Jun 08 2002
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I’ve been so preoccupied with my birthday this week that I entirely failed to notice the untimely passing of Dee Dee Ramone on Thursday. It appears that nature abhors a Ramone, since we lost the late, great Joey just before his 50th birthday last year, and Dee Dee, at 50 this year.
Since you all know how old I am, I can freely admit that I have loved the Ramones since high school. The first time I heard them, I was enchanted. My friends and I even went to New York just to see them play. And in the intervening 25+ years, they never lost their charm for me.
Their induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year was too little, too late. They have always had a dedicated fan base, but not a widespread one. Although they have influenced countless very successful and popular bands, the top ten lists pretty much escaped the Ramones. Little did they realize how literal the title of their last album would be: We’re Outta Here.
And half of them are. But they never gave in, never stopped being the Ramones. Their work will live on, in their music and others’. The X-Files’ Langly said it best:
“You want to know why Joey Ramone’s my hero? Because people like you never managed to grind him down. They never stole his spirit. He never gave in, never gave up, and he never sold out, right until his last breath. And he’s not dead. Guys like that, they live forever.”