Fans wait outside CBGB on closing night
Photo: MTV News

NEW YORK — A throng of reporters, cameramen, middle-aged punks in bomber jackets and porkpie hats, celebrities like Chloë Sevigny, Elijah Wood and Ed Burns, cigarette-scrounging panhandlers, the Hungry March Band and a Segway-riding man in a pink trench coat flooded the sidewalk outside 315 Bowery Sunday night.

It was the last night for seminal punk club CBGB, which is closing this week after a lengthy rent dispute ended with the building's owner, the nonprofit Bowery Residents' Committee, opting not to renew 76-year-old owner Hilly Kristal's lease.

The media folk were gunning for just the right shot — which they got when punk legend Patti Smith, CBGB's final performer, stepped outside into the crush to snap some Polaroids of the club's faded awning. The aged punks — who seemed to feel it was their right to be there even if they didn't have a ticket for the gig — wanted to be a part of rock and roll history and kiss one of the city's most beloved musical landmarks goodbye. The rest of the mob just wanted to party.

The police showed up too. The cluttered sidewalk choked off the flow of pedestrian traffic, forcing the club's security to constantly ask revelers to move along until something dawned on them — if the club was issued a ticket, "We won't have to pay it," as one employee declared.

At that moment, reality seemed to finally hit everyone who'd been standing outside the grimy club for hours in the brisk fall cold like a brick to the forehead — this was it. Tomorrow, CBGB would be boarded shut, its contents packed up for the club's impending move to Las Vegas. Kristal, the club's owner for all of its 33 years, has to be out by Halloween (see "CBGB Owner Relocating Club — Urinals Included — To Vegas This Spring").

Despite this heavy truth, the mood inside CBGB wasn't one of mourning, but of celebration. For most present, Smith's closing concert was about honoring the bastion of punk's fabled past, its lasting impact on a still-vital genre and all the bands whose careers the decrepit place helped to launch, including the Ramones, Blondie, Television and Talking Heads. American punk rock may not have been born here, but Kristal — who is battling lung cancer — certainly gave the genre its first big break (see "Good Charlotte, Audioslave, Blink-182 Weigh In On CBGB's Plight As Deadline Looms").

			Remembering CBGB Watch Bono, Beck and more share their favorite memories as the seminal punk club closes its doors.

Still, that didn't stop reporters from asking Smith whether she considered the event to be the equivalent of a punk-rock funeral during a brief press conference that preceded CBGB's swan-song gig. And Smith's response proved she still possesses plenty of punk-rock attitude: "That's too much of a f---ing stupid question for me to answer."

Smith, punk's poet laureate, stood at the edge of the club's sticker-coated stage, the rim of which has been worn away from years of hearty slam dancing, and talked about her favorite CBGB memory (the first time she set foot in the venue, to see Television in 1974), the prospect of playing the Las Vegas CBGB ("We had a job in Las Vegas four years ago and we sold 85 tickets and they canceled the show — I vowed never to return") and what the institution's closure means for the future of underground music ("CBGB is a state of mind. and what's going to happen is young kids all over the world are going to have their own f---ing clubs and they won't care about CBGB because they're going to have the new places, and the new places are always the most important.")

Backed by her longtime guitarist Lenny Kaye, drummer/bassist Jay Dee Daugherty, multi-instrumentalist Tony Shanahan, and, for most of the night's second set, the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Flea on bass, Smith rocked the beer-swigging audience members, who were crammed uncomfortably close to each other in front of the stage and down the length of the club's bar. Television's Richard Lloyd took the stage for a rendition of his band's classic track "Marquee Moon." Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads wandered the crowd, as did E Street Band guitarist Little Steven Van Zandt, who had battled to keep the club open amid a very public, venomous rent dispute (see "Public Enemy, Blondie Rally For Naught: CBGB Lease Expires").

Dozens of well-wishers approached Kristal at his private table to shake his hand and thank him for the musical legacy he's leaving, while Smith and friends ripped through two raw, impassioned 90-minute sets plus an encore. The night began with Smith's "Piss Factory," and included several apropos covers, including "Tide Is High," which was made popular by Blondie, the Velvet Underground's "Pale Blue Eyes," the Dead Boys' "Sonic Reducer," the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter," the Who's "My Generation," and a medley of Ramones classics — "Blitzkrieg Bop," "Beat on the Brat," "Rock and Roll Radio" and "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker." Smith's voice was smoky, and the band was tight — but the show wasn't perfect.

