A GIF that recently made the rounds in the wake of original drummer and final surviving member Tommy Ramone’s passing in July 2014 showed the cover art from the Ramones’ 1976 debut with just an empty brick wall. What can never be erased, however, are the spirits of him and his bandmates, Joey, Johnny and Dee Dee, immortalized in the music contained inside that iconic jacket: 29 minutes and four seconds of pure Queens poetry in leather, a flurry of Spector-inspired melodies played at maximum velocity. In honor of its 40th anniversary, Rhino has expanded this half-hour across three CDs and one vinyl LP in the form of a gorgeous 12×12 hardcover box set. Lovingly overseen by the album’s original producer, Craig Leon, this deluxe edition of Ramones spills over with great rare material in addition to the beautiful remastering job Leon did of the classic tracklist itself (both in stereo and mono). The second disc is devoted to a cache of demo and single versions of such LP favorites as “53rd & 3rd,” “Chain Saw,” “Loudmouth” and, of course, the eternal
punk-culture anthem “Blitzkrieg Bop.” The third CD, meanwhile, features both sets from a particularly wild August night in ‘76 at The Roxy in West Hollywood boasting a quality on par with It’s Alive. Forty years
later, this indelible debut still perseveres as a beacon of hope for every kid with a guitar and a dream.