joey the ramones

Jeffry Ross Hyman (May 19, 1951 – April 15, 2001), best known by his stage name Joey Ramone, was an American musician, vocalist and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the punk rock band the Ramones. Joey Ramone's image, voice and tenure as front man of the Ramones made him a countercultural icon.

Early life

Born Jeffry Ross Hyman to parents Charlotte (née Mandell) and Noel Hyman, they lived in Forest Hills, Queens, New York, where Jeffry and his future Ramones bandmates attended Forest Hills High School. Though happy, Jeffry was more of an outcast. When he was 18 years old he was diagnosed with OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder). He grew up with brother Mickey Leigh. His mother divorced and remarried three times.

Jeffry was a fan of The Beatles, The Who, David Bowie and The Stooges among other bands (particularly oldies and the Phil Spector-produced "girl groups"). His idol was Pete Townshend of The Who (with whom he shared a birthday). Jeffry took up drums at 13, and played throughout his teen years. Before he joined the Ramones, he was the singer in a band called Sniper.

Ramones

In 1974, Jeffry Hyman co-founded the punk rock band the Ramones with friends John Cummings and Douglas Colvin, upon which point all three adopted stage names using "Ramone" as their surname: Cummings became Johnny Ramone, Colvin became Dee Dee Ramone, and Hyman became Joey Ramone. The name Ramone stems from a story that Paul McCartney would check into hotels under the pseudonym "Paul Ramon" while touring.

Joey initially served as the group's drummer while Dee Dee Ramone was the original vocalist. However, when Dee Dee's vocal cords proved unable to sustain the demands of consistent live performance, Ramones manager Tommy Erdelyi suggested Joey switch to vocals. After a series of unsuccessful auditions in search of a new drummer, Tommy took over on drums.

The Ramones were a major influence on the punk rock movement in the United States, though they achieved only minor commercial success. Their only record with enough U.S. sales to be certified gold was the compilation album Ramones Mania. Recognition of the band's importance built over the years, and they are now regularly represented in many assessments of all-time great rock music, such as the Rolling Stone lists of the 50 Greatest Artists of All Time and 25 Greatest Live Albums of All Time, VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, and Mojo's 100 Greatest Albums. In 2002, the Ramones were voted the second greatest rock and roll band ever in Spin, trailing only The Beatles.

In 1996, after a tour with the Lollapalooza music festival, the band played their final show and then disbanded. Within eight years of the breakup, the band's three founding members – Joey, Johnny, and Dee Dee – had all died.

Death and influence

Joey Ramone died of lymphoma at New York-Presbyterian Hospital on April 15, 2001, after a seven-year battle. He was reportedly listening to the song "In a Little While" by U2 when he died. This was during U2's Elevation Tour, and from that point on during shows Bono would introduce the song as a tune that was originally about a lovestruck hangover but that Joey turned it into a gospel song.

His solo album Don't Worry About Me was released posthumously in 2002, and features the single "What a Wonderful World", a cover of the Louis Armstrong standard. MTV News claimed: "With his trademark rose-colored shades, black leather jacket, shoulder-length hair, ripped jeans and alternately snarling and crooning vocals, Joey was the iconic godfather of punk."

On November 30, 2003, a block of East 2nd Street in New York City was officially renamed Joey Ramone Place. It is the block where Hyman once lived with bandmate Dee Dee Ramone, and is near the former site of the music club CBGB, where the Ramones got their start. Hyman's birthday is celebrated annually by rock 'n' roll nightclubs, hosted in New York City by his brother and, until 2007, his mother, Charlotte. Joey Ramone was interred at Hillside Cemetery in Lyndhurst, New Jersey.

In 2001, when Joey Ramone died, the Ramones were named as inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, prior to the actual ceremony held early the following year.

Several songs have been written in tribute to Joey Ramone, including "Hello Joe" by Blondie from the album The Curse of Blondie, "Don't Take Me For Granted" by Social Distortion, "Here's To You" by Minus3, "You Can't Kill Joey Ramone" by Sloppy Seconds, Joey by Raimundos, "I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone" by Sleater-Kinney, and "Joey" by The Corin Tucker Band. In addition, surviving Ramones Tommy, CJ and Marky and Daniel Rey came together in 2002 to record Jed Davis's Joey Ramone tribute, "The Bowery Electric". Rammstein also ended several shows of their Mutter tour in 2001 with a cover of "Pet Semetary" in honor of the passing of Joey Ramone. As the tour went on it become a regular show ender and guests joining the band on stage, including CJ Ramone, Marky Ramone, Clawfinger vocalist Zak Tell, and Jerry Only of The Misfits.

In September 2010, the Associated Press reported that "Joey Ramone Place," a sign at the corner of Bowery and East Second Street was New York City's most stolen sign. As of September 27, the sign has been moved to 20 feet above ground level. Drummer Marky Ramone thought Joey would appreciate the fact that his sign would be the most stolen adding "Now you have to be an NBA player to see it."

After several years in development, Ramone's second posthumous album was released on May 22, 2012. Titled Ya Know?, it was preceded on Record Store Day by a 7" single re-release of Blitzkrieg Bop/Havana Affair.

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