Was just playing It's Alive and plenty of bands have live albums with great set lists but I was struck with how a band could have a 28 song list where you go down it and recognize just about all of them as stone cold classics and it was only 1978.

I love that album. I especially love Do You Wanna Dance.

This one wasn’t released until 2003 but I love it too

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...1978_cover.jpg

I like the mix better on the vinyl It’s Alive. I hate to admit I don’t know this as a fact but it seems to me the guitar is always louder in the mix on CD for the Ramones and I like the mix on my records better. They sound more democratic and more punk to me.

So Ramones or Rocket to Russia? The debut is a bit more primitive and brutal but Rocket to Russia makes up for it with sexier hooks and I can't choose.

Leave Home as well

All three have 14 songs

I think probably the debut by a tiny smidgen

But I’m going to choose my favorite first track through 14th

Original release so it’s the Leave Home with Carbona Not Glue and Sheena on RtR

1) blitzkrieg bop -st
2) beat on the brat -st
3) Judy is a punk - st
4) oh I love her so - lh
5) Carbona not glue - lh
6) now I wanna sniff some glue - st
7) we’re a happy family - rtr
8) teenage lobotomy - rtr
9) do you wanna dance - rtr
10) listen to my heart -st
11) 53 and 3rd - st
12) commando - lh
13) ramona - rtr
14) today your love tomorrow the world - st

Using that system that doesn’t establish anything it’s

Ramones - Ramones: 7 points
Rocket to Russia: 4 points
Leave Home: 3 points

You do it.

Later maybe I’ll rank all 42 songs from the first three 1-42 and see how it pans out that way

The Ramones vs. Rocket to Russia is one of the hardest choices in music for me. The Ramones is more iconic but I agree that RTR has better hooks, and it has Cretin Hop, Do You Wanna Dance and Ramona so I think I prefer it

Let’s not forget the genius and perfection of Blitzkrieg Bop. It’s the greatest opening for a debut album of all time. It defines the band right there in just a little over 2 minutes. The insanely infectious guitar riff. The Hey Ho Let's Go chant which would last forever. Joey’s vocals already aggressive and gooey and super on point. No bull**** bass perfectly synchronized with the guitar. Dee Dee and Johnny both pounding down strokes creating that signature sound instantly. Perfect drum beat. Perfect in every way.

When songs become that iconic they take a life of their own beyond the band and maybe that’s why it’s easy to forget they actually ****ing created that ****.

I've played the debut to death since it was one of the only things I had to listen to for years but I'm not even all that familiar with most of their other stuff to go making lists. I'm just having a Ramones week. I'll try to get back to you.

https://media1.tenor.com/images/63b1...itemid=4195535
I know every song they ever released.

You're older than dirt though. And I think the Ramones could have been a monstrous sludge band if they could pull off **** like this with this much nihilism. And yes I'm using the demo version cause it's totally on my top 14 when I make it.

It’s impossible to overstate how great that is.