Tracing Tommy Ramone's impact on the history of The Ramones isn't as simple as finding the best drum tracks by the band. There's simply no "Moby Dick" or "Ticks and Leeches" for fans to point to and say "that's a drummer."
The percussionist died at the age of 65 on July 11, marking the loss of the final original member of arguably the most influential punk band of all time. We would argue that Tommy was also the most important member of the whole group, a title that's typically assigned to vocalist Joey Ramone or guitarist Johnny. Three major contributions from Tommy ensured that The Ramones would go down in history however.
03) The Drumming
"Duh," you say. And, as many a high school percussionist has shown at any given basement show, Tommy's chops weren't exactly difficult to mimic. Nonetheless, it's impossible for The Ramones to have existed without the foundation that Tommy provided. He originally served as the band's manager until it became aware that bassist Dee Dee's vocal style was too intense and Joey switched from drums to the frontman. That left a gap and Tommy filled it triumphantly. He introduced a much steadier rhythmic approach than his predecessor and wasn't tempted to add his own flourishes, keeping the riffs straightforward as could be. Without his commitment to simplicity, Johnny's similar approach to guitar.
02) The Production
Two little known facts: Before joining The Ramones, Tommy (aka Thomas Erdelyi) worked as an engineer in the recording of Jimi Hendrix's classic Band of Gypsys live album. That background made him ideal to handle the low-budget recording budgets of the band's first two albums, The Ramones and Leave Home. It became even more relevant when the band signed to Sire and got a relatively huge production budget for Rocket to Russia, which we'll argue is the band's best release, more than partially thanks to the listenable post-recording contribution of Tommy. He stuck around to handle Road to Ruin as well despite not actually playing on the album.
01) "Blitzkrieg Bop"
Sure, The Ramones had plenty of hits but none of them carry the same trademark popularity as "Blitzkrieg Bop." From your first punk rock moment at the age of 12 playing Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 to ads for sunscreen lotion, the track is inescapable. And rightfully so: Tommy took the same simple approach to songwriting as he did behind the drum set. The result was the infectious four-syllable "Hey-ho let's go" that leads into the head-on head-banging passage that The Ramones were renowned for. You'll note that Tommy wrote in a segment where the guitar and bass drop out, leaving just himself and Joey at the vocals. Tommy also contributed by writing "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend," another classic, but that just didn't have the adrenaline chugging behind it as "Blitzkrieg" did. Then again, most songs can only aspire to riding a wave like "Blitzkrieg Bop." Without this song, The Ramones never reach the iconic stature they hold now.
