Customer Reviews

Road to Ruin

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"Road to Ruin" is the penultimate Ramones album. While the songs may be considered by many to be too "pop" by punk standards, there can be no denying that it contains several classic tracks.

The album kicks off with the raucous and catchy "I Just Wanna Have Something To Do". The guitar work is instantly recognizable as that of Johnny Ramone. Joey's vocals are dead on. Dee Dee and Marky provide some of the best rhythm sections on this song.

What follows is a fantastic roller coaster ride of timeless classics from those four boys from Forest Hills, Queens. "I Wanted Everything", "Go Mental" and "I'm Against It" feature some of Joey's more entertaining vocals.

The Ramones anthem of "I Wanna Be Sedated" makes its appearance here. What else can you say?! A gem of a song. The song that most probably inspired every other punk band in the world to pick up a guitar and learn three chords. It is also the song that the band is perhaps best known for.

My clear-cut favorite on Road to Ruin is "Questioningly". The Ramones proved time and time again throughout their career that they could not only perform hard core punk; but, that they were also able to create a ballad that paints a dynamic picture. This is my entry for the best ballad they ever did.

This perennial disk from the Ramones is far too good to be only available as an import. It should be part of their standard catalog. If you get a chance...pick this one up. It's a must own album for any fan of the Ramones!!

Gabba Gabba Hey!!

Maybe it's that I'm bummed out (still) from Joey Ramone's death. Maybe I'm just feeling nostalgic. Maybe I'm just remembering the first time I ever heard the Ramones, when I was 16, riding around suburban Chicago when a friend of mine blasted out "I Just Want To Have Something To Do" on his jambox. I can't say that a single song changed my life, but I still get shivers when I hear those first chords of that song. That's the day I started listening to punk rock, and it's fair to say my whole worldview has changed with it.

The Ramones were an American original, and "Road To Ruin" comprises some of their best work. "I Want To Be Sedated," "Bad Brain," and "Go Mental" are some hilarious takes on mental health, while "Needles and Pins" could be the best cover ever done (Joey at his finest). Maybe the best song is "It's A Long Way Back," which is comprised of the following lyrics:

You by the phone You all alone It's a long way back to Germany It's a long way back to Germany

I'll miss Joey, and I miss the Ramones, but this record is as good as any at capturing the essence of those four dudes from Queens.

The first ramones album i ever bought as a 14 year old in 1985,and an album i still play to this day. the ramones are the beach boys of punk rock and possibly thee major influence on british punk.
'road to ruin' is classic ramones at their bubble gum best you cant help but getting up and strutting your stuff to the likes of 'i wanna be sedated' or maybe even 'dont come close' then again you might just shed a tear to their brilliant cover of 'needles and pins' or even the excellant 'questioninly'.
'road to ruin' is a perfect starter for newcomers and all classic rock music lovers, its also best played loud.

The Ramones were a great singles band that made several great albums. Road to Ruin was their seminal achievement. Early enough to be raw, but refined by three previous studio efforts, this record has it all. It's got great pop, great rock, great lyrics, great arrangements(!) and catchy hooks throughout. There's no let-down - no bad tune - they're all great. Anyone will be singing/shouting these songs within a few hours of playing this CD. I heard that Joey Ramone died recently. That's too bad. The Ramones probably never got the attention and the affirmation they deserved. Their influence was enormous, as it should have been, but they never had that hit single they so richly deserved. To make up for it, I plan to make sure my kids know all the words to "Rockaway Beach" and many of the other Ramones classics ("I Wanna Be Sedated"), so they can share this great music with their friends.

Really. Buy this CD. You won't be disappointed.

I have this one on original vinyl, I got lucky and found it used. This has got to be one of the classic Ramones albums. It goes a little off track into more bubblegum-type rock, and in my experience only truly appreciated by the true fans. Still it's gotta be one of my favorites next to Pleasent Dreams.

