one swift turndrop their most syrupy tune next—and act like they didn’t just rip all the paint off the walls. Joey’s singing of “Do you love mebabe? What can I say? Because I want to be your boyfriend” sounds extra mushy when you hear Dee Dee and Tommy’s backing harmonies swirl around his lead like contagious wind. “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend” is the perfect boundary-breaker on one of the greatest boundary-breaking punk records ever—a perfect encapsulation of howbeneath the genre’s riotousangstyhard-nosed surfaceit was built on perfect melodies.

4. “Carbona Not Glue” (1977)

Arriving on the Leave Home tracklist right after “Oh Oh I Love Her So,” “Carbona Not Glue” recalibrates the Ramones into a more brasher tone—though the uptick in production on Leave Home can never allow them to fully slip back into the noisier side of their unpolished roots. If there’s one thing that’s true about the Ramonesit’s that those boys love singing about getting high off at-home products. Lamenting that there’s no more Carbona (a cleaning agent)paint and roach spray in the houseJoey admits that his mom got rid of the glue he was sniffing a year earlier on Ramones. It’s fun to hear some continuity like thatthematically on-par for a band as consistent as the Ramones wereand “My brain is stuck from shooting glueI’m not sorry for the things I do” sounds like a hard-won and hard-sniffed battle cry.

3. “Rockaway Beach” (1977)

For many“Blitzkrieg Bop” is probably the most recognizable Ramones song. For meI knew “Rockaway Beach” before I knew any of their other tunes. It’s Dee Dee’s definitive songand it’s the crown jewel of Rocket to Russia—written about the titular beach in Queens near where Joey grew up and christened as a “beachgoer anthem.” “Rockaway Beach” hit #66 on the Hot 100and its 126-second runtime wastes no time using every pulse of its 185 BPM tempo. Johnny glides through some sped-up downstrokeswhile Joey shepherds the band through idiosyncratic melodies and images of discos and surfers. With a nod to the Drifters and that singalong “Rock-rockRockaway Beach” chorusyou can tell just how indebted to the history of rock ‘n’ roll the Ramones were. Sounding like Little Richard and MC5 all at once“Rockaway Beach” oozes like moon-tinted neon spilling across a boardwalk. As far as teenage anthems go“Rockaway Beach” may be the very best of them all.

2. “Today Your LoveTomorrow the World” (1976)

The Ramones are at their best when they are wrapped up in fits of irony and pitch-black humor. You can find those moments across their entire catalogbut nothing stacks up with “Today Your LoveTomorrow the World,” the closing track from the band’s debut album. An anti-Nazi song written by Dee Dee—who grew up in Germany because his American soldier father married a German woman—as an act of rebellion against his peers who bullied himfew bands have ever had the gusto to open a song with such a swifttoeing-the-razor’s-edge declaration: “I’m a shock trooper in a stupor. YesI’m a Nazi.” Joey follows it up by uttering one of the funniest lines in the entire Ramones catalog: “Schatziyou know I fight for the fatherland.” The Ramones even include their trademark “1-2-3-4” countdown in-between the chorus and outrobut this time Dee Dee sings it in German. Not only is “Today Your LoveTomorrow the World” a perfect encapsulation of the Ramones’ unrestit captures the band at their best. HereTommy pounds the cymbals like his organs will fall out of his ass if he skips a beatwhile Johnny’s shreds so deftly that I can’t imagine he walked out of the studios with every finger still intact. If Ramones is the album that busted NYC punk rock wide open“Today Your LoveTomorrow the World” is the track that knocked the final hinge clean off the door.

1. “Sheena is a Punk Rocker” (1977)

Before the Ramones actually made a record with Phil SpectorRocket to Russia was where they really took a step toward sounding like his Wall of Sound. “Sheena is a Punk Rocker,” like its spiritual sibling “Rockaway Beach,” sounds like an anomaly in retrospect. While bands like the Clash and the Sex Pistols were going for a grimierunkempt soundthe Ramones were tightening themselves up. Johnny’s guitar-playing rarely sounds better than it does on “Sheena is a Punk Rocker,” and the way Joey sings “Sheena is” is such a vocal phrasing earworm that I still hum it even if I haven’t heard the song in weeks. In another lifetimethe Ramones are a doo-wop outfit getting their kicks on the revue circuit. I’m glad we got them in this lifetimethough. “Sheena is a Punk Rocker” is one of those timeless efforts that sounds effortless.

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