How Joey Ramone reacted when Lemmy showed him the Ramones’ tribute song

The Ramones were one of the most influential bands of all time that is considered to be one of the godfathers of Punk Rock music. Even though Punk and Hard Rock/Heavy Metal had some rivalry in the early days, many musicians who were on opposite sides admired each others work. That was the case of Motörhead leader Lemmy Kilmister who loved the Ramones and singer Joey Ramone who loved Motörhead.

The late Lemmy not only shared his love for the American punk rockers through interviews and conversations. He composed a song as a tribute to them. “R.A.M.O.N.E.S” was first released on the 1991 album “1916”. The bassist and singer recalled  in an interview with Artisan News back in 2011 (Transcribed by Rock and Roll Garage) how Joey Ramone reacted when he first showed him the track.

How Joey Ramone reacted when Lemmy showed him The Ramones’ tribute song Motörhead did:

“I think the Ramones were excellent. The Ramones were a ray of hope when all around was dark. You know what I mean? It was like that. I f*cking love The Ramones. I always thought that we were the English Ramones, kind of. Then I wrote (the song) for them and Joey burst into tears when I played it for him the first time. (He heard on headphones) in some f*cking hotel room in New York somewhere,” Lemmy Kilmister said.

Joey Ramone said before his death that he felt honored that Motörhead wrote a song about The Ramones and that it was just like if John Lennon had wrote a song about him.

The track starts just like many Ramones songs with the counting before the band’s starts to play and is also short with only 1 minute and 26 seconds.

The Ramones even adopted the song playing it live on and off, sometimes with Lemmy, until their final show in 1996. They also recorded two versions, one that appeared as a bonus track on their last album “¡Adios Amigos!” (1995), with CJ Ramone on vocals and another one with Joey on vocals that appeared on “Greatest Hits Live” (1996).

Motörhead was one of Joey Ramone’s favorite bands

Interviewed on the Christmas 1989 edition of MTV’s 120 Minutes (Transcribed by Rock and Roll Garage), Joey listed Motörhead as one of his favorites bands from the 80s, saying: “I love all their stuff but ‘No Remorse’ I thought it was a great collection of things. There is no band like Motörhead. They’re great, unique and exciting. Lemmy is like a total character. He is great.”

Talking with Entertainment Weekly back in 1990, the musician listed the 6 albums he would take to a desert island and one of them was Motörhead’s “No Remorse” (1984).

Because of their speed and heaviness, the British band was often described over the years as a mix between Punk, Hard Rock and Heavy Metal.