release date: Sep. 21, 1978
format: vinyl (yellow vinyl - SRK 6063) / cd
[ album rate: 3,5 / 5 ] [3,68]
producer: Tommy Ramone, Ed Stasium
label: Sire Records - nationality: USA
Track highlights: 1. "I Just Want to Have Something to Do" - 2. "I Wanted Everything" - 3. "Don't Come Close" - 4. "I Don't Want You" - 6. "I'm Against It" - 7. "I Wanna Be Sedated" (5 / 5) - 10. "She's the One" (4 / 5) - 12. "It's a Long Way Back"
4th studio album by Ramones follows the demand for a quick follow-up by succeeding Rocket to Russia by only 10 months. Despite the well-produced '77-album, Tommy Ramone (aka Thomas Erdelyi) left the band in the aftermath of Rocket to Russia to dedicate his work as a studio producer, which he also should continue to take part as concerning the band - this time together with Ed Stasium. Instead of Tommy on drums the new family member is now Marky Ramone (aka Marc Bell).
Several tracks showcase the continued journey of great Ramones kicks but the album also introduces a softer and more mainstream-oriented style on several tracks as on the ballad "Questioningly" and "Don't Come Close", a song I mistook for a 1960s cover but which simply turns out to be entirely written by Ramones. The band had always kept cover tracks on their albums and this time it's a bolder mainstream composition "Needles and Pins", a The Searchers cover (made famous by Smokie) written by Sonny Bono and Jack Nitzsche. Some saw the album as an attempt to satisfy a broader audience but the album still contains some of the bands more aggressive and popular compositions like "I Don't Want You", "I'm Against It", "I Wanna Be Sedated", "Go Mental", "She's the One", and "Bad Brain". The album was my first and (so far) only vinyl purchase by the band. Imho, this is the fourth of five successive great studio albums by Ramones.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, Rolling Stone not rated but less enthusiastic ]
[ collectors' item - yellow vinyl pressing - from ~ €30,- ]
