Brain Drain (album)

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Brain Drain
Ramones - Brain Drain cover.jpg
Studio album by
the Ramones
ReleasedMarch 23, 1989
RecordedDecember 1988
Studio
  • Sorcerer Sound (New York City)
  • Quad (New York City)
  • B.C. (Brooklyn)
GenrePunk rock
Length35:02
LabelSire
Producer
Ramones chronology
Halfway to Sanity
(1987) 		Brain Drain
(1989) 		Mondo Bizarro
(1992)
Singles from Brain Drain
  1. "Pet Sematary"
    Released: 1989
  2. "I Believe in Miracles"
    Released: 1989
  3. "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)"
    Released: 1989
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic2/5 stars[1]
Robert ChristgauB[2]
Punknews.org4/5 stars[3]

Brain Drain is the eleventh studio album by the American punk rock band the Ramones, released on March 23, 1989.[1] It is the last Ramones release to feature bassist/songwriter/vocalist Dee Dee Ramone, the first to feature Marky Ramone since his initial firing from the band after 1983's Subterranean Jungle and the band's last studio album on Sire Records.

Background[]

In his 1998 autobiography, Dee Dee Ramone recalled: "It was tough recording the Brain Drain album because everyone took their shit out on me. I dreaded being around them. It drove me away—I didn't even end up playing on the album. Everybody in the band had problems; girlfriend problems, money problems, mental problems."[4]

Johnny Ramone expressed similarly unfavorable sentiments in his 2012 posthumous autobiography, Commando, calling it one of his least favorite albums. He elaborated, "Bill Laswell's production is too dense; he had me record the guitars on five or six tracks. So the album took too much time, and there were too many Joey songs on it, which always took more time". However, he added that the album "has a couple of bright spots, like 'I Believe in Miracles' and 'Punishment Fits the Crime.'" He awarded both the Brain Drain album and its follow-up, Mondo Bizarro, a "C" letter grade.[5]

Songs[]

"Palisades Park" is a cover song, originally recorded by Freddy Cannon in 1962.

"Pet Sematary" was written for the Stephen King movie adaptation of the same name and was issued as a single, becoming one of the Ramones' biggest radio hits and a staple of their concerts during the 1990s.[6]

"Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" was later included in the film Christmas with the Kranks.[7]

Reception[]

Brain Drain was originally intended to be a "comeback" album for the Ramones, following the belated success of "I Wanna Be Sedated";[8][9] however, despite some good reviews, the album failed to live up to commercial expectations, peaking at number 122 on the Billboard 200 chart.[10] Nonetheless, the album's first single, "Pet Sematary", became the band's highest-charting hit in the US, peaking at number four on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.[11] Dee Dee appears as the bassist in both of the music videos for "Pet Sematary", while the videos for "I Believe In Miracles" and "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" feature his replacement, C.J. Ramone.

Cover versions[]

"I Believe in Miracles" was covered by Eddie Vedder and Zeke for the 2003 album We're a Happy Family: A Tribute to Ramones and is frequently covered by Pearl Jam at their shows.

"Pet Sematary" was performed live by German industrial metal band Rammstein (in conjunction with Clawfinger) and was released as a B-side to their single "Ich will" in 2001. Rammstein was joined onstage by Marky Ramone, C.J. Ramone and Jerry Only of the Misfits when performing the song in New York as a tribute to Joey Ramone, who had died three months prior. The song was later covered by psychobilly band the Creepshow as a bonus track for their second album, Run For Your Life, in 2008. It was also performed by the Plain White T's for the 2012 film Frankenweenie (Unleashed). The end credits of the 2019 version of the film Pet Sematary include a cover version of the title track by the American punk rock band Starcrawler.

"Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" was covered by Joey Ramone on his second posthumous album, ...Ya Know?, and by Mattiel in December 2019.

Track listing[]

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Believe in Miracles"Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey3:19
2."Zero Zero UFO"D. Ramone, Rey2:25
3."Don't Bust My Chops"D. Ramone, Joey Ramone, Rey2:28
4."Punishment Fits the Crime"D. Ramone, Richie Stotts3:05
5."All Screwed Up"Joey Ramone, Andy Shernoff, Marky Ramone, Rey3:59
6."Palisades Park"Charles Barris2:22
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Pet Sematary"D. Ramone, Rey3:30
8."Learn to Listen"D. Ramone, Johnny Ramone, M. Ramone, Rey1:50
9."Can't Get You Outta My Mind"Joey Ramone3:21
10."Ignorance Is Bliss"Joey Ramone, Shernoff2:38
11."Come Back, Baby"Joey Ramone4:01
12."Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)"Joey Ramone2:04
Captain Oi! reissue CD bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Pet Sematary" (Bill Laswell Version)D. Ramone, Rey3:35

Personnel[]

Ramones

Additional musicians

Technical

  • Bill Laswell – producer
  • Jean Beauvoir – co-producer (track 12)
  • Daniel Rey – co-producer (track 12), musical coordinator
  • Jason Corsaro – mixing
  • Robert Musso – mixing, engineer
  • Oz Fritz – assistant engineer
  • Judy Kirschner – assistant engineer (Sorcerer Sound)
  • Robbie Norris – assistant engineer (Quad Recording)
  • Martin Bisi – engineer (B.C. Studio)
  • Howie Weinberg – mastering
  • Gary "Mudbone" Cooper – production assistant
  • Nicky Skopelitis – production assistant
  • Rachel McBeth – production assistant
  • Kim White – production assistant
  • Mark Sidgwick – production assistant
  • Matt Mahurin – front cover painting
  • Bill Fishman – inside photography
  • Rick Springer – Brain Drain logo
  • George DuBose – cover design and coordination

Charts[]

Album[]

Chart (1989) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[12] 40
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[13] 41
UK Albums (OCC)[14] 75
US Billboard 200[10] 122

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1989 "Pet Sematary" Modern Rock Tracks 4[15]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Brain Drain - Ramones". AllMusic.
  2. ^ "Robert Christgau review".
  3. ^ "Ramones - Brain Drain". Punknews.org. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  4. ^ Ramone, Dee Dee (2009). Poison Heart: Surviving the Ramones. Helter Skelter Publishing. p. 156–157. ISBN 978-1-905139-18-7.
  5. ^ Ramone, Johnny (2012). Commando: The Autobiography of Johnny Ramone. Abrams Image. p. 160. ISBN 978-0-8109-9660-1.
  6. ^ "MattFini's Halloween Top 10 Lists: Most Memorable End Credit Songs".
  7. ^ Christmas with the Kranks: Music from the Motion Picture - Original Soundtrack | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic, retrieved 2021-01-27
  8. ^ "The Ramones' Brain Drain: The Untold Story". joelgausten.com. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  9. ^ "Readers' Poll: The 10 Best Ramones Albums". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b "The Ramones Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  11. ^ "Ramones Chart History: Alternative Airplay". Billboard. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  12. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Ramones – Brain Drain" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  13. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Ramones – Brain Drain". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  14. ^ "Ramones | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  15. ^ "Billboard singles chart history-The Ramones". Retrieved March 2, 2009.
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