10 Songs is a weekly list of ten songs that happen to be on my mind at the moment. The lists are usually dominated by songs played on the previous Sunday night's edition of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl. The idea was inspired by Don Valentine of the essential blog I Don't Hear A Single.
This is the first of two editions of 10 Songs this week. Tomorrow's entry will discuss some tracks from This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1183, our special GABBA GABBA HEY! A Celebration Of The Ramones. Today's post deals with ten worthy Ramones-related tracks that were considered for this week's playlist, but ultimately left out.
THE HEARTBREAKERS: Chinese Rocks
Some tracks are omitted from playlists as a result of the normal give-and-take of slappin' a show together. This is equally true whether it's one of our normal weekly Dana & Carl collaborative set lists, or a solo programming effort like the annual Dana's Funky Soul Pit! extravaganzas or this week's Ramones special. We have three hours of airtime, including patter. Some things fit within the time slot. Some things do not.
But omitting the Heartbreakers' "Chinese Rocks" this week was a straight-up mistake on my part. The song was written by Dee Dee Ramone, probably co-written with the Heartbreakers' then-bassist Richard Hell. Johnny Ramone vetoed "Chinese Rocks" as a Ramones song (because of its heroin references), so the Heartbreakers did it instead. Johnny later reversed his decision, and the Ramones recorded it a few years later for their fifth album End Of The Century.
The Ramones' version (called "Chinese Rock") was produced by Phil Spector, and it did not match what the Heartbreakers did with the song. Spector was very much the wrong choice to produce "Chinese Rocks." Oddly enough, the first time I heard "Chinese Rocks" was when the Ramones performed it live on July 6, 1979, a few months before I scored my copy of the Heartbreakers' fantastic Live At Max's Kansas City LP, and certainly before the 1980 release of End Of The Century.
And our Ramones special should have included the Heartbreakers! My bad. I also considered "I Love You"--my favorite Heartbreakers track, and a song the Ramones covered on ¡Adios Amigos!--but I knew "Chinese Rocks" was an essential choice. I wrote it down in my notes. I forgot to put it into the work-in-progress playlist, and therefore forgot about it when assembling the actual show. My girlfriend's cryin' in the shower stall. Oops.
RICHARD HELL AND THE VOIDOIDS: Blank Generation
I knew I wanted to include something by Dust, which had been Marky Ramone's first group. I also wanted to play either "Blank Generation" or "Love Comes In Spurts" by Richard Hell and the Voidoids, Marky's group immediately prior to joining the Ramones. Dust made it into the show, but I wound up cutting the Voidoids.
DIE TOTEN HOSEN [WITH JOEY RAMONE]: Blitzkrieg Bop
Other than deciding (enthusiastically!) to play two versions of "I Wanna Be Sedated"--an elevator music cover by the Nutley Brass and the Ramones' epic "Ramones-On-45 Mega-Mix!"--I was determined not to duplicate songs. One "Rockaway Beach" (General Johnson and Joey Ramone). One "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker" (Josie Cotton). And one "Blitzkrieg Bop."
Our designated "Blitzkrieg Bop" was gonna be a remake by German group Die Toten Hosen, from their 1991 album Learning English, Lesson One. Joey Ramone hisself shows up here to sing along, and the result is nearly as invigorating as the nonpareil original.
My blueprint was solid. I was going to play a clip of my 1994 interview with Johnny, so our listeners could hear him crediting the Bay City Rollers' "Saturday Night" as the specific inspiration for "Blitzkrieg Bop," follow that with the Rollers chantin' S!A!T-U-R! D-A-Y! NIGHT!!, and then the combined forces of Joey with Die Toten Hosen answering HEY-HO, LET'S GO! Foolproof!
Proper staging demanded a different approach. It seemed to me the show really needed to open with a cry of "Hey-ho, let's go!," and I didn't want our first song to be by anyone else but the Ramones. I also wanted our first selection to include the four Ramones I interviewed--Joey, Johnny, Marky, and C. J. Ramone--which meant a live version of "Blitzkrieg Bop." Then Johnny talking about Bay City revelations, and the Rollers singin' about their favorite weekend evening.
It was the only opening sequence that made sense. We'll get to to Die Toten Hosen on a near-future show.
RODNEY & THE BRUNETTES: Surfin' Safari
The "Rodney" of Rodney and the Brunettes is legendary SoCal DJ Rodney Bingenheimer. I believe our Rodney did a total of two releases with two different bands o' Brunettes. I knew the first one, a cover of Ronnie and the Daytonas' "Little GTO" recorded with members of Blondie; the second was this remake of the Beach Boys' "Surfin' Safari," with Beach Boys-affiliated girl group the Honeys singing lead, backed by the Ramones themselves.
