CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast

CJ Ramone
  • 4.9 (18)
  • Music Commentary

CJ SAYS: A RAMONES PODCAST A podcast unlike any other... Combining music history, rock ‘n’ roll storytelling, life lessons from the road well traveled, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, untold nuggets, and tributes from the Ramones’ most famous & dedicated fans. Hosted by CJ Ramone & Matt Stocks. Weekly episodes published every Thursday on all major podcast platforms. For exclusive bonus content head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays Hey! Ho! Let's Go!!! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 1d ago

    025 - 'Acid Eaters' Side A Deep Dive

    For the penultimate episode of the CJ Says Deep Dive Series, Matt Stocks and CJ Ramone dive headfirst into Acid Eaters—the Ramones’ glorious trip through the songs, sounds and sub-genres that first inspired the band back in 1977. For Matt, this record is personal. Acid Eaters was the first proper Ramones album he ever owned after being seduced by the album cover and the promise of whatever was happening inside. And CJ was there, in the studio, with the band, and he’s got the intel on all of it.What started life as an EP eventually mutated into a full-length covers album, giving the Ramones a chance to forget trying to second guess the ever-evolving music industry and simply play the music they loved. According to CJ, they absolutely loved the experience!On this Side A Deep Dive, we get into the song selections, the psychedelic concept, the garage-rock DNA of the Ramones, the recording sessions, and the sheer joy of four guys locking into a groove and kicking out the jams… Acid Eaters isn't just the Ramones playing other people's songs. It’s the sound of a band digging through their record collection, pulling out the deep cuts that shaped them into the group we all know and love, turning up the volume and showing us exactly where they came from. The trip starts here. Turn on. Tune in. Drop out. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. Oct 1

    024 - Joe Sib Interview

    Hey kids! Welcome to another episode of CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast. This week, we're joined by Joe Sib—singer, storyteller, comedian, label boss, lifer, and all-round punk rock renaissance man. We dive deep into the Ramones universe in this interview, from Joe's recollection of first meeting CJ on the Escape from New York tour in 1990 and discovering they were two kids with the same musical background, to why CJ felt like “one of us” when he stepped into the shoes of Dee Dee Ramone. We also head way back to the gloriously chaotic early days of Wax, a pre-fame Spike Jonze and the birth of Jackass, when music videos were fuelled by little more than youthful exuberance, no money, mad ideas, and a complete disregard for personal safety. Then there's Joe's infamous Pinhead story: his extraordinary quest to become the Pinhead at the Ramones' final New York show. The tale involves Johnny Ramone, Eddie Vedder, and one of the greatest cases of mistaken identity in punk-rock history. So join us for a trip through backstage corridors, dive bars and the volatile chaos of the punk-rock underground, where friendships become the stuff of legend and you absolutely never know what's going to happen next. As always, to stream the second half of this week's interview and access all our additional bonus content, head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  3. Sep 24

    023 - 'Mondo Bizarro' Side A Deep Dive

    Hey kids! Welcome back to CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast. This week, we’re going deep into Side A of Mondo Bizarro with a man who was there. The one and only CJ Ramone… We kick things off with ‘C********t’, Joey Ramone’s furious, funny and unapologetically political response to the music-censorship battles of the early ’90s. CJ takes us inside the recording of the track, explains why it was an obvious choice to open the album, and recalls how the Ramones worked out the sequencing in the studio, moving songs around on the board as the record took shape. We talk about Joey’s vocal performance, the Ramones’ history of tackling social and political subjects, and why ‘C********t’ worked so perfectly as both a killer album opener and a statement of intent. Then it’s on to Marky Ramone’s ‘The Job That Ate My Brain’, with CJ shedding light on Marky's collaboration with songwriter Garrett Uhlenbrock and the wicked little world contained within the song. From there, as always, it’s a deep dive into all the songs on Side A of the album, including the songwriting, the studio sessions, the sequencing, and the stories behind the tracks—only this time, we get to hear it all firsthand from a man who was actually in the room. So crank it up, drop the needle, and join us for the Mondo Bizarro Side A Deep Dive. And if you want to keep digging, head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays for the Side B Deep Dive and the rest of our exclusive Patreon content. You won’t regret it. Gabba Gabba Hey! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  4. Sep 17

    022 - Dirty Donny Interview

    Hey kids! Welcome to another episode of CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast. This week, we're stepping into the wonderfully deranged world of Dirty Donny — artist, hot-rod obsessive, Ramones fanatic, and one of the great modern custodians of the all-American art forms of rock 'n' roll, lowbrow and car culture. Drawing inspiration from legends like Coop and Big Daddy Roth, Donny has spent decades creating a visual universe packed with flames, monsters, skulls, chrome and enough gasoline fumes to permanently alter your brain chemistry. And then there was the small matter of spending six months hanging around Metallica's studio, painting guitars and becoming part of their creative world. We talk lowbrow art, rock 'n' roll, Americana, the DIY spirit and why underground culture has a habit of disappearing into the shadows before roaring back into the limelight. Donny also shares his thoughts on helping younger artists and keeping that creative fire burning for the next generation. So fire up your hot rod and join us for a trip down the rabbit hole of art, music, motorcycles and the beauty of doing things your own way. To stream the second half of this week's artist interview and access the rest of our exclusive bonus content, head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays And to pre-order Donny's new book, Dirty Donny Must Be Destroyed: The Art of Donny Giles, out September 29, head over to www.dirtydonny.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  5. Sep 10

