Leave Home
Encyclopedia
Leave Home is the second studio album by American punk rock
band The Ramones
. It was released on January 10, 1977 through Sire Records
. The album features the classic Ramones songs "Pinhead" and "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment". It is the only Ramones album to go through different incarnations on its original release, due to label controversy over the song "Carbona Not Glue".
: "We recorded them in the order they were written; we wanted to show a slight progression in song structure."
Many fans and critics point to the more polished pop sensibilities of the second album as evidence of the band's evolving musical skill and style. The second album was recorded at the relatively upscale Sundragon Studios in Manhattan, New York.
Craig Leon, the producer of the first album, Ramones
, had left Sire Records
by fall 1976 and was replaced by Tony Bongiovi
. Bongiovi had mentored drummer Tommy Ramone
while the two were working together at the Record Plant
producing Jimi Hendrix
's Band of Gypsys
album. Tommy also assisted with production on the album, a role he would repeat for many later albums.
When Sire Records
suddenly switched distributors from ABC Records
to Warner Bros. Records
(who had bought the label), yet another version of the album was released, with "Babysitter" being replaced by "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker
", then a non-LP single already planned to be on the next Ramones album in a different mix.
in Los Angeles, California
on August 12, 1976.
This release included both "Carbona Not Glue" and one of its replacements, "Babysitter." The former was put back in its original place in the track sequence, and the latter was included at the end of the album, preceding the live bonus tracks. While the single mix of "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" was not included here, it can be found on Rhino's expanded reissue of Rocket to Russia
, as well as on multiple Ramones compilations, including the anthologies Ramones Mania
and Hey Ho! Let's Go
.
by Dan Clowes.
New York Radio station WNEW refused to play the song "Glad to See You Go" due to its off-the-cuff reference to Charles Manson
. The song was actually written by Dee Dee about his volatile ex-girlfriend, Connie.
"Pinhead" was inspired after the band attended a screening of the 1932
film Freaks
when a show in Ohio was canceled. The song became, along with "Blitzkrieg Bop
", something of an anthem for the band, as the chorus of "Gabba gabba hey," based on the line from the film "gooble gobble, gooble gobble, one of us, one of us" (uttered in the song as "gabba gabba/we accept you/we accept you/one of us") became a rallying cry for the band. At many shows a roadie named Bubbles in a pinhead
mask would take to the stage at the end of the show, carrying a large sign with the phrase written on it.
"California Sun" is a cover song originally recorded by The Rivieras
in 1964 and also covered by The Dictators
.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band The Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
. It was released on January 10, 1977 through Sire Records
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
. The album features the classic Ramones songs "Pinhead" and "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment". It is the only Ramones album to go through different incarnations on its original release, due to label controversy over the song "Carbona Not Glue".
History
The band had written most of the songs appearing on their first two albums by the time they were signed to Sire (as evidenced by the song listing of the 1976 live tracks appearing on the CD rerelease). They were placed roughly in chronological order on the first two albums; as explained by Johnny RamoneJohnny Ramone
John William Cummings , better known by his stage name Johnny Ramone, was an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being the guitarist for the punk rock band the Ramones. He was a founding member of the band, and remained a member throughout the band's entire career...
: "We recorded them in the order they were written; we wanted to show a slight progression in song structure."
Many fans and critics point to the more polished pop sensibilities of the second album as evidence of the band's evolving musical skill and style. The second album was recorded at the relatively upscale Sundragon Studios in Manhattan, New York.
Craig Leon, the producer of the first album, Ramones
Ramones (album)
Ramones is the self-titled debut studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones. It was released on April 23, 1976, through Sire Records. Prior to the band signing to Sire they were seen by Lisa Robinson, an editor of Hit Parader, during an early 1975 performance. Robinson began popularizing...
, had left Sire Records
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
by fall 1976 and was replaced by Tony Bongiovi
Tony Bongiovi
Tony Bongiovi is a record producer and recording engineer with expertise in Electrical & Acoustical Engineering. He helped to remodel an old building in Manhattan—once a power plant for Edison, and later a television studio—into the Power Station recording studio in 1977.Bongiovi was born in the...
. Bongiovi had mentored drummer Tommy Ramone
Tommy Ramone
Tommy Ramone, also known as Thomas Erdelyi , is a Hungarian American record producer and musician...
while the two were working together at the Record Plant
Record Plant Studios
The Record Plant was a series of three famous recording studios which were founded by Gary Kellgren and Chris Stone, beginning in New York City in 1968. The next year, Kellgren and Stone opened a second studio in Los Angeles. In 1972, the company expanded again with a third location in Sausalito,...
producing Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
's Band of Gypsys
Band of Gypsys
Band of Gypsys was a blues rock band led by Jimi Hendrix and backed by Billy Cox and Buddy Miles. Hendrix formed the band after the dissolution of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Band of Gypsys is also the band's eponymous live album recorded on two separate nights, 31 December 1969 and 1 January...
album. Tommy also assisted with production on the album, a role he would repeat for many later albums.
Carbona controversy
The original release included "Carbona Not Glue" as the fifth track on the album. However, the song was deleted from the album to avoid a potential lawsuit, as Carbona was a corporate trademark. The album was re-released with the single B-side "Babysitter" in its place. The British version with "Babysitter" does not list the name of this song on the back cover and on the inner sleeve. It's just referred on the vinyl itself. Most collectors believe that the "Babysitter" version is rarer than the "Carbona" version.When Sire Records
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
suddenly switched distributors from ABC Records
ABC Records
ABC Records was an American record label, founded in New York City in 1955 as ABC-Paramount Records. It originated as the main popular music label operated the Am-Par Record Corporation, the music subsidiary of the American Broadcasting Company . ABC-Paramount Records' first president was Samuel H....
to Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
(who had bought the label), yet another version of the album was released, with "Babysitter" being replaced by "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker
Sheena is a Punk Rocker
"Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" is a song by the punk rock group The Ramones. It first appeared on their third LP, Rocket to Russia, in 1977, and was also included on later pressings of the group's second album, Leave Home...
", then a non-LP single already planned to be on the next Ramones album in a different mix.
Rhino expanded rerelease
Rhino Records re-released the album in a remastered format on June 19, 2001. The bonus tracks on this release are live tracks that encompass a full concert. They were recorded live at their first show at The Roxy TheatreThe Roxy Theatre
The Roxy Theatre is a famous nightclub, on the Sunset Strip, in West Hollywood, California. The Roxy is owned by Lou Adler and Adler's son, Nic, who operates the club.- History :...
in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
on August 12, 1976.
This release included both "Carbona Not Glue" and one of its replacements, "Babysitter." The former was put back in its original place in the track sequence, and the latter was included at the end of the album, preceding the live bonus tracks. While the single mix of "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" was not included here, it can be found on Rhino's expanded reissue of Rocket to Russia
Rocket to Russia
Rocket to Russia is the third studio album by the American punk rock band The Ramones. It was released on November 4, 1977 through Sire Records. It was their last with original drummer Tommy Ramone. The album incorporates surf rock and other influences. It includes some of the Ramones' best-known...
, as well as on multiple Ramones compilations, including the anthologies Ramones Mania
Ramones Mania
-Personnel:* Joey Ramone – lead vocals* Johnny Ramone – guitar* Dee Dee Ramone – bass, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Wart Hog"* Marky Ramone - drums* Tommy Ramone - drums* Richie Ramone - drums, backing vocals on "Wart Hog"-Charts:Album Billboard...
and Hey Ho! Let's Go
Hey Ho! Let's Go: The Anthology
Hey! Ho! Let's Go: The Anthology is a two–disc compilation that attempts to summarize the Ramones' career in its entirety. It features two previously unissued song versions; "Rock 'n' Roll High School" and "I Want You Around" are the Ed Stasium mixes from the Rock 'n' Roll High School original...
.
Songs
"Carbona Not Glue" is a follow-up to the song "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue" appearing on their first album. The band sarcastically suggested that the high obtained from sniffing Carbona cleaning solvent was more pleasurable than that of airplane glue. In the hardcover book included in some versions of Hey! Ho! Let's Go: The Anthology, Tommy Ramone says, "Something like Carbona Not Glue has to be tongue-in-cheek. It's absurd, like saying that you should try something more poisonous." It was featured prominently in the graphic novel Ghost WorldGhost World
Ghost World is a comic book written and illustrated by Daniel Clowes. It was originally serialized in issues #11 through #18 of Clowes's comic book series Eightball, and was first published in book form in 1997 by Fantagraphics Books...
by Dan Clowes.
New York Radio station WNEW refused to play the song "Glad to See You Go" due to its off-the-cuff reference to Charles Manson
Charles Manson
Charles Milles Manson is an American criminal who led what became known as the Manson Family, a quasi-commune that arose in California in the late 1960s. He was found guilty of conspiracy to commit the Tate/LaBianca murders carried out by members of the group at his instruction...
. The song was actually written by Dee Dee about his volatile ex-girlfriend, Connie.
"Pinhead" was inspired after the band attended a screening of the 1932
1932 in film
-Events:*Cary Grant's film career begins*Katharine Hepburn's film career begins*Shirley Temple's film career begins*Disney released Flowers and Trees, the first cartoon in three-strip Technicolor film.*Santa, first sound film made in Mexico released....
film Freaks
Freaks
Freaks is a 1932 American Pre-Code horror film about sideshow performers, directed and produced by Tod Browning and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, with a cast mostly composed of actual carnival performers. The film was based on Tod Robbins' 1923 short story "Spurs"...
when a show in Ohio was canceled. The song became, along with "Blitzkrieg Bop
Blitzkrieg Bop
"Blitzkrieg Bop" is a song by the American punk rock band Ramones. It was released as the band's debut single in April of 1976 in the United States...
", something of an anthem for the band, as the chorus of "Gabba gabba hey," based on the line from the film "gooble gobble, gooble gobble, one of us, one of us" (uttered in the song as "gabba gabba/we accept you/we accept you/one of us") became a rallying cry for the band. At many shows a roadie named Bubbles in a pinhead
Schlitzie
Schlitzie , possibly born Simon Metz, and legally Schlitze Surtees, was an American sideshow performer and occasional actor, best known for his role in the 1932 movie Freaks and his life-long career on the outdoor entertainment circuit as a major...
mask would take to the stage at the end of the show, carrying a large sign with the phrase written on it.
"California Sun" is a cover song originally recorded by The Rivieras
The Rivieras
# California Sun# Danny Boy# Twist & Shout# Little Donna# Church Key# Killer Joe# Lets Have A Party# Rockin' Robin# H.B. Goose Step# Keep A Knockin'# Oh, Boy# When The Saints- Personnel :* Marty "Bo" Fortson: vocals, rhythm guitar...
in 1964 and also covered by The Dictators
The Dictators
The Dictators are an American punk rock band formed in New York City in 1973. Critic John Dougan said that they were "one of the finest and most influential proto-punk bands to walk the earth." The Dictators are represented in the "Punk Wing" of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in Cleveland, Ohio...
.
Track listing
- "Glad to See You Go" (Ramones) – 2:10
- "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment" (Ramones) – 1:38
- "I Remember You" (Ramones) – 2:15
- "Oh, Oh, I Love Her So" (Ramones) – 2:03
- "Carbona Not Glue" (Ramones) – 1:56
- "Suzy Is a Headbanger" (Ramones) – 2:08 (On some versions this is spelled 'Susy', but it seems to be a misprint).
- "Pinhead" (Ramones) – 2:42
- "Now I Wanna Be a Good Boy" (Ramones) – 2:10
- "Swallow My Pride" (Ramones) – 2:03
- "What's Your Game" (Ramones) – 2:33
- "California SunCalifornia Sun"California Sun", is a song credited to Henry Glover and Morris Levy. Originally recorded by 35-year-old New Orleans-born singer-songwriter Joe Jones, and released by EMI in the winter of 1961, it peaked at #89 on the charts.-Cover versions:...