Smith stumbled through several songs in the first set, cutting the band off and then taking it from the top after she forgot the words. She had to refer to lyric sheets, insisting, "It's not a result of old age. I had to do this 30 years ago. I'm not good at memorizing stuff. That's why I didn't become a mathematics genius."

During the second, stronger set, a newly energized Smith swayed back and forth and bounced across the grungy stage as the band tackled tunes like "Redondo Beach," "Free Money" and "Pissing in a River." The entire audience seemed to sing her words back at her, as they danced atop chairs and tables under the neon light of the beer signs hanging from the dingy ceiling.

Flea, who turned 44 at the stroke of midnight, was treated to a thunderous and heartfelt "Happy Birthday," supplied by Smith's band and the crowd. After a few political rants in which Smith implored the crowd to take action to change the world — specifically referencing the environment and the U.S. prison at Guantánamo Bay — she concluded with a high-voltage rendition of "Gloria," at times replacing the "Gloria! G-L-O-R-I-A!" chorus with "Hey ho, let's go!," a fitting homage to the Ramones.

Before she left the stage, Smith played a somber "Elegie," which concluded with a list of the many musicians who have died in the years since they'd played CBGB, including Joe Strummer, Johnny Thunders and Joey Ramone. The moment brought tears to her eyes, and many in the crowd paused to consider the gravity of the club's closing before they strode out the entrance for the very last time. Some tore mementos from the walls as they left.

This week, Kristal will pack up as much of the club as he can with plans of re-creating a CBGB franchise in Las Vegas this spring. CBGB's lease with the BRC expired on August 31, 2005, but the club continued to operate for several months before both sides reached an agreement that mandates Kristal vacate the premises by October 31, 2006 (see "CBGB Served With Eviction Notice").

Last week the Bowery Residents' Committee's executive director, Muzzy Rosenblatt, refused an interview request from MTV News to discuss what the future might hold for the CBGB space.

• Remembering CBGB

• Patti Smith, Punk Fans Bid Farewell To CBGB

• Patti Smith
• Flea
• Tony Shanahan
• Lenny Kaye
• Richard Lloyd

Marky Ramone (file)

It isn't easy being a Ramone.

With three of the bandmembers dead (Joey, Dee Dee and now Johnny), the remaining members are left to carry on a legacy that doesn't completely include them, since only one (drummer Tommy) was an original member. Still, Marky Ramone, who took over on drums after Tommy's departure and played with the band longer than any other non-original member, is doing his best to carry on for the band — mainly with a DVD he's put together about the group, called "Raw." And it couldn't have come out at a better time, Marky said. "Raw" is the happier-days antidote to all the obituaries of the last three years — and to the recent rumors about how the bandmembers actually hated one another.

"Contrary to what a lot of people thought, it wasn't just infighting. There were good times too," said Marky (real name Marc Bell). "And I'm grateful to have been in a band like that."

During the last eight or nine years he spent touring with the Ramones, Marky carried a Hi-8 camera with him everywhere he went, and he shot a ton of behind-the-scenes footage. He said that at the time, he hadn't been thinking about releasing it one day — it just seemed like a natural and non-intrusive way to document the band. "They weren't playing up to the camera or anything," Marky said. "And I had no commercial thoughts at all. I just thought I might give [the footage] to them as gifts one day. It just seemed like a good idea."

In all, Marky shot around 200 two-hour tapes. Eventually, over the course of nine months, he and director John Cafiero whittled the footage down to five hours. Then, in May, Marky brought Johnny Ramone in to work on the commentary track.

"He went to the studio, he watched it and then he made his comments," Marky said. "It was very simple. He didn't want to watch all the footage before the finished version. He wanted his reaction to be fresh on the first viewing. And he'd get so focused, going over those memories. I think he really enjoyed it."

Johnny's prostate cancer was taking a heavy toll on him by that time (see "Ramones Guitarist Johnny Ramone Dies At Age 55"). "I'm amazed he had the energy to do this," Marky said. "And I'm grateful that he did this. I'm also grateful that I was able to give him something back, that it gave him a chance to relive those memories. And he gave us a huge compliment. He said this was exactly the way he remembered it, too."