I love the Ramones, and to me this is the best record they ever did. The energy, songwriting and production are all top-notch. Many of these songs were featured in their movie "Rock & Roll High School" - also HIGHLY recommended! One of the best albums ever for this period of punk rock!

This is an album that I go back to again and again. I've been listening to it on cassette for over 10 years, and am glad to finally get a 'clean version' on CD. The songs range from the head rocking "Questioningly" to the serious jumpin' around, hit-the-seat emotion of "I Wanna Be Sedated", "I'm Against It" and "Bad Brain".

If you like your punk rock a bit softer than and more intelligible than the Sex Pistols and others of that genre, then go for this set. There's a lot of positive energy in here, and it really makes you feel the wildness of youth again!

Although I am for the most part devoted to music of the 1960s, not '70s, this record has become one of my all-time favorites. The Ramones have captured the essence of great rock and roll: simplicity, emotion, and that raw edge that originated in the blues.

The faster songs, like "I Wanna Be Sedated," pack a lot of power. But I think the slow ones are superb. Their rendition of "Pins and Needles" is a beauty. Here, even a punk rock band shows it can convey sensitive and very real male emotions in an extraordinary way. The same power and sensitivity come through in "Questioningly." In these songs male sexuality and male emotion are merged.

The Ramones in this album show they have indeed mastered the art of songwriting.

The Ramones-Road To Ruin *****


Road To Ruin was an album title that totaly reflected none of the music. It maybe the most irrelavent album title in all of history in once since and dead on in another. Road To Ruin is actually one of The Ramones very best albums. I hold it higher then the legendary debut, and think Rocket To Russia may be the only other album better then this. But at this point the boys had given up on themselves. They had realized they were never going to be mega stars at this point and were never going to be the next The Beatles like they had started out to be, so their metality was that they were ineveitably on the road to ruin if you will, and The Ramones were pissed off about it. Road To Ruin was a major step forward for the band as well as a massive change both metaly and phisicaly. Tommy had left the band to become a full time producer and enginer and the band recruted Marky which helped to make the sound more aggresive. The band grew musicaly and creativley. They were making more then just three chord songs here, and the songs were no longer "we're gonna find happiness amongst the choas." Oh no, The Ramones were angry and ready to let the world have it which is what makes this album so beautiful because Joey was really heated. This album also showed the experimental side The Ramones that the world had never ever seen before.

'I Just Want To Have Something To Do' opens the albums feriously and with sophistication. This song showed show much growth by the band from their previous album Rocket To Russia as far as musicianship, lyrics, and arrangement are concerned. One of the better songs the band ever wrote, and possible the best on Road To Ruin. 'I Wanted Everything' is an aggressive rant about wanting it all...fame, fourtune, millions of fans, and notatriety all things the band would atane after their retierment but at the time it seemed like it would never happen. 'I Wanted Everything' is unlike anything the band had previously released. 'Dont Come Close' caused a lot of contraversy upon release of this album. Many fans, critics, and supporters of the band wrote it and 'Questioningly' of as country western songs but anyone who listens to the songs can tell that it is just not the case. 'Dont Come Close' is so signature Ramones its not even funny. The song comes acrossed on first listen as a shock but upon inspection it is just like a million other 1960's pop songs which is what the band set out to make songs as, so it fits in perfect for the band. The acoustic guitars are a nice change of pace for an album that is so angry. 'I Dont Want You' is a cry for desperation in anger and pain. It is 'I Just Want To Have Something To Do' continued musicaly. The song hits you like bricks in the chest and doesnt appologise, it shows you the band means buisness here. It helps to make Road To Ruin the bands version of The Beatles album Help! 'Needles And Pins is an excellent cover that completly owns the original. Never has suicide sounded so....well not bad. The Searchers did the original and it was good but faulters in comparison to The Ramones cover. 'Im Against It' maybe the angriest song the band ever recorded. The verses to the songs are written light hartedly in humor as the band has been known for but then the chorus kicks in and anyone who has heard Joey sing the legendary "Im Against It" chorus knows the man is pissed about something. You can feel the conviction in the song and the emotion behind it. If you were to make a list of the three greatest Ramone songs ever recorded then 'I Wanna Be Sedated' would have to be included. The bands most popular song next to 'Blitzkrieg Bop' and is maybe the only Ramones song to ever get regular radio play, It is still played to this day. Rumor has it the song was written after Joey was burned before a show and had to be taken to the hospital but he knew the band had a whole leg left on their tour so he said "Put me in a wheel chair get me on a plain before I go insane" and the song was written right after that. Classic. 'Go Mental' is anthemic. The chorus is so believable and convincing. While it isnt the strongest song on the album you wanna sing with it every time it plays. Johnny also plays some of the best guitar of his career on this song as well. 'Questioningly' is the other country western song mentioned earlier. Its not country, sorry but its not. Because Whiskey is mentioned and slide guitar is played someone decided The Ramones went George Jones. This is a nice love song while not a 1960's pop song like 'Dont Come Close' it is still a really good love song amongst some much frustration. 'Shes The One' is just killer. It sounds as if the band finished recording and said "oh no we need a pop song," but it doesnt matter because it is one of the best songs on the album and totally ture blue Ramones. Classic, the song is just so killer. 'Bad Brain' is a return to the more punk sounding song. Yet another song about insanity which as well all know is a very popular subject in the Ramones cannon. It is rumoured that the hardcore/punk band Bad Brains actually got their name from this song, they were going by another name at the time this was released and decided to change. Even if that is not whole truth, the song is still great with out the legend. 'Its A Long Way Back' is a three line rant written by Dee Dee about Germany where he was born. It has really good production and sounds great but does not really offer much to the listener, Im a personal fan of the song but think 'Bad Brain' should have close the record. Still a decent finish to the album.

Depending on what version of the album you buy there are five bonus tracks at the end of the reissued version. 'I Want You Around' which is a nice pop song from the band and classic, but this is an alternate version. Also included is an alternate version of 'Rock N' Roll Radio' which is one of the bands all time best songs and this version is no different the only alteration is that it does not include the radio intro. A live medly of 'Blitzkrieg Bop/Teenage Labotomy/California Sun/Pinhead/Shes The One' is included here which was originaly on the Rock N' Roll Highschool album. 'Come Back, She Cried A.K.A. I Walk Out (Demo)' is also included and its really good. 'Yea, Yea' is another demo track and is really cool, sort of like 'Shes The One.'

With or without the bonus tracks Road To Ruin is an excellent album. Its one of The Ramones very best albums if not their best. One of the finest punk albums as well as rock n' roll albums of all time. Road To Ruin was a rare moment in Ramones history that no one should miss out on. It is an incredible album that should be included in everyones collection. I have never met a person to not like The Ramones, the punk label sometimes scares some away but with a chance and a listen you will see that The Ramones are just a tougher version of The Beatles.

With the untimely death of punk messiah Joey Ramone, I felt it was proper to write a review for a Ramones album. Road to Ruin was my second exposure to the New Jersey powerhouse. I first heard the loud, hard 3-chord craziness of the Ramones with their album "Pleasant Dreams", which is Phil Spectorific. But this album is far more raw and ragged. "I Wanna Be Sedated" is a punk anthem. "I'm Against It" is the Ramones at their wonderfully sophomoric and sublime: "I'm against Jesus freaks/ I'm against circus geeks". It's hard to put into words what the Ramones did in music, which was: influence the Sex Pistols and the Clash, reinvigorate the tepid, overproduced schlock of 1970s rock (Journey, anyone?), and bring back the adolescent rebelliousness back to rock n roll. The Ramones were as influential as the Beatles, inspiring everyone from Johnny Rotten to Sleater-Kinney to the Donnas to the Smashing Pumpkins. Pretty amazing, huh? So why don't you own this album? Buy it to annoy your parents. Buy it to piss off your neighbors. Buy it to feel alive.