Joey Ramone and his bandmates helped put CBGB on the cultural map, and his friends and fans from the legendary punk rock club have now returned the favor. The Manhattan corner where the Bowery meets Second Street was renamed Joey Ramone Place on Sunday, 2½ years after his death from cancer at age 49.
“Joey was A true New Yorker,” said bandmate Marky Ramone. “This honor today conveys what a monolith of talent he was.”
Although many Ramones songs — like “Beat on the Brat,” “I Wanna Be Sedated,” and “Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue” — reflect their twisted teen years in Queens, they are most closely associated with the East Village and CBGB, widely considered the birthplace of American punk.
“Joey loved this neighborhood. He loved its streets,” his mother, Charlotte Lesher, said.
The four bandmates, who all took on the same last name, formed up in 1974. Despite limited musical skill, they quickly developed a thunderous sound, with Joey’s sneering, infantile lyrics.
Although they never had a platinum album or charted a radio hit, the band developed a rabid following and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.