Once Marky saw the condition Johnny was in, he decided that if anyone asked him about the guitarist's health, he would tell them the truth — that he thought Johnny was dying. That decision didn't make Marky very popular in the Ramones' circles, and it made Johnny's wife, Linda, very angry at the time (see "Johnny Ramone Is Not Dying, His Doctor Says" ).

"I got some flak for it," Marky said. "But it was the truth, and I felt a responsibility to say something. I wasn't being vicious. I was just trying to set the record straight. Some people were happy I told the truth. Johnny was OK with it, but his wife was a little upset. But it came from a positive place on my end, and we all made amends."

Marky says that "Raw" — as opposed to another Ramones doc called "End of the Century" — is (inevitably) from a more positive place (see " 'End Of The Century': The Ramones' Long, Sad Trip, By Kurt Loder"). "End of the Century" directors Michael Gramaglia and Jim Fields focused on the dysfunction within the band, most memorably with a harsh scene in which Johnny explains why he never contacted Joey after the band's 1996 breakup — even when the singer was on his deathbed ("If I didn't like someone, I wouldn't want them calling me up if I was dying," he said). In addition, Marky said, "End of the Century" doesn't really capture the band the way the members remembered it themselves — or at least the way Marky does.

"It's good," he allowed. "It's a decent job, and everyone should go see it. But it's a straight-up documentary. 'Raw' is also true-life events, but it's more [our] experience of them. You're witnessing it with us versus looking at it after the fact. It's the closest to us that you can get."

• The Ramones
• Marky Ramone
• Joey Ramone
• Dee Dee Ramone

Justin Timberlake's "Rock Your Body" video will debut on MTV's "Making the Video" on Thursday. Francis Lawrence, who helmed the singer's Britney revenge fantasy a.k.a. the "Cry Me a River" clip, again called the shots. "Cry Me a River," meanwhile, will be released Tuesday (February 18) as a limited-edition maxi CD, with remixes by Junior Vasquez, Basement Jaxx and Dirty Vegas. ... Another round of presenters has been announced for the now very imminent Grammy Awards. The aforementioned J.T. will hit the stage on Sunday to hand out a gramophone, as will last year's Grammy gobbler Alicia Keys, Aretha Franklin, Raphael Saadiq, Peter Gabriel, Rod Stewart and more. ...

The American International Toy Fair is holding court in New York this week, and among the new collectibles with a rock bent is an 11-inch figure of the late punk icon Joey Ramone. The figure, expected to be in stores in spring, portrays the singer in his trademark motorcycle jacket, and features removable sunglasses and a mic stand. ...

Freeway got some hometown love from fellow Philadelphia native Ms. Jade last week when she came down to Free's video shoot for his next single, "Alright." Shot by Terry Heller in the City of Brotherly Love, the clip centers around occupants of a forlorn community. Glenn Lewis also makes a cameo. ... The 17th Annual Soul Train Music Awards has added Jennifer Lopez, a reunited Dru Hill, Chris Rock and actor Orlando Jones to its list of presenters. They join previously announced performers Mariah Carey, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah and Justin Timberlake at the ceremony, which will be telecast live in syndication March 1 at 8 p.m. ET. ...

Lifehouse will embark on a North American tour, beginning March 13 in Arlington, Texas. Not only does the trek mark the band's first since the release of their second album, Stanley Climbfall, it's also their first Stateside jaunt with former Calling guitarist Sean Woolstenhulme, brother of Lifehouse drummer Rick, as a permanent band fixture. ...

The 2003 Bonnaroo Music Festival has chosen the newly crowned Dead, Widespread Panic, James Brown and the Allman Brothers Band, as well as hipster rockers Sonic Youth, Tortoise, and Smokey & Miho (guitarist Smokey Hormel and Cibo Matto's Miho Hatori) to take the stage at the three-day festival, which expects more than 60 acts in all. Bonnaroo takes place June 13 in Manchester, Tennessee. ... Former Replacements frontman Paul Westerberg is working on his second album for Vagrant Records. The follow-up to last year's Mono/Stereo double LP is slated to surface in late summer. ...

02.14.03

A Mark, a Mission, a Brand, a Scar, the third album by Dashboard Confessional, is being recorded in a Florida studio with producer Gil Norton (Foo Fighters, Pixies). The follow-up to 2001's The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most is expected to arrive in late spring. ...

