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."
Here Today
Ramones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh oh oh, I love ya
Oh oh oh, I love ya
I do, I do
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh, I love ya
Oh oh oh, I love ya
I do, I do
I told you why we just can't make it
I want you still but I just can't take it
The time has come we ought to break it
Someone had to pay the price
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh, it's over
Oh oh oh, it's over
It's true, it's true
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh, it's over
Oh oh oh, it's over
It's true, It's true
I think of times we were together
As time went on it seemed forever
Times have changed now things are better
Someone had to pay the price
And I think of times we were together
As time went on it seemed forever
Times have changed now things are better
Someone had to pay the price
The song "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" by the Ramones tells the story of a love that has come to an end. The lyrics express the singer's love for their partner but also their realization that the relationship just can't work anymore. They come to the conclusion that it's time to break up and move on. The chorus repeats the phrase "Oh oh oh, I love ya" but juxtaposes it with "Oh oh oh, it's over" to emphasize the conflicting feelings that come with the end of a relationship.
The verse explains the reason behind the breakup: "I told you why we just can't make it / I want you still but I just can't take it." It seems like there may have been some unresolved issues or problems that prevented the relationship from working out. The singer acknowledges that "someone had to pay the price" for the ending of the relationship, suggesting that there may have been hurt or pain involved.
However, the song ends on a slightly positive note, with the singer reflecting on the good times that they had together: "I think of times we were together / As time went on it seemed forever / Times have changed now things are better." This suggests that the relationship, while it may have ended, still holds some sentimental value for the singer.
Overall, "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" is a song about the bittersweet ending of a relationship, with conflicting emotions of love and sadness.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh oh oh
Singing without words expressing pure love for the listener.
I told you why we just can't make it
The singer explained the reasons behind the relationship's failure.
I want you still but I just can't take it
The singer still has feelings for their ex, but can’t handle the pain in the relationship.
The time has come we ought to break it
It's time for both parties to move on from the relationship.
Someone had to pay the price
The end of the relationship had consequences for both the artist and the ex.
Oh oh oh oh
Singing without words expressing sadness and remorse.
I think of times we were together
The singer nostalgically reminisces about the past with their ex.
As time went on it seemed forever
The relationship once seemed unending, but now it's just a distant memory.
Times have changed now things are better
The artist acknowledges that things have changed and improved for both parties since the breakup.
It's true, it's true
Acceptance of the fact that it's over and there is no hope of reconciliation.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Douglas Colvin, Jeff Hyman, John Cummings, Thomas Erdelyi
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Luis Gonzalez
Oh oh oh, oh oh oh
I love you
Oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh
I love you
I do, I do
Oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh
I love you
Oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh
I love you
I do, I do
But I told you why we just can't make it
I want you still but just can't take it
The time has come we oughta break it
Someone has to pay the price
Oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh
It's over
Oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh
It's over
It's true, it's true
Oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh
It's over
Oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh
It's over
It's true, it's true
And I think of times we were together
As time went on it seemed forever
But times have changed now things are better
Someone had to pay the price
And I think of times we were together
As time went on it seemed forever
But times have changed now things are better
Someone had to pay the price
NMJ
The way Joeys singing is so surreal here. The way the cameraman is focusing on him at perfect times, The wind blowing through Joey's hair etc, Just adds to the song so much ! RIP THE RAMONES!
Motor City 71
Hell yeah that opening gives me chills
Carlos Guilherme
Verdade Cria um cenário espetacular que liga as sensações da música com emoções. fantástico
Kalitas Bloodchief of Ghet
They always sounded way better live than in studio.
Michelle Harvey
This is the best version of this song. Everything about it is fire.
nosomosnada
La interpretación de Joey brutal!!!
Jord121995
Omg the harmonics coming off Johnny's guitar here sound like heaven.
Aligater Man
Fuckin a right
LSD123
Hell yeah.
el sonido de tu tiempo
Nada supera esta versión