release date: Jan. 1980
format: cd (1990 reissue)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,70]
producer: Phil Spector
label: Sire Records - nationality: USA
Track highlights: 1. "Do You Remember Rock 'N' Roll Radio?" (4 / 5) - 4. "Chinese Rock" (3 / 5) - 5. "The Return of Jackie and Judy" (4,5 / 5) - 8. "I Can't Make It on Time" - 9. "This Ain't Havana" (4 / 5) - 10. "Rock 'N' Roll High School"
5th studio album by Ramones follows 1½ years after Road to Ruin (Sep. 1978) and it shows a big leap further in a mainstream direction ensured by 1970s Mr. 'wall of sound' producer, Phil Spector, who is only producer on the album. The sound is fine but honestly doesn't really fit the universe created by Ramones, or perhaps how it used to be like 'cause the band may themselves have asked for a broader style and that'sexactly what they achieve here. Although, the album distances itself from the band's previous studio albums, End of the Century still contains several fine tracks but I'm not a big fan of the sound and felt somewhat disappointed about it - back then, mind you. The album is still made at a time when British bands produced simple punk rock albums, but Ramones had already done this on four earlier studio albums and asked for something else.
In retrospect, I think the album stands as the last of the Ramones classic era.
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5, Rolling Stone 3 / 5 stars ]