While any of the witchy women of the WB's "Charmed" can carry the title of heartbreaker, the guest star of the April 6 episode practically put the word on the map. Pat Benatar will perform her 1979 hit "Heartbreaker" at Piper's club, P3. ...

Australian authorities have discovered 500 stolen reel-to-reel masters of recordings believed to be original studio sessions for Abbey Road and The Beatles. The February 14 raid in Sydney was part of a police investigation that last month uncovered tapes in London and Amsterdam of the sessions that eventually became Let It Be. Those tapes were stolen from Abbey Road Studios over 30 years ago. ... Jewel has revealed on her official Web site that her next album will be dominated by dance music. The singer says she's experimenting with R&B rhythms and electronic music and tells fans to expect "fierce grooves and dance beats and futuristic keyboard and retro '80s synth sounds." She also divulges that the as-yet-untitled album will be produced by Lester Mendez, whom she credits for co-writing most of the new songs as well. ...

Mogwai, in the midst of working on their fourth album, have put their drummer's pacemaker up for sale on eBay. The high bidder, whose cash will be donated to the British Heart Foundation, also gets Martin Bulloch's European pacemaker I.D. card, his hospital wristband, the Japanese version of Mogwai's My Father My King and a vinyl test-pressing of the band's Rock Action. ... Almost two years after his split with the mathematically inclined noisecore band, former Dillinger Escape Plan vocalist Dimitri Minikakis has reemerged with Tokyo, who are currently completing demo recordings and will make their live debut April 6 at the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia. ...

Following the premiere of the first untitled video from their third album, ( ), at last month's Sundance Film Festival, Icelandic sound-sculpters Sigur Ros will embark on a North American tour that kicks off with a sold-out March 15 show in Boston. The 18-date outing winds down April 8 in Oakland, California. ... Former member of Powell Peralta's legendary Bones Brigade pro-skate team, Tommy Guerrero, is putting the finishing touches on his second album, Soul Food Taqueria. The follow-up to 2000's A Little Bit of Something displays elements of anti-folk, hip-hop, jazz, blues and funk, among other elements, and is expected to drop in May. ...

• Justin Timberlake
• Jennifer Lopez
• Alicia Keys
• The Ramones
• Joey Ramone

Joey Ramone
Photo: MTV News

Fans saddened by the death of Joey Ramone may be comforted by the late punk icon's last musical offering, a solo album bearing the reassuring title Don't Worry About Me.

Scheduled for a February 19 release on Sanctuary Records, the singer's solo album — the only one he ever recorded — began to take shape soon after the Ramones' final show in 1996, according to the album's publicist. Ramone worked on the LP periodically until he died of lymphatic cancer April 15 (see "Punk Pioneer Joey Ramone Dead At 49").

The album's first single, a cover of the musical standard popularized by jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong, "What a Wonderful World," is expected to surface at radio in January. Other tracks on Don't Worry About Me include a cover of the Stooges' "1969" featuring the Misfits' Jerry Only (bass) and Dr. Chud (drums); "Maria Bartiromo," a paean to the CNBC business news anchor; and the title track, which features guitars by Ramone's real brother Mickey Leigh. The Ramones' onetime drummer Marky Ramone and the Dictators' bassist Andy Shernoff appear throughout the album.

Prior to the album's release, a two-song single recorded by Ramone and Leigh, featuring "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" and "Couldn't Sleep Last Night," will hit shelves, on December 18. A Ramones version of the holiday track appeared on the band's 1989 album, Brain Drain.

Joey Ramone's only other non-Ramones offering was 1994's three-song EP In a Family Way, recorded with Leigh under the moniker Sibling Rivalry.

A Ramones tribute album, to be produced by ghoulish rocker Rob Zombie and guitarist Johnny Ramone, is also in the works, with Zombie contributing a cover of the band's 1976 song "Blitzkrieg Bop" (see "Rob Zombie Helming Ramones Tribute Album").

Don't Worry About Me track list, according to the album's publicist:

• "What a Wonderful World"
• "Stop Thinking About It"
• "Mr. Punchy"
• "Maria Bartiromo"
• "I Got a Spirit in My House"
• "Venting"
• "Feel Like a Drug"
• "Searching for Something"
• "I Got Knocked Down (But I'll Get Up)"
• "1969"
• "Don't Worry About Me"

• Joey Ramone
• The Ramones

The Ramones
Photo: Warner Bros.

