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(Webmasters note:
Although Chris' contribution isn't specifically a tribute
to Joey, I have chosen to include it as a reminder of the
excitement that Joey's songs generated in fans the world
over.) I knew
it was gonna be a LONG day at school. I had 2 things to
do.None of them 'school' related, as such. But then
again....First, I just had to have that Debbie Harry
poster. WH Smiths. Less than a quid. She was such a sexy
bitch in her prime...still is if you ask me, heh
heh, MOST importantly tho, I just had to get "End Of
The Century ". Full stop,period,no issue.END OF
STORY !
Somehow, I got to the end
of a double science lesson,the bell rang and I came close
to breaking the Junior 100m record, nearly got myself
killed running for the 'bus..and then, eventually, there
I was ..in town.
I paid less than a quid
for Debbie, and then round the corner for THE EVENT !
Money changed hands, fair exchange..I had End Of The
Century in my schoolbag.DONE !
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Back on a bus, I was going
home.Infrequently,when a good looking girl got on the bus, I
would take out the album and wave around. HEY ! it takes all
sorts to be cool.
In my bedroom, I cooly applied
'blootak' to all 4 corners of my Debbie poster, dragging it out a
little, but boy was this gonna be worth it !
Setting my headphones on my head
and laying back, I placed the needle into the groove.
Momentarily,I was distracted, debbie looked SOOOOOO HOT ! I
became aware of a now-familiar stirring....but wait - whats this
? is someone trying to tune in a radio ?...lettuce ? tomatoes ?
and an unfamiliar voice dragged me from my
fantasy....."Let's Rock n Roll With...THE RAMONES"
!!...you mean ..MY BAND ?????? Goodbye Debbie...sorry and
all that jazz...perhaps later, girl.
And those drums began....and
Joey's voice..ROCKIN ROCK N ROLL...LET'S GO !! By the second
line, I was screaming along with him.The guitars, the walking
bass line, the great drums, and what did I hear ? was that a
sax?Jeez !! If I never go to California, drive down an
orange-blossomed boulevard in a soft top, it won't matter...I
could just play this song and I'M THERE !!...
At some point, I grabbed the
inside cover to read the lyrics and maybe, just maybe, try and
sing-a-long with JOEY,( does anyone remember that albums were
also to look at) but to be honest, by the time the chorus kicked
in , I was both frenetically strumming an air Mosrite and hunched
over a coat-hanger (sorry, I didn't possess a hairbrush at the
time!)......
And so it all fades away to
memory.That's all some of us have now. We remember the first
Ramones song we heard, the first Ramones show we went to.Y'know,
etc etc. Just like we rememeber the first girl we kissed,the
first girl we "£$%&*'ed....Remember the Ramones, folks.
bands like them don't come around once in a life-time, they come
around ONCE !!
Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee,
Tommy, Marky, and also Richie and C.Jay.GABBA GABBA HEY !!
THANK YOU. "
Chris ( from Bradford,
England)
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