Ramone Memoir Reveals Unknown Sides of the Punk Icon
Years after his death, punk icon Johnny Ramone remains an unpredictable fireball of a character which he was known for.
His memoir, "Commando: the Autobiography of Johnny Ramone ", was released on April 2, eight years after he succumbed to prostate cancer. Ramone, born John Cummings, died on September 15, 2004 at age 55.
His memoir was typical Ramones' song: short, direct, and colorful. The memoir, published by Abrams Image, contains information from a collection of interviews with Ramone during his final years.
Commando reveals a lot of unknown details about the oft-misunderstood guitarist, including his romance with wife Linda, musical inspirations, and his angry and unpredictable personality; resulting in a raw narrative of his life, starting with his rough New York childhood to his later life.
Contained in the book was his romance with wife Linda. The book highlighted the tension caused by this relationship, as Linda once dated Ramone's former bandmate and friend Joey Ramone.
"When I left Joey to go with Johnny, it was intense because nobody wanted the band to break up. The band was always first," Linda recounted.
Linda referred to the book as "kind of his last word that he knew would be out." Johnny Ramone gave the interviews with the intention of creating a memoir because he knew his time would be up.
People have known the late guitarist to be "an angry person", but the book reveals his soft spots, such as his fondness for Disney World, and listening to Elvis, Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby.
ohnny Ramone was a founding member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Ramones. He was popular for his fast, eclectic guitarplaying style which made him one of the most influential guitarists.
Rolling Stone magazine named him #16 in its "100 Guitarist of All Time" list. He influenced other successful bands and artists such as Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, Kirk Hammett of Metallica, and Lisa Marie Presley.