NEW YORK — The East Village street corner located a few yards away from legendary punk club CBGB is one step closer to being known as Joey Ramone Place.

On Wednesday, the Public Safety and Transportation Committee of Manhattan's Community Board 3 unanimously approved a proposition by 20-year-old Maureen Wojciechowski to dub the corner of East Second Street and the Bowery after the late punk icon who, along with the likes of Patti Smith, Television and the Talking Heads, helped bring the genre to life at CBGB in the mid-'70s.

"I came up with the idea right after Joey's 50th birthday, but wasn't sure exactly how," Wojciechowski, a Staten Island resident, said. "Then someone mentioned honorary street signs, and how, as is the case with most in the city, no one knows who they are [named for]. So I thought, 'That's it. I'll put one up for Joey Ramone.' "

In order for Joey Ramone Place to become a reality, the proposal must be approved by the 50-member community board at a meeting on November 15. Members of the committee said they're fairly confident their decision in favor of the honorary street sign won't be met with opposition.

Ramone died of lymphatic cancer April 15 (see "Punk Pioneer Joey Ramone Dead At 49"), and plans for a party to commemorate his 50th birthday were carried out by his mother and brother in May (see "Blondie, Cheap Trick, Damned Salute Joey Ramone").

Wojciechowski first approached the board in October, and she was instructed to return with a petition of support signed by local residents and businesses, which she brought to Wednesday's meeting.

"The Ramones were just so much fun, and Joey was such an individual," Wojciechowski said. "Twenty years later he was still the same person that he was in the '70s — nothing changed. I saw him two years ago, and he looked exactly as he did in 1978. He was true to New York City, and he was really cool."

Hilly Kristal, owner of CBGB, attended the meeting, as did Ramone's mother, Charlotte Lesher, and John Holmstrom, co-founder of Punk magazine, who gave a name to the punk movement.

"The East Village, probably more than any other place in the city, historically has been the melting pot of people who became famous and went to do wonderful things," said Kristal, a 28-year resident of the community. "Joey Ramone helped countless musicians, more than any other artist I can think of. He stood for something good. Joey left a very important mark on New York and the East Village, especially, and I'm proud that he played CB's and proud that he made his home here."

Although the proposal was to bestow the honor on a single corner, Wojciechowski said she'd like to see Joey Ramone Place stretch one crosstown block to Second Avenue.

What name would you propose for a street commemorating Joey Ramone? "Gabba Gabba Hey Way," perhaps? You Tell Us your suggestions, and we'll publish them when the decision is final.

• Joey Ramone
• The Ramones

Madonna
Photo: Jean Baptiste Modino

One of the better ways to attract members of the opposite sex, many believe, is to cruise around in a fly ride. Strapping on a curvy, rad guitar and rockin' the paint off the walls is another time-tested method, especially for those lacking the green for a quality driving machine.

Guitar Center and the Petersen Automobile Museum, institutions that understand the allure of power steering and power chords, have joined forces to present an exhibition devoted to these ubiquitous 20th-century phallic symbols.

"Cars & Guitars of Rock 'n' Roll" will be on display June 15 to December 31 at the Petersen Automobile Museum in Los Angeles. The show features more than 35 hot autos and 40 axes lent by such artists as Madonna, Blink-182, Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello, Flea, Creed, Coolio, Eric Clapton and Melissa Etheridge.

Standout wheels include Elvis Presley's 1971 DeTomaso Pantera, Jeff Beck's 1932 Ford Roadster, Elton John's 1949 Delahaye, Morello's 1971 Dodge Demon, Slash's 1936 Ford custom and '66 Lincoln convertible, Clapton's 1940 Ford coupe and Rod Stewart's 1983 Ferrari 400.

Beside the high-style vehicles, "Cars & Guitars" will exhibit memorable autos from music history such as the 1966 Monkeemobile from the pop group's TV show, the 1932 Ford gracing the cover of the Beach Boys' 1963 album Little Deuce Coupe, the 1932 Ford Phantom seen in Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher" video and the Lincoln limo Madonna used onstage in her February Grammy Awards performance. Event organizers opted not to include the limo in which the Notorious B.I.G. was shot and killed in 1997 while departing a Soul Train Award party at the Petersen Museum.

