All of the band members adopted pseudonyms ending with the surname "Ramone", though none of them were related. They performed 2,263 concerts, touring virtually nonstop for 22 years. In 1996, after a tour with the Lollapalooza music festival, the band played a farewell concert and disbanded. By a little more than eight years after the breakup, the band's three founding members—lead singer Joey Ramone, guitarist Johnny Ramone, and bassist Dee Dee Ramone—had died. Drummer Tommy Ramone, the last surviving original member, died in 2014.
Their only record with enough U.S. sales to be certified gold was the compilation album Ramones Mania. However, recognition of the band's importance built over the years, and they are now cited in many assessments of all-time great rock music, such as the Rolling Stone list of the 50 Greatest Artists of All Time and VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock. In 2002, the Ramones were ranked the second-greatest band of all time by Spin magazine, trailing only The Beatles. On March 18, 2002, the Ramones—including the three founders and drummers Marky and Tommy Ramone—were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2011, the group was awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Formation: 1974–1975
Forest Hills High School, attended by the four original members of the Ramones
The original members of the band met in and around the middle-class neighborhood of Forest Hills in the New York City borough of Queens. John Cummings and Tamás Erdélyi had both been in a high-school garage band from 1966 to 1967 known as the Tangerine Puppets. They became friends with Douglas Colvin, who had recently moved to the area from Germany, and Jeffry Hyman, who was the initial lead singer of the glam rock band Sniper, founded in 1972.
The Ramones began taking shape in early 1974, when Cummings and Colvin invited Hyman to join them in a band. The initial lineup featured Colvin on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Cummings on lead guitar, and Hyman on drums. Colvin, who soon switched from rhythm guitar to bass, was the first to adopt the name "Ramone", calling himself Dee Dee Ramone. He was inspired by Paul McCartney's use of the pseudonym Paul Ramon during his Silver Beatles days. Dee Dee convinced the other members to take on the name and came up with the idea of calling the band the Ramones. Hyman and Cummings became Joey Ramone and Johnny Ramone, respectively.
A friend of the band, Monte A. Melnick (later their tour manager), helped to arrange rehearsal time for them at Manhattan's Performance Studios, where he worked. Johnny's former bandmate Erdélyi was set to become their manager. Soon after the band was formed, Dee Dee realized that he could not sing and play his bass guitar simultaneously; with Erdélyi's encouragement, Joey became the band's new lead singer.
Dee Dee would continue, however, to count off each song's tempo with his signature rapid-fire shout of "1-2-3-4!" Joey soon similarly realized that he could not sing and play drums simultaneously and left the position of drummer. While auditioning prospective replacements, Erdélyi would often take to the drums and demonstrate how to play the songs. It became apparent that he was able to perform the group's music better than anyone else, and he joined the band as Tommy Ramone.
The Ramones played before an audience for the first time on March 30, 1974, at Performance Studios. The songs they played were very fast and very short; most clocked in at under two minutes. Around this time, a new music scene was emerging in New York centered around two clubs in downtown Manhattan—Max's Kansas City and, more famously, CBGB (usually referred to as CBGB's). The Ramones made their CBGB debut on August 16. Legs McNeil, who cofounded Punk magazine the following year, later described the impact of that performance: "They were all wearing these black leather jackets. And they counted off this song...and it was just this wall of noise.... They looked so striking. These guys were not hippies. This was something completely new."
The band swiftly became regulars at the club, playing there seventy-four times by the end of the year. After garnering considerable attention for their performances—which averaged about seventeen minutes from beginning to end—the group was signed to a recording contract in late 1975 by Seymour Stein of Sire Records. Stein's wife, Linda Stein, had seen the band play at CBGB; she would later co-manage them along with Danny Fields. By this time, the Ramones were recognized as leaders of the new scene that was increasingly being referred to as "punk". The group's unusual frontman had a lot to do with their impact. As Dee Dee explained, "All the other singers [in New York] were copying David Johansen [of The New York Dolls], who was copying Mick Jagger.... But Joey was unique, totally unique."
04. Psycho Therapy
Ramones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That's what they want to give me
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, psycho therapy
What they want to give me
I'm a teenage schizoid, the one your parent despise
Psycho therapy, now I got glowing eyes
Psycho therapy, gonna kill someone
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, psycho therapy
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, psycho therapy
I like takin' tuinal, it keeps me edgy and mean
I'm a teenage schizoid, I'm a teenage dope fiend
I'm a kid in the nuthouse, I'm a kid in the psycho zone
Psycho therapy, I'm gonna burglarize your home
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, hey
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, psycho therapy
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, psycho therapy
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, psycho therapy
Psycho therapy, psycho therapy, psycho therapy
The song "Psycho Therapy" by Ramones speaks about the desire for psychiatric help in order to address mental illness. The lyrics depict the experience of a teenage schizoid who finds enjoyment in pranks and mugging people. The singer mentions the use of the drug Tuinal to keep them "edgy and mean." The chorus emphasizes the desire for psychotherapy, as the only solution to the singer's perceived problems.
The lyrics may be interpreted as a commentary on the way mental illness was viewed and treated in the past. While psychotherapy is now widely accepted as a valid treatment for mental health problems, it was not always the case. The dismissive tone of the lyrics towards the use of Tuinal and the singer's actions may also suggest a criticism of the state of mental health care at the time.
Furthermore, the song uses the classic punk rock style of fast-paced, repetitive guitar riffs and driving drums, which evokes a sense of restlessness and urgency. The lyrics and music together create a sense of chaos, in line with the theme of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Psycho therapy psycho therapy psycho therapy
The recurring refrain of the song, expressing the idea of receiving mental health treatment.
That's what they want to give me
Referring to the people in power, such as parents or authorities, who want to force the singer to undergo psychotherapy.
All they want to give me
Repeating the idea that the only solution proposed for the singer's problems is therapy.
I'm a teenage schizoid the one your parent despise
The artist is a teenager with a mental disorder, which makes their parents hate and fear them.
Psycho therapy now I got glowing eyes
The artist believes that psychotherapy has given them scary and 'glowing' eyes, possibly referring to a side effect of medication or a symptom of their disorder.
Pranks and muggins are fun
The singer enjoys playing mean tricks and intimidating others.
Psycho therapy gonna kill someone
The singer feels that psychotherapy will drive them to violence or even murder.
I like takin' tuinal it keeps me edgy and mean
Tuinal is a type of barbiturate that the artist enjoys taking to maintain a feeling of being on edge and aggressive.
I'm a teenage schizoid I'm a teenage dope fiend
The artist has both a mental disorder and an addiction to drugs.
I'm a kid in the nuthouse I'm a kid in the psycho zone
The artist is a minor committed to a psychiatric ward or experiencing extreme mental distress.
Psycho therapy I'm gonna burglarize your home
The singer threatens to break into the therapist's home, suggesting a deep resentment towards the idea of therapy.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DEE DEE RAMONE, DOUGLAS COLVIN, JEFFREY HYMAN, JOEY RAMONE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Racheal Plymale
on I Wanna Be Sedated (Live)
My Alltime favorite band!!!!!!!!! Joey Ramone was yummmy!!!!!