‘Adios Amigos’: the album that finally broke up the Ramones
Punk rock has always been full of surprises – from The Clash’s flirts with rap to Johnny Rotten’s sudden passion for butter – but few have eclipsed the unfathomable reality that the Ramones lasted over 20 years together. Famously, the core duo of frontman Joey Ramone and guitarist Johnny had a love for each other comparable to a cow’s love for the slaughterhouse. For 14 years, the pair did not utter a word to each other and yet continued to perform in the same band.
Even for a punk band, the Ramones had a ridiculously tumultuous history. Formed in the New York borough of Queens, the group were among the first in a wave of punks that would soon characterise the music scene of the city. Stalwarts of the legendary East Side venue CBGBs, the group are even credited with being the first true punk outfit. However, that title is incredibly reductive and downplays the impact of proto-punk artists like The Stooges, Patti Smith and The MC5.
The Ramones were seemingly on to a winner with their blitzkrieg approach to punk rock. Signing to Sire in 1975, it seemed as though big things were on their way. However, the group failed to achieve much commercial success with their eponymous debut, much to the disappointment of Sire. Although they never made much money, their first three albums are undisputed masterpieces of the punk rock genre, blending 1960s pop influences with buzzsaw 1970s punk rock. As the 1970s drew to a close, though, the fashion of punk rock had largely dissipated. Most of the Ramones’ CBGB brethren had moved on to bigger and better things, with groups like Blondie and Talking Heads spearheading new wave pop.
Ultimately, commercial success was the least of the Ramones’ worries. In-fighting had plagued the band from the early days, with Joey’s free-spirited hippie tendencies clashing with Johnny’s hardline, right-wing personality. This all came to a head in 1982 when Joey’s girlfriend, Linda Danielle, left him for Johnny – who would go on to marry her. From that point on, the pair did not speak a word to each other.
Usually, when a group is faced with diminishing record sales, the departure of key members, and bitter conflicts within the line-up, they would most likely call it a day, cash in on an autobiography, do some solo tours and then retire to the country to live off of royalties. However, the Ramones were ruthlessly non-conformist – often to their detriment. Rather than jacking it in, the New York band continued as if nothing was wrong, failing to adapt their sound to changing musical trends and playing largely to the same audiences they had been doing since the 1970s.
The tension within the band proved too much for other members, and gradually, the original line-up of the Ramones dropped out. By the time the group came to record their 12th studio album, 1992’s Mondo Bizarro, Joey and Johnny were the last original members to feature in the line-up. Valiantly, or perhaps foolishly, the group continued on for three more years, with even the most hardcore Ramones fans openly admitting that the material produced during this time was incredibly lacklustre.
The final nail in the coffin for the Ramones came in 1995 with the release of ¡Adios Amigos!, an album that is best forgotten. Although it received generally positive reviews at the time, looking back in hindsight, it is one of the worst Ramones albums of all, though this should come as no shock, given that the band were purporting a 1975 sound in 1995. A year following its release, they finally parted ways for good. Today, none of the original members are still with us, meaning a reunion is certainly not on the cards. ¡Adios Amigos! will remain the depressing last hurrah for one of punk’s biggest acts.
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