" (Henry GloverHenry GloverHenry Glover was an American songwriter, arranger, record producer and trumpet player. In the music industry of the time, Glover was one of the more successful, and influential, black executives. He gained eminence in the late 1940s, primarily working for the independent King label...
, Morris LevyMorris LevyMorris Levy was an American music industry executive, best known as the founder and owner of Roulette Records...
) – 1:58 - "Commando" (Ramones) – 1:51
- "You're Gonna Kill That Girl" (Ramones) – 2:36
- "You Should Never Have Opened That Door" (Ramones) – 1:54
2001 Expanded Edition CD (Warner Archives/Rhino) live bonus tracks
- "Babysitter" (Ramones) - Leave Home outtake that replaced Carbona Not Glue – 2:44
- "Loudmouth" (Ramones) – 2:08
- "Beat on the Brat" (Ramones) – 2:36
- "Blitzkrieg BopBlitzkrieg Bop"Blitzkrieg Bop" is a song by the American punk rock band Ramones. It was released as the band's debut single in April of 1976 in the United States...
" (Ramones) – 2:13 - "I Remember You" (Ramones) – 2:17
- "Glad to See You Go" (Ramones) – 2:03
- "Chain Saw" (Ramones) – 1:51
- "53rd & 3rd53rd & 3rd"53rd & 3rd" is a song by the American punk rock band the Ramones. It was released as the band's second single and the final released from their debut album, Ramones.-Lyrics:...
" (Ramones) – 2:27 - "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" (Ramones) – 2:22
- "Havana Affair" (Ramones) – 1:53
- "Listen to My Heart" (Ramones) – 1:47
- "California Sun" (Henry Glover, Morris Levy) – 1:58
- "Judy Is a Punk" (Ramones) – 1:23
- "I Don’t Wanna Walk Around With You" (Ramones) – 1:31
- "Today Your Love, Tomorrow the World" (Ramones) – 2:52
- "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue" (Ramones) – 1:28
- "Let’s Dance" (Jim Lee) – 2:06
- Tracks 16-31 recorded live at The RoxyThe Roxy TheatreThe Roxy Theatre is a famous nightclub, on the Sunset Strip, in West Hollywood, California. The Roxy is owned by Lou Adler and Adler's son, Nic, who operates the club.- History :...
in Hollywood, CA (8/12/76).
Personnel
- Joey RamoneJoey RamoneJoey Ramone was an American vocalist and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist in the punk rock band the Ramones. Joey Ramone's image, voice and tenure as frontman of the Ramones made him a countercultural icon.-Early life:Joey Ramone was born Jeffry Hyman to parents Noel and Charlotte Hyman...
– lead vocals - Johnny RamoneJohnny RamoneJohn William Cummings , better known by his stage name Johnny Ramone, was an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being the guitarist for the punk rock band the Ramones. He was a founding member of the band, and remained a member throughout the band's entire career...
– guitar - Dee Dee RamoneDee Dee RamoneDee Dee Ramone was an American songwriter and musician, best known as founding member, bassist and main songwriter of the punk rock band the Ramones....
– bass, backing vocals - Tommy RamoneTommy RamoneTommy Ramone, also known as Thomas Erdelyi , is a Hungarian American record producer and musician...
– drums, producer
Production
- Tony BongioviTony BongioviTony Bongiovi is a record producer and recording engineer with expertise in Electrical & Acoustical Engineering. He helped to remodel an old building in Manhattan—once a power plant for Edison, and later a television studio—into the Power Station recording studio in 1977.Bongiovi was born in the...
– producer - Ed Stasium – engineer
- Greg Calbi – mastering
- Moshe Brakha – front cover photography
- Arturo Vega – back cover art
- John Gillespie - art direction
- Pat Chiono - design
- Tommy Ramone - producer