My first awareness that this even existed was when Joey Ramone told me that Japanese editions of the Ramones' 1993 all-covers album Acid Eaters contained da brudders' otherwise-unavailable take on "Surfin' Safari." As if I didn't already IMMEDIATELY want that then-elusive Japanese issue of "Surfin' Safari," Joey then mentioned the Rodney and the Brunettes version. Arghh. Forbidden fruit!
I've never seen a copy of this. It only appeared on a 1984 compilation album called All Year Party!, which also treats us with the Ventures playing "Surfing And Spying," a song Charlotte Caffey and Jane Wiedlin of the Go-Go's wrote for them. I eventually tracked down an mp3 of Rodney, Honeys, and Ramones goin' on safari to stay, but I deemed it too lo-fi to meet the radio show's needs.
Note to somebody: REISSUE THIS!!!
JOAN JETT & THE REMAINS OF THE RAMONES: Bad Reputation
In addition to its looming status as our designated father-daughter dance when my darling daughter Meghan gets married this fall, Joan Jett's "Bad Reputation" is a great, great track that is influenced by the Ramones without stealing from the Ramones.
And this live version enlists a couple of actual Ramones, as Marky and Dee Dee Ramone endorse Ms. Jett's admirable absence of damns about her bad reputation. The track was included on a 2013 expanded reissue of Jett's first album, and the only reason it didn't make our playlist was because I didn't wanna take the time to do a radio edit for (mild) language. See, per George Carlin, shit is still one of The Seven Words. No radio edit, so no airplay.
It's okay. Joan Jett doesn't give a damn about it anyway. More power to her!
SLEATER-KINNEY: I Want To Be Your Joey Ramone
In addition to Ramones tracks, Ramones collaborations, individual Ramones working outside the group's aegis, and covers of Ramones songs, our celebration of the Ramones also needed some songs about the Ramones. CELEBRATIONS! My two favorites in this category are Mötorhead's "RAMONES" and Amy Rigby's "Dancing With Joey Ramone." Not even a celestial intervention could have kept either of those tracks out of this show.
We supplemented Lemmy and Ms. Rigby's efforts with works by U2, Lugless Booth, PurrBox, the Rulers, and Huntingtons, even Boris the Sprinkler's "Kill The Ramones." Sleater-Kinney's "I Want To Be Your Joey Ramone" was an almost, one of the last tracks deleted to force-fit the three-and-a-half-hour show into its three-hour time slot.
It's a cool track, and I regret we couldn't squeeze it in. I also regret having to admit this is the only Sleater-Kinney track I know offhand. Gonna have to remedy that.
HELEN LOVE: Debbie Loves Joey
It has been a very, very long time since we've heard the music of Helen Love on TIRnRR. "Punk Boy," Helen's duet with Joey Ramone, was an obvious choice, but her solo "Debbie Loves Joey" seemed, y'know, obviouser.
Nonetheless, we had to cut it for time. "Debbie Loves Joey" and the New Piccadillys' "Judy Is A Punk" were The Last Tracks Out.
THEE HEADCOATEES: Pinhead
Because a special show with GABBA GABBA HEY! in its title should probably oughtta present some version of the Ramones song that birthed that phrase, I did want to push a "Pinhead" in here somewhere. Thee Headcoatees' rendition was selected, prepped...and then dropped anyway. Gabba Gabba, we don't accept you. Time constraints again.
RONNIE SPECTOR [WITH JOEY RAMONE]: You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory
Joey Ramone produced Ronnie Spector's She Talks To Rainbows EP. The EP includes a Beach Boys cover ("Don't Worry Baby"), a live performance of the Ronettes' "I Wish I Never Saw The Sunshine," two Ramones covers (the title tune and "Bye Bye Baby," the latter a duet with Joey), and Ronnie with Joey on this cover of Johnny Thunders' "You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory."
We played "She Talks To Rainbows." This track remained but a memory.
CC AND THE PERILOUS 1.4.5.: Rockaway Beach
Okay, I was tempted. A little bit. But no, we never seriously considered programming this one.
Trust me. You hadda be there.
Hey! Speaking of being there!
IN-PERSON EVENT! On June 29, I will be making an in-store appearance at GENERATION RECORDS, 210 Thompson Street in NYC on behalf of my new book GABBA GABBA HEY! A CONVERSATION WITH THE RAMONES. The book contains my 1994 interviews with Joey, Johnny, Marky, and C.J., which were cited by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as essential reading. I'll be at Generation to chat with fellow Ramones fans, talk about the book, the interviews, and how the music of the Ramones impacted my life. If you are in the New York area on June 29th, I would love to see you at Generation Records. Hey-ho, let's GO!
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Carl's new book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones is now available, courtesy of the good folks at Rare Bird Books. Gabba Gabba YAY!! https://rarebirdlit.com/gabba-gabba-hey-a-conversation-with-the-ramones-by-carl-cafarelli/
This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, and on the web at http://sparksyracuse.org/ You can read about our history here.
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