    021 - 'Brain Drain' Side A Deep Dive

    Hey kids! Welcome to another Deep Dive episode of CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast. This week, we drop the needle on Brain Drain—the Ramones' eleventh studio album, released in 1989, and a record that arrived at one of the most turbulent moments in the band's history. By this point, the cracks were beginning to show. Richie Ramone was gone, Dee Dee was battling his own demons, and the band were facing the increasingly familiar struggle between artistic credibility, commercial success, and simply keeping the machine moving. And yet, somehow, Brain Drain produced some of the most memorable songs of the Ramones' later years. From the irresistible 'I Believe in Miracles' to the sublime soundtrack song 'Pet Sematary', Brain Drain is a fascinating collision of classic Ramones songwriting, vintage '80s production, and even a Christmas song thrown into the mix. In this week's Deep Dive, we get under the skin of the record (or skull) of Brain Drain—the songs, the stories, the lineup changes, and the bizarre context surrounding an album that's often overlooked in favour of the Ramones' earlier, more celebrated records. So grab your leather jacket, turn up the volume up dial, and join us as we revisit Brain Drain, an album made by a band who may have been running low on fumes, but somehow still had enough gas left in the tank to go to the distance as they entered the third—and arguably most successful—decade of their career... The Ramones weren't finished yet. Not by a long shot. As always, if you want to hear the Side B Deep Dive and stream the rest of our exclusive bonus content, head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  6. Sep 3

    020 - Joey S******d Interview

    Hey kids! Welcome to another episode of CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast. This week, we're heading north of the border to Vancouver to sit down with one of the great survivors of the punk rock underground: Joey S******d, frontman of DOA, and a man who’s spent nearly five decades making noise, causing trouble, and proving that punk was never supposed to be a spectator sport. Joey takes us back to the beginning—to the first time he saw the Ramones and The Clash and realised that this strange, furious thing called punk rock could change the course of your life. From the Commodore Ballroom to the sweaty clubs and broken-down vans of the Canadian underground scene, Joey’s story is about discovering music and deciding, against all reasonable advice, to throw himself headfirst into the lifestyle. But beneath the noise, the politics and righteous aggression lies something even more important: community. Joey remembers a punk scene where the bands looked after one another, raised money when somebody's gear got stolen, shared stages, ideas, and somehow managed to build a culture out of absolutely nothing. Along the way, we get stories of friendships, survival, and the strange pathways that connect Vancouver's underground music scene to international rockstars like Duff McKagan from Guns N’ Roses—proving that the widespread punk rock family tree is connected to the same roots, all off which spring from the Ramones… As always, to stream the second half of this artist interview and access the rest of our bonus content, head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  7. Aug 27

    019 - 'Halfway to Sanity' Side A Deep Dive

    Hey kids! Welcome to another Deep Dive episode of CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast. This week, we drop the needle on Halfway to Sanity—the Ramones' tenth studio album, released in 1987, which proved that after eleven years of broken hearts and internal warfare, the brothers weren't ready to lie down and die. By this point, the musical landscape had changed beyond recognition. Punk had mutated, MTV had taken over the airwaves, and the Ramones were deeper into their career than most bands ever survive. Yet here they were, still writing songs, making records, and somehow still sounding unmistakably like themselves… Produced by Daniel Rey, Halfway to Sanity finds the band somewhere between refinement and rawness. Debbie Harry drops by for a vocal cameo, Walter Lure adds additional guitar to the soundscape, and Dee Dee increasingly turns his songwriting inwards—swapping some of the cartoonish chaos of his earlier material for something more personal, vulnerable, and occasionally downright unsettling! In this week's Deep Dive, we pull apart the songs, the production and the circumstances surrounding one of the most overlooked records in the Ramones’ back catalogue. So grab your leather jacket and join us somewhere halfway between genius and insanity…then head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays and join us for the Side B Deep Dive where we turn the record over and discuss the second half of the album. Hey! Ho! Let’s GO!!! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  8. Aug 20

    018 - Blag Dahlia Interview

    Hey kids! Welcome to another episode of CJ Says: A Ramones Podcast. This week, we throw the doors of the punk-rock asylum wide open and invite onto the show the illustrious Blag Dahlia—frontman of the Dwarves, professional troublemaker, underground philosopher, solo artist, and one of the few men alive who can discuss the Ramones, Frank Zappa, jazz, rock 'n' roll, swing, and the decline of Western civilisation without even pausing for breath… In this interview, Blag explains why the Ramones changed his life, not because they were the most technically accomplished musicians, but because they made making music feel possible! We also delve into the DNA of the Dwarves: the filthy lyrics, outrageous iconography, and deliberate collision of pop songwriting and confrontational art. Because beneath all the blood, guts and public indecency Blag always had the same obsession: making great music. Along the way, we discuss why the Ramones had swing, why rock 'n' roll needs humour and danger to stay alive, and what happens when punk takes itself so seriously that the people creating it forget to have any fun. Blag also opens up about getting older, his constant quest for artistic reinvention, and the Ralph Champagne project, which proves that staying true to yourself doesn't have to mean staying the same forever. So join us for a wild ride into punk, pop, rock 'n' roll, and the fine art of staying weird! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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CJ SAYS: A RAMONES PODCAST A podcast unlike any other... Combining music history, rock ‘n’ roll storytelling, life lessons from the road well traveled, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, untold nuggets, and tributes from the Ramones’ most famous & dedicated fans. Hosted by CJ Ramone & Matt Stocks. Weekly episodes published every Thursday on all major podcast platforms. For exclusive bonus content head over to www.patreon.com/cjsays Hey! Ho! Let's Go!!! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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