Ramones facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ramones
Background information
Origin	New York City, New York, US
Genres	Punk rock, pop punk
Years active	1974 - 1996
Past members	Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone, Dee Dee Ramone, Tommy Ramone, Marky Ramone, Richie Ramone, C. Jay Ramone

Ramones were an American punk rock group who formed in New York City in 1974 and broke up in 1996. All the members of the group had stage names which replaced their real last names with "Ramone." They were one of the first punk bands. Some others were The Clash, Sex Pistols, and The Damned. Three of the four founding members of the Ramones died within eight years of the band breaking up.

The original lineup was made up of Joey on drums, Johnny on guitar and Dee Dee on bass and vocals. Tommy was their manager. Then Dee Dee said he was unable to sing while playing bass, so Tommy got Joey to sing and then played drums himself, leaving Dee Dee to backup sing. Later, Tommy left the band and was replaced on drums by a new member, Marky. Eventually Marky was fired and then replaced by another drummer, Richie. After that, Dee Dee left the band to produce his own rap album. C.J. joined the band as their new bassist.

Their first album "Ramones" is now a classic of early punk rock. The songs are short, the melodies simple and the text is often made up of 2 or three phrases only. Their live concerts were legendary, extremely loud and very short. They played song after song, only interrupted by Dee Dee's (and later, C.J.'s) shouts of "one, two, three, four!".

The Ramones never had big commercial success. Among their best-known songs today are "Blitzkrieg Bop" and "I Wanna Be Sedated." Now they are seen as one of the most important punk rock bands. Several rock bands, including Nirvana and Green Day were influenced by the Ramones.

Images for kids

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  Forest Hills High School, attended by the four original members of the Ramones

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  Ramones performing in Toronto in 1976

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  April 1976 issue of Punk. The cover image of Joey, by Punk cofounder John Holmstrom, was inspired by the work of comic book artist Will Eisner. Holmstrom would go on to do album art for Rocket to Russia and Road to Ruin.

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  Joey Ramone, c. 1980

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  Joey and Dee Dee Ramone in concert, 1983

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  Ramones performing in São Paulo in 1987

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  The band's logo, based on the Seal of the President of the United States

See also

In Spanish: Ramones para niños