Ramones – Ramones

How does any of these rhino reissues compare to the US first press?

This pressing is a punchy and loud kick in the teeth. I am well pleased with this purchase. All the 1-2-3-4’s you can handle.

Absolutely savage remix of a record that I thought was pretty much perfect as-is before. THIS is now my go-to Ramones record. Sounds raw, alive, and as another reviewer said punchy. What a gift of a release.

I don’t need to say much about The Ramones’ 1976 Sire debut that hasn’t already been said somewhere so, I’ll sum up. Whether you love it, hate it, or are indifferent, it is simply one of the most important and influential albums (and bands) of the last 40+ years. I am pretty sure Punk still would have happened without it (The Stooges and MC5 and others had already existed after all), but the music (and bands) that subsequently (and believe it or not - concurrently) came out of California and England would have certainly taken an altered path from what it did without the existence and inspiration of The Ramones. Sadly as of 2014 all four original members have died, you are all missed and Thank You dearly for your music. No Punk Collection is worth a crap without some early Ramones in it. As an aside, some would postulate that no Punk collection is worth a crap anyway and strangely without those people Punk would lose part of its reason to exist (no one to shock or offend); so, don’t worry about those folks they do somehow serve a purpose.

Rhino’s virtually noiseless 180gram vinyl re-issue of this classic is magnificent in terms of quality, and easily reveals the limitations and charms of the original recording and mix. This is no sonic spectacular to show off the capabilities of your sound system; it is about faithfully getting across the music in all its angst, joy, aggression, and fun. The band comes out of a wall of stereo sound with limited image specificity and variable instrumental placement (at least on my system), with Joey’s distinct vocals floating out front. I have never been overly happy with all of the instrumental tonalities as captured on the basic tracks, and that won’t change; but you can hear everything, it all serves the music well, and the raw emotion is truthfully captured; so, my complaints are indeed nit-picky and detract not at all from the overall viability and success of the recording. Also, Rhino wisely did not squash the mix with a compressor during the re-master. Let me assure those that have noticed that this is "just loud" this recording was never known for it's dynamic range (the difference between the softest sound and the loudest) It was always "loud" it is after all, unquestionably-- Punk Rock.

The album packaging is premium in nature, but fairly standard. The printing on the jacket and sleeve is a faithful reproduction of the originals on superior cardstock and glossy heavy weight paper. Included is a plastic-lined white paper inner sleeve, this appears to be anti-static as well; I felt no need to follow my usual practice of adding an extra aftermarket sleeve. Thank You Rhino for the care shown in all aspects of this re-release. Highly recommended, and as Rhino says, “Music the way it was meant to be heard: One side at a time”.

Like the sound on this one. It was clean, no pressing defects, and punchy. Not sure how it compares to others but a solid job by Rhino.

Yeah... this is bangin'. Best pressing I've heard easily. The originals of this and Rocket to Russia just sound so warm and ultra-analog. Find a clean copy if you can!

Incredible sounding pressing, vocals are so clear, can’t imagine it sounding any better.

I have this original, first pressing and in VG+ to NM condition ... but no original cover for some reason. If anyone has one they want to sell for a reasonable price for some reason - feel free to contact me via my profile!

So how does this pressing sound? Compared to previous represses.

Btw, this is the first official reissue of the Ramones - The Blitzkrieg Bop!! 7" since 1976 except the RSD release Ramones - Blitzkrieg Bop / Havana Affair from 2012.