While the cars may prove the highlight of the exhibit, the show's axes are nothing to spit at. Prized guitars on display will include the only all-rosewood Fender Stratocaster made for Jimi Hendrix, a white Mosrite guitar owned by Johnny Ramone, a Paul Reed Smith signature model from Creed's Mark Tremonti, Flea's Music Man bass, Brian Setzer's 6120 Gretsch with hot rod flames, a custom Jack Daniels bass from Michael Anthony of Van Halen and the Martin acoustic guitar once owned by Ricky Nelson on which Jeff Beck first learned to play.

• Madonna
• Creed
• Elvis Presley
• Jimi Hendrix
• Joey Ramone

Joey Ramone
Photo: MTV News

Blondie, Cheap Trick, the Cramps and the Misfits will be among the artists honoring Joey Ramone at a New York concert on May 19, the day the late punk icon would have turned 50.

Those acts will join the Independents (an act long championed by Joey) and Ramone's brother Mickey Leigh at the sold out "Life's a Gas — Joey Ramone's Birthday Bash," set for New York's Hammerstein Ballroom. Leigh — one of the event's organizers — will take the stage with his group Stop as well as with longtime Ramones producer Daniel Rey.

A spokesperson for the Birthday Bash said organizers are still talking to other acts about performing at the event.

In addition to the live performances, an event spokesperson said other artists will take part via videotaped messages which will be played at the show. Ramone himself will be the subject of a video profile that will be shown at the concert.

Organizers are also putting together a roster of speakers for the event.

When plans for the Birthday Bash were announced last month, organizers did not name any acts, saying they want fans to show up to honor Ramone, not to see a specific band (see "Bands, Fans To Celebrate Joey Ramone's 50th Birthday").

The hugely influential punk figure — whose impact can still be seen with bands such as Blink-182 and Green Day — died on Easter Sunday after a seven-year fight with lymphatic cancer (see "Punk Pioneer Joey Ramone Dead At 49", "Joey Ramone Laid To Rest").

To see Joey and the rest of Queens' favorite sons at one of their final stage performances together - a gig at New York’s legendary CBGB - check out this streamed concert. [Courtesy of www.popwire.com].

• Joey Ramone
• Blondie
• Cheap Trick
• The Cramps
• The Ramones

Joey Ramone
Photo: Warner Bros.

NEW YORK — Two weeks after Joey Ramone succumbed to cancer, friends and colleagues gathered Monday night at CBGB to remember the good-natured soul behind the tinted sunglasses and long dark bangs who inspired a musical uprising.

It was something of a misfit family reunion, with Joan Jett, Deborah Harry, Dictators singer Handsome Dick Manitoba, punk writer Legs McNeil, photographer Roberta Bayley and Ramones manager Danny Fields among those offering brief eulogies. Craig Leon, who produced the Ramones' 1976 debut album, called Joey "the most unlikely singer, and also the spirit of rock and roll." Harry put it another way. "Once a cretin, always a cretin," she said after recalling the first time she saw the Ramones.

Manitoba emceed the event, "Remembering Joey — A Brother's Tribute," which was held in the dingy, former biker bar where punk rock exploded a quarter-century ago. A lifesize portrait of Ramone, who died on Easter Sunday (see "Punk Pioneer Joey Ramone Dead At 49"), hung behind the stage.

Ramone's brother Mickey Leigh performed poignant Ramones covers throughout the evening, including "I Want You Around," "Danny Says," and "I Remember You," with a band that featured Ramones producer Daniel Rey, Dictators guitarist Andy (a.k.a. Adny) Shernoff and drummer Pat Carpenter, who plays with Leigh in the group Stop.

Leigh also passed along mottos he said Joey lived by: "Keep it from the heart," a sentiment woven within every Ramones tune; "Go with your instincts," a testament to Joey's good conscience; and "Keep the sushi fresh," a nod to his offbeat sense of humor. Speaking of which, "Punk" magazine founder John Holmstrom punctuated Ramone's twisted comedic sense by recounting the "Mutant Monster Beach Party" comic strip, Joey's contribution to the magazine with Blondie singer Harry.

