Ramones- Road To Ruin LP

Ramones' fourth studio album from 1978. Features the classic song I Wanna Be Sedated. - The Ramones ignited the punk-rock movement with their eponymous 1976 debut album, revitalizing rock and roll at one of it's lowest ebbs with attitude, energy and a loud, fast new sound. By cutting music down to it's bare essentials - four chords; a simple, catchy melody; a sped up tempo and irresistibly inane lyrics, the Ramones blazed the trail for thousands of bands that followed, influencing everyone from The Clash and The Sex Pistols to Green Day and The Offspring. Although The Ramones never achieved mainstream financial success, they released 21 live and studio albums, had a devoted fan base and were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.

• - Disc 1 -
• 1 I Just Want to Have Something to Do (2018 Remaster)
• 2 I Wanted Everything (2018 Remaster)
• 3 Don't Come Close (2018 Remaster)
• 4 I Don't Want You (2018 Remaster)
• 5 Needles and Pins (2018 Remaster)
• 6 I'm Against It (2018 Remaster)
• - Disc 2 -
• 1 I Wanna Be Sedated
• 2 Go Mental (2018 Remaster)
• 3 Questioningly (2018 Remaster)
• 4 She's the One (2018 Remaster)
• 5 Bad Brain (2018 Remaster)
• 6 It's a Long Way Back (2018 Remaster)

Generally considered the last great album from the Ramones' great period -- the record before Phil Spector "ruined" them and changed the trajectory of their career -- Road to Ruin is given five bonus tracks on Rhino's 2001 expanded reissue. Where the bonus cuts on Rocket to Russia were nice, but not really revelatory, these are all very welcome additions that help enhance the album and clarify the group's history. To start with, there are Ed Stasium-produced versions of "I Want You Around" and "Rock & Roll High School" (both originally released on Rhino's 1999 Hey! Ho! Let's Go anthology) that are cleaner, punchier, better than those on the Spector album. Then, there's a live medley from the Rock 'N' Roll High School album that proves the group could still tear it up live. Finally, the selections conclude with demos of "Come Back, She Cried aka I Walk Out" and "Yea, Yea" (the former previously unreleased), fine catchy songs that may not be knockouts, but are certainly good additions to the catalog. To top it off, the disc, like all the other entries in the series, is given a loving booklet with full original artwork, lyrics, liner notes from Legs McNeil, and plenty of rare photographs and memorabilia. All in all, the entire series treats the Ramones' classic period with love, respect, and a healthy sense of fun; let's hope it doesn't stop here, and that their '80s albums are given the same treatment. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide