Ramones
The Best Of

THE REVIEW

First off, let me just say that I absolutely love the Ramones (except for the drummer, who seems like a loser among losers to me), but one must admit that the Ramones deserve a place in the punk hall of fame, alongside the Sex Pistols, Clash, Dead Kennedys, and the omnipresent Avril Lavigne (who has little to do with punk, but the world seems convinced otherwise).
They are pure punk: they neither know how to compose nor arrange (the drum parts are horrifying), and they can't really play.
They should be considered for their significance in the punk movement, which has managed to wipe out prog rock that was becoming just technique for its own sake (although evidently not all of it, since there are still evil creatures like Malmsteen around, whose songs are exercises in pure technique, perhaps appreciable to a guitarist – virtuoso, of course, because I couldn't do even a thousandth of what our Yngwie does), but from a musical point of view, when scrutinized from a rock perspective, they are a pneumatic void (and even the most diehard punk fans must agree that my reasoning is quite sensible).
But let's leave aside the useless ramblings and move on to the de-review.

The album starts with “Pet Sematary” which, let's face it, has very little of the incendiary punk of “God Save the Queen” or “Anarchy in the U.K.”, and this not-being-punk story continues up to about the tenth track, except for “Anxiety” (a really very nice song). In fact, from track number ten to eighteen there are a series of live performances that are the real core of the CD and represent the raw and gritty sound of the Ramones and, ultimately, more punk.
“Sheena is a Punk Rocker” with that absolutely absurd drumming (evidently they don't know that the cymbals and hi-hat are NOT used for keeping time in sixteenths – and at very high volumes) is a fun piece that flows smoothly to the end; “Surfin' Bird” is a bit tedious, with an interlude of Joey screaming “Surfin' Bird” and making absurd noises; “I Wanna Be Sedated”, one of the Ramones' best songs, although in this version it's sung with a Joey who has a very deep voice.
“Rock and Roll Radio” with a drum introduction that is fun (nothing sublime), but the melody is a bit predictable, except for the bass (very well done in terms of arrangements).
“Blitzkrieg Bop”, the song that sums up the Ramones, with its “Hey ho, let's go!”, in this version is faster than the original and with a series of "adjustments" that make it more appealing.

In short, in conclusion it's nothing special, but it's unmissable for a collector who wants to have in a collection the best pieces of the group that founded American punk.