Manitoba seemed to speak for everyone in attendance when he said that, after recently hearing the chant "Hey, ho, let's go!" used as a rallying cry for more than 50,000 people at Yankee Stadium, he never had the last chance to tell his friend how proud he was of him.

Outside, homemade tokens of appreciation adorned the club's entrance, which resembled the bulletin board of a grade-school art class. One note read, "Thanks so much for getting me out of the teens alive," and others expressed similar sentiments, as hundreds of fans waited to join the vigil. Some stood on line as long as eight hours before getting in.

Also on hand to honor the punk pioneer were Plasmatics guitarist Richie Stotts, who was so choked up he couldn't finish his statement; Patti Smith guitarist Lenny Kaye, who performed a stirring solo version of Smith's "Ghost Dance"; Ramone's hairdresser, Huck; his mother, Charlotte Lesher; and rock critic/Furious George frontman George Tabb, who served as host for the second half of the evening. The night ended with heartfelt chant of "Hey, ho, let's go," after which New York punks the Stitches provided more music. "Stay and party," Manitoba urged the crowd. "Joey would have wanted it that way." A Ramones tribute concert is scheduled for May 19 — which would have been Ramone's 50th birthday — at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York (see "Bands, Fans To Celebrate Joey Ramone's 50th Birthday"). A lineup has yet to be announced.

• The Ramones
• Joey Ramone
• Blondie
• Joan Jett

Joey Ramone

Joey Ramone's mother promised her son a 50th birthday party and he is going to get one.

On May 19 — what would have been the punk-rock icon's big day — family, friends, fans and, of course, other bands will honor the late Ramones singer at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York.

"In the weeks prior to his death, we often talked about his upcoming 50th birthday, and Mickey [Leigh, Ramone's brother] and I promised Joey that for this very special day, we would throw the best and biggest birthday bash he ever had," Charlotte Lesher, Ramone's mother, said in a statement. "He is going to have that party. It will be a celebration of his life and music and it's gonna be a gas." Lesher and promoters aren't saying yet who'll perform at "Life's a Gas — Joey Ramone's Birthday Bash," although they're promising major acts. A spokesperson for the event said Lesher and Leigh want fans to show up to honor Joey, not just to see the special guests.

Tickets for the 8 p.m. birthday tribute show go on sale Monday (April 30) for $15. More information is available by calling (212) 582-0275.

Another Joey Ramone tribute, described by Leigh as a "punk-rock memorial," is scheduled for Monday. "Remembering Joey — A Brother's Tribute" will be held at CBGB, the legendary New York club where the Ramones helped invent punk rock in the mid-1970s.

Leigh will host the event and will perform four of his favorite songs written by Joey — "I Remember You," "I Want You Around," "Danny Says" and "Questioningly." His band will include longtime Ramones producer Daniel Rey, Dictators guitarist and recent Joey Ramone collaborator Andy (a.k.a. Adny) Shernoff, and drummer Pat Carpenter, from Leigh's band, Stop. The Stitches, a New York punk band, will also perform a few Ramones songs, Leigh said.

"It's going to be very unstructured," he said. "It's going to be an extension of the funeral — a rock and roll version of that. We'll be drinking and playing music and telling stories. Friends can get up and talk about Joey. It's more for the locals." Among the people expected to attend are Blondie singer Deborah Harry, Joan Jett, Dictators singer Handsome Dick Manitoba, Plasmatics guitarist Richie Stotts, Dead Boys bassist Jeff Magnum and Furious George singer George Tabb.

"Remembering Joey" is scheduled for 8 p.m. Monday. Admission is free.

Ramone, whose music and style influenced bands from the Sex Pistols to Green Day, died on Easter Sunday after a seven-year fight with lymphatic cancer (see "Punk Pioneer Joey Ramone Dead At 49", "Joey Ramone Laid To Rest").

Lesher has asked that anyone who wishes to make donations send checks "In Memory of Jeff Hyman" to: New York Hospital Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, Box 123, New York, NY 10021.

• Joey Ramone
• The Ramones

Joey Ramone
Photo: MTV News

While close friends and family of Joey Ramone honored the punk-rock icon at his funeral Tuesday, other music figures spoke out publicly about the importance and influence of the Ramones frontman.

