The Ramones are one of RtBE Personal Favorites and Leave Home is a big reason why. Their debut and Rocket to Russia seem to get all the love when the bands records are discussed with Road to Ruin also getting exalted but it is Leave Home which RtBE's spins the most.
It is like the middle child of Ramones efforts, overlooked but kick ass through and through.
Joey remembers the band being in great shape for this album and it shows. An extension of the original with pop, punk and a smirking sense of play flowing throughout. Right from the drop of opener "Glad To See You Go" the band is locked in their classic four on the floor style, leading to the pogo'ing of "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment", a pure blast of punk power. "I Remember You" is a gorgeous slice of singing by Joey and widens the bands scope to include a hard edge ballad of sorts while "Oh Oh I Love Her So" is our favorite track on the record.
"Oh Oh I Love Her So" is pure Joey throwing it back to the 50's doo-wop era and modernizing it just a touch with Burger King getting named dropped backing vocals and sweet guitar riffs. This would have been a killer song in Freddie Cannon's catalog and a number one hit if Chuck Berry got his hands on it a few decades earlier; one of the most underrated songs in the entire Ramones catalog.
The strong songs just keep flowing out with the originally banned "Carbona Not Glue" getting huffed and high while "Suzy Is A Headbanger" and "Pinhead" are classic Ramone songs that the band played throughout their long career with "Pinhead" resulting an outsider anthem for all of the freaks to enjoy.
The band gets melodic and pretty for "Now I Wanna Be A Good Boy" and Swallow My Pride" and "What's Your Game" with Joey really shining, perhaps that is why RtBE connects with Leave Home so much, it seems to be the most Joey-centric Ramones album as the punk/hippie/rock and roller got to meld all of his loves into a strong offering.
Leave Home ends with a wicked run of rockers as the smoking cover of "California Sun" kicks off the progression. DeeDee and Johnny get heavy with "Commando" and closer "You Should Have Never Opened That Door" while Joey sticks one more doo-wop influenced number "You Are Gonna Kill That Girl" in-between.
The record sounds great, has fantastic short tunes and continues the winning streak of their debut. In reality the first four records from the punk gods could be considered one long offering, but as it stands, Leave Home should get a bit more love, especially on the 45th anniversary of the albums release.
Buy the album and play it loud today.
No comments:
Post a Comment