1977 - Ramones - Rocket to Russia (40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition 2017)

 1977 - Ramones - Rocket to Russia

(40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition 2017) @320

With its frankly McCarthyite, anti-Communist iconography, November 1977’s Rocket To Russia may have implied a new level of political engagement on the Ramones’ part; but if anything, was actually a loving genuflection before the altar of pop, with an AM radio pressed against its ear.

Besides which, it casually smelted the sub-genre of surf punk en route. Lyrics of Runyonesque pertinence (“Sittin’ here in Queens, eatin’ refried beans, we’re in all the magazines, gulpin’ down thorazines” – We’re A Happy Family) went toe-to-toe with Empire State choruses and an idiosyncratic worldview which encompassed raucous nihilism on the one hand (I Don’t Care, Teenage Lobotomy), and surfboards and discotheques on the other (Rockaway Beach, Sheena Is A Punk Rocker).

The perfect balance of ramalama and, ah, ding-dong. That simile probably worked better in theory. Without the blazing guitars and self-referencing –“Hey Johnny, hey Dee Dee, Little Tom and Joey” – Ramona would just be The Beach Boys circa 1963.

This deluxe remastered edition also features a crisp ’n’ dry new mix by Ed Stasium – reproduced on the accompanying LP – a bonus disc of extras, and one glorious disc given over to the band’s valorous, inflammatory December 1977 concert at the Glasgow Apollo, attended by this writer. I can clearly remember the mics suspended from the balcony, with punks leaping in the air to nut them or nick them. (Record Collector)

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