Ramone died of lymphatic cancer on Easter Sunday at age 49 (see "Punk Pioneer Joey Ramone Dead At 49") and was buried Tuesday at Hillside Cemetery in Lyndhurst, New Jersey (see "Joey Ramone Laid To Rest").

"I can firmly say that rock 'n' roll will not be the same without Joey Ramone alive," Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong said Tuesday. "The one thing no one will ever be able to [capture] was how cool he was. He was rock 'n' roll coolness. The glasses. The leather jacket. And he barely moved a finger. He just stood there." Armstrong first heard the Ramones at age 9 when he saw their movie "Rock 'n' Roll High School." "To me, what I saw was the perfect rock band," he said. "They had songs that just stuck in your head, just like a hammer they banged right into your brain." Years later, Armstrong named his first son, now 6, Joey. Green Day drummer Tre Cool named his daughter, born a month after Armstrong's son, Ramona. Green Day recently recorded a cover of the Ramones' "Outsider" to use as a B-side.

"There's a real romance to the Ramones," Armstrong said. "Those lyrics. It wasn't just about being a meathead punk-rocker. It was also a great date too. If you think about every person who has been inspired by the Ramones, directly and indirectly, you're talking about half of what you hear on the radio today. A lot of that has to do with the spirit and passion Joey Ramone always, always had. He never was jaded. He was never one of those guys who would go around and say, 'More should have happened to me.'" Among the bands the Ramones inspired were U2. "In Dublin in 1977 when I saw Joey singing I knew nothing else mattered to him. Pretty soon nothing else mattered to me," the Irish rock band's singer, Bono, said in a statement released Wednesday.

"The Ramones stopped the music world long enough for U2 and the other garage bands to get on," Bono said. "They invented something ... the idea that your limitations were what made you ... your street, your neighborhood, the clothes on your back, your record collection was the size of your universe." Bono called Ramone in his hospital room on Good Friday, and U2's song "In a Little While" was playing in the room when Ramone died two days later.

Even closer to Joey, at least at one time, was Ramones bassist Dee Dee Ramone (born Douglas Colvin). Although the two had not spoken for several years, Dee Dee said he has been mourning the loss of his old pal.

"I know it was really hard being in the Ramones, and I don't think I appreciated them enough when I was in them, and I took advantage of a lot of things," Dee Dee said. "Whatever the situation, we all need each other. With me, John and Joey, it was a real good combination, and without us together, it's not going to be the same." Joey was a hardworking musician, Dee Dee said, who should have stopped recording and working with other bands when he fell ill more than a year ago. Instead, Ramone finished his first solo album (see "Joey Ramone Solo Album Due Later This Year").

"It's hard when you're a musician to understand that," Dee Dee said. "You don't understand it when you're sick, and you just don't want to stop, so I'm sure he probably felt that way." Joe Strummer, singer of influential British punk band the Clash, said he listened to the entire Ramones catalog in his Somerset, England, home after he heard of Ramone's death.

"This music not only stands the test of time, it totally obliterates everything before it and after it," Strummer said in a statement. "He made the primetime 6 o'clock newscast in Britain, triggering a strange sense of pride in all the rock 'n' rollers watching, as if the aboveground world was finally going to accord Joey the status he always deserved." Strummer got to know Ramone when their bands played together throughout the late '70s.

"Offstage, just hanging out, he was the funniest kind of wisecracking guy. Very sharp, with a strictly dry sense of humor," Strummer said. "It was all kind of hidden behind his shyness, but then it would suddenly pop out." Lemmy Kilmister, singer of English metal band Motörhead, met Joey in the late '70s. Motörhead recorded a song called "R.A.M.O.N.E.S." — which the Ramones later covered — and Kilmister appeared onstage at one of the punk band's final shows.

"It's a bad day for rock and roll, it's a bad day for me," Lemmy said in a statement. "He was one of the most underrated artists. He understood rock and roll." Belinda Carlisle of the Go-Go's said she saw the Ramones live 50 times or more. "They were one of the most influential bands for me," she said in a statement. "[Joey] was so unique and wonderful." Added Green Day bassist Mike Dirnt in a statement: "Thanks always comes a day late and a dollar short, but my respect has and will always be there for the band that showed me that simple songs and a simple life could make you happy. ... And the kid in the Ramones T-shirt will always be cool."

• Joey Ramone
• Green Day
• The Clash
• The Go-Go's
• Motörhead