The Ramones’ eponymous debut album is largely regarded as one of the most influential punk rock records of all time. But that wasn’t the case when the band first released the album on April 23, 1976.
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Although the critical reception of ‘Ramones’ was overwhelmingly positive, the record failed to garner significant commercial success. It would take nearly four decades for the album to reach gold status in 2014, and in 2022, Rolling Stone ranked it No. 1 on its list of 100 Best Debut Albums of All Time.
From its historically low budget to its under-30-minute, all-stinger tracklist, the Ramones’ iconic debut embodied punk in every sense of the word.
The Ramones’ Debut Budget Was Incredibly Small
The Ramones released their debut album through Sire Records, but it took a bit of negotiating to make it happen. When the band first auditioned for the label in 1975, Sire Records offered the punk rockers a single release. The band asked to do a full record instead, and the label agreed—with the caveat that studio costs would come directly out of the band’s advance payment.
The budget for the Ramones’ eponymous album was shockingly low, even for late ‘70s standards. ‘Ramones’ cost $6,400 to produce, a downright paltry sum compared to other common budgets averaging hundreds of thousands. (The total cost of the studio session would be about $35,130 in 2024.) To ensure they didn’t eat into too much of their advance, the Ramones made quick work of the studio session, recording all 14 tracks in seven days.
The Album Artwork Was Meant To Pay Homage To The Beatles
While the Beatles and the Ramones aren’t exactly the likeliest musical pairings, the punk rockers had great respect for the Fab Four. The Ramones wanted their debut artwork to resemble the shadowy black-and-white cover of the Beatles’ 1963 album Meet the Beatles! Sire Records paid $2,000 for a band photoshoot, but the label ultimately scrapped the images, calling them unusable.
Anxious to find a cover replacement, the band opted to use a photo from a shoot they did with Roberta Bayley of Punk magazine. The now-iconic image of the Ramones leaning against a brick wall was a lucky gem in a string of rather unsuccessful—albeit punkish—outtakes, including ones where bassist Dee Dee Ramone was picking dog feces out of the bottom of his shoe, then chasing his bandmates around with the poo-covered stick. Sire Records bought the first image of the band against the wall from Punk for $125.
The Actual Production Style Was, Too
The Ramones looked to the Beatles for more than just visual aesthetics. They also took a page out of the Fab Four’s production book. From microphone placement to divvying up instrumental tracks, the Ramones expanded upon the Liverpoolers’ go-to recording techniques to create a sonic blend that was both a callback to previous decades and, simultaneously, completely unique to the Ramones’ burgeoning punk rock sound.
Producer Craig Leon used a typical four-track setup for the instrument tracks, placing bass and electric guitar on the left and right channels while drums and vocals sat in the middle. Leon also implemented more modern recording techniques like overdubbing and vocal doubling, contributing to the album’s distinct sound.
‘Ramones’ Was Recorded In Creation and Concert Order
The Ramones set out to make an album that was undeniably true to the band, and they did so by keeping the tracklist in order of both the song’s creation and their concert setlist. “We had the songs for the first three albums when we did the first one,” Johnny Ramone later told Rolling Stone. “We already had 30 to 35 songs, and we recorded them in the chronological order that we wrote them. I didn’t want the second album to be a letdown by picking through all the best songs for the first album and using the lesser songs for the second album.”
The punk rockers had a similarly chronological approach to their live performances. In an attempt to harness the energy of an in-person show, the Ramones recorded their 14-song tracklist in the order they would perform their songs at a typical late ‘70s concert.
The Ramones’ Debut Received Far More Critical Success Than Commercial
Listeners who had their fingers on the pulse of the rock and roll scene knew that the Ramones’ eponymous debut was something special. But that didn’t necessarily translate to commercial success. Despite being lauded by countless publications as one of the most groundbreakingly simplistic and powerful rock records of its time, the Ramones only sold 6,000 units in its first year.
‘Ramone’ never managed to break into the U.S. Billboard 100, boasting a somewhat underwhelming peak position of No. 111. Its highest placement in 1976 was No. 46 on Sverigetopplistan, Sweden’s national record chart. The groundbreaking album finally reached gold status after its 38th anniversary on April 30, 2014. The self-titled debut was reissued in May 2016 and included stereo and mono mixes, outtakes, demos, and a live performance from 1976.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
