Greatest Hits

Ramones

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 6, 2006)
• Original Release Date: June 6, 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rhino / Wea
• ASIN: B000EXZI0A
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,601 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Formed in Forest Hills, NY, in 1974, this quartet of quintessential punk forefathers blitzkrieged out of NYC’s legendary CBGB scene and into world fame with three loud, lean, hard, and fast albums before the Sex Pistols even took their first shot. Besides basically inventing punk rock, Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee, and Tommy outlasted almost every one of their legions of followers, delivering their signature pop and garage-flavored chainsaw sound for over 20 years, through a string of infamous albums and 2,263 concerts together. Spanning 1976-1995, this new collection features 20 classic tracks, including "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker," "Rockaway Beach," "Rock ‘N’ Roll High School," "I Wanna Be Sedated," "Pet Sematary," and "Blitzkrieg Bop."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What Hits?, June 9, 2006

By	Tim Brough "author and music buff" (Springfield, PA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Hits is something of a misnomer when it comes to the Ramones. It's more like the tongue in cheek title that the Red Hot Chili Peppers gave their 1993 EMI collection, "WHAT hits?!?" I am sure that anyone who is a die hard fan probably has all these on CD somewhere, or would have picked alternate titles than the ones presented here since a mere 20 songs sells the band kind of short.

It is going to be a damn long time before we have the likes of the Ramones on this earth again, or a band with this kind of influence. Suffice to say that it's all good (with the possible exception of "Baby I Love You" which had Joey Ramone saturated by Phil Spector's stings). For all the critical nit-picking that has occasionaly been leveled about the lack of variation in the Ramones' style, this CD lays that argument to waste. "Do You Remember Rock And Roll Radio" would be a classic out of anybody's songbook, the Phil Spector production should have made this the breakout record that the band so obviously longed for. But it isn't the same song as the rappy "Wart Hog," which is not the same as "Blitzkrieg Bop" etc, etc.

The unifying thread through almost all of these songs was Joey Ramone's voice, which became more and more soulful as their career proceeded. If Dee Dee and Johnny gave guts to the band, it was Joey's voice that gave it heart. These songs may have been punk-rock-tough, yet these "brothers" were never without spirit. When listening to this disc, it's the Ramones' spirit and heart that will stick in your memory, just as much as any of the classic rock hooks they were so adept at creating.

And just for the record, "Loud Fast Ramones" has 30 songs and rocks harder for just a few bucks more.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sorry But...., June 24, 2006

By	Six "Angry Strings" (Hell Centro, CA) - See all my reviews

Ramones are my favorite band ever i would have to say, hence the 5 stars.... but since I have virtually their entire collection, The two best of compilations to get I would have to say are "Loud, Fast Ramones" or "Ramones Mania". Basically if you have those two compilation and their first self titled album, you can consider yourself set for a while. Ramones "Anthology is also awesome. My two favorite Ramones albums of all time are RAMONES "Ramones" and "Mondo Bizarro", Of course I'm talking about getting a quick RAMONES fix here, or if you just wanna check out the band for the first time... you gotta start somewhere right? well i wouldn't start here, I would strongly suggest, for the price and a good starting place either "Loud, Fast" or "Mania", the two-disc "Anthology" is pretty damn good as well... But c'mon ,How bout a rarities disc already or something???

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Greatest Hits???Which ones?, June 21, 2006

By	Erick Bertin (Santo Domingo, Heredia Costa Rica) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If I rate this with 4 stars and not 5 is for one simple reason: C'mon man, lets get serious for a sec, here: I am THE biggest "pinhead" ever (and by that, I mean, the biggest Ramones fan...), but I will always be the first to admit the truth: The Ramones NEVER had any "hits" to speak of. Cult following, over a dozen albums, over 20 years of career... yeah, all of that, but "hits"... I don't think so!

Mainstream success eluded the Ramones during all their career. That's not to say that they didn't have great songs, it simply means that their commercial success was very limited. Few bands have had (and will have) the impact and the influence of the Ramones, but the "Greatest Hits" label really doesn't apply here. Of course, record companies wouldn't know the first thing about common sense, so... clearly in this case they should have used the "Best Of" tag, but...anyway, who cares about semantics?

We're talking punk rock, here, and the Ramones were trailblazers. All the songs here are punk rock classics. As we all know, everyone has their own personal favorites, so everyone has the right to moan and complain about the omission of this song or that song but... the bottom line: if you are a pinhead, you don't need this. If you are looking for a first taste of the Ramones, then this could be the right place to start.

But personally, I would recommend either "Ramonesmania" or "Ramones: Loud and Fast" over this new compilation, simply because they have more songs... it's a little more dough, but it's well worth it. And obviously, "Anthology" is the superior choice...(not to mention the Box Set...)