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."
The Return of Jackie and Judy
Ramones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Judy is a runt
They went down to the Mudd Club
And they both got drunk
Oh-yeah
Jackie is a bookie
Judy's taking loans
Just to see the Ramones
Oh-yeah
And oh, I don't know why she wrote that letter
Oh no, oh no
Oh I don't know why
We won't forget her, oh no
Jackie's playing hooky
Judy's playing pool
They both got caught for cutting
Got to go to summer school
Oh-yeah
Jackie's scalping tickets
Judy's getting harassed
They both got kicked outside
Didn't have a backstage pass
Oh-yeah
And oh, I don't why she wrote that letter
Oh no, oh no
And oh, I don't know why,
don't't know what's on her mind
I don't know, no, I don't know
But I can't stand to see her cryin'
She's still cryin', she ain't tryin'
She's going to get left behind
Nobody wants you, nobody wants you
"The Return of Jackie and Judy" is an upbeat, punk rock song by the legendary band the Ramones. The lyrics of the song tell the story of two rebellious teenagers, Jackie and Judy, who run away from home to New York City. They end up at the Mudd Club, a famous nightclub in Manhattan where artists and musicians would often gather. Despite the fact that they are underage, they manage to get drunk and have a good time. Jackie is portrayed as a bookie who takes bets, and Judy is shown as someone who borrows money from her friend.
The second verse describes how the girls get into trouble by cutting class and playing hooky. Jackie gets caught scalping tickets, while Judy gets harassed by the authorities. They both end up getting kicked out of the venue for not having a backstage pass. The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "Oh, I don't know why she wrote that letter," suggesting that something has gone wrong between the two friends. The song ends with the line "Nobody wants you," implying that the girls are outcasts who are misunderstood and unappreciated.
Line by Line Meaning
Jackie is a punk
Jackie is rebellious and unapologetically goes against the norms of society.
Judy is a runt
Judy is small and perceived by others as weak or inferior.
They went down to the Mudd Club, And they both got drunk
Jackie and Judy went to an underground nightclub, got intoxicated and lost control.
Jackie is a bookie, Judy's taking loans
Jackie makes a living by illegally taking bets on sporting events, while Judy borrows money with the intent of paying it back later.
They both came up to New York, Just to see the Ramones
Jackie and Judy travelled to New York with the specific goal of seeing The Ramones, their favorite punk rock band.
And oh, I don't know why she wrote that letter, Oh no, oh no, Oh I don't know why, We won't forget her, oh no
The singer doesn't understand why someone wrote a letter, but they also won't forget about her.
Jackie's playing hooky, Judy's playing pool
Jackie is skipping school, while Judy is passing time by playing billiards.
They both got caught for cutting, Got to go to summer school
Jackie and Judy were caught skipping school and as a result, have to attend summer school as punishment.
Jackie's scalping tickets, Judy's getting harassed
Jackie is illegally selling tickets at inflated prices, while Judy is being bothered by someone or something.
They both got kicked outside, Didn't have a backstage pass
Jackie and Judy were forcibly thrown out because they didn't have the necessary clearance to enter the backstage area.
And oh, I don't why she wrote that letter, Oh no, oh no, And oh, I don't know why, don't't know what's on her mind, I don't know, no, I don't know
The singer remains confused about the contents and motives behind the letter that was mentioned previously.
But I can't stand to see her cryin', She's still cryin', she ain't tryin', She's going to get left behind, Nobody wants you, nobody wants you
Despite not understanding the situation, the artist empathizes with the person who's crying and wants her to stop, as it's giving a negative impression. Additionally, they feel that if they don't put in more effort and stop crying, they'll be left behind and won't be wanted by anyone.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Douglas Colvin, Jeff Hyman, John Cummings
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@meganshell
Why isn’t this song more famous? It’s one of my favorites 😕
@robertgiresi9515
🎵🎵... and oh I don't know why? ... 🎵🎵
@matiasvazquez6965
Hay una bomba en el colegio!!!
@christopherwilson236
Tom Waits Covered it. Pretty awesome cover.
@santiagocarril2441
I see the cover of Tom Waits the other day. It's great.
@santiagocarril2441
Yep...i think the same. It's a perfect pop song. Well Joey everything was a very fun of The Beach Boys.
In my opinion the voice melodies of this song got the pop influence from Beach Boys....under the production to Phil Spector
@ironox9462
I love how they name drop themselves in the song.
@leolongtime5671
Such an underrated song. ❤
@marcosmenezes9930
Este foi o meu primeiro long play dos Ramones. O ano era 1984. Em seguida consegui o End oh the Century e em 1987 assisti ao show deles no Palace, no bairro de Moema, São Paulo, Brasil. Nunca mais deixei de ouvir os Ramones. Inclusive ainda hoje. Yeah!
@donaldjoy4023
LONG LIVE JACKIE AND JUDY