Jenn L. Beckwith (All Good Cretins Go To Heaven: The Enduring Spirit of the Ramones – author)
SPB: Do you remember the first time you saw the Ramones live (or, alternately if it’s a better story, the first time you heard them)?
Beckwith: My collaborator and researcher Gary