Classic Ramones tune, "I wanna' be sedated"
Among the many cool things I've done in my life, very few will compare to the time I saw these guys play live at the Sloss Furnace in Birmingham.* I was a 16 year old punk (although not a "punk" in the mohawk sense), and went with my brother and his friend Ross to the venue. Trouble, a quasi-deist, proto-doom/stoner** band opened up for them. It was an unreal experience, full of the sweaty excitement and frenetic energy that only rock and roll can deliver, and -for my buck- a better high than any drug --either before or since.
Bless ya' Joey (Jeffry Ross Hyman). Smoke one in the Great After Party for me...Aeternum Requiem (1951-2001)
The show ended, and we were waiting for our ride to show up. We had just smoked the last of our Marlboro Reds, as we were milling around near the tour buses. A few of the roadies were loading the stuff back onto the vans and buses, and who should we see? Joey-Fucking-Ramone, with his trademark dark sunglasses, long black hair, and cigarette dangling from his lips. So, rather than ask for an autograph, we did something which I think is far more in keeping with the spirit of the music and the go-to-hell rebellion of youth: We bummed a cigarette from the legend. He tossed us a Marlboro Light, to which we lit, and each took two ceremonial drags off of. That cigarette was extinguished and now is housed behind glass...one of the best memories of our youth, and a poignant reminder that it was the 1970s punks that grounded us after the hedonistic excesses of the 60s and 70s, and kept us grounded through yuppie, prick republican excesses of the 80s. To this day, no kid truly begins their experimentation with a big middle finger to the world without punk as a staple, or a cultural reference.
**Bonus Trouble video for ya! Trouble's seminal Psalm 9 title track. Any one who smoked as much pot and listened to as much Sabbath as I did, has to appreciate this...
* Birmingham was known as the Pittsburgh of the South for almost 90 years. Now, with the destruction of Pittsburgh's steel industry, that city is becoming the Birmingham of the North. The Sloss Furnace burned for over 90 years, before becoming an Historic National Landmark, which hosts civic events, concerts, even a (very good) haunted house. Also, just in case you wondered about the 'Ham's historic connection to steel, the outlying cities are named after steel, such as Irondale and Bessemer (after the Bessemer process). There is even a huge iron statue of the god Vulcan, which sits in the rolling Appalachian foothills of the town.
Pagan deities in the heart of the Bible Belt? I miss home...
I was so there!!!! i was 20 yrs old!!! i remember it being hot and humid as hell and i was sooooo sunburned. aside from the petty little shit it had to be the most memorable concert I have ever seen.
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