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An Interview With Joey Ramone — A Teenage Lobotomy Speaks His Mind

Bill Holdship, Michigan State News, 9 May 1980

THE RAMONES have become something of an American rock 'n roll institution. The band formed in 1974, and became part of an underground East Coast rock scene that also included Patti Smith, Television and Talking Heads. The scene was a deliberate antithesis to the monotonous structure mainstream "rock" had become, and it was a step back toward the primitive spirit of early rock 'n roll. Along with Smith, the Ramones were probably the single biggest catalyst in the British punk movement, since the phenomenon began to take shape shortly after both acts toured the United Kingdom.

Total word count of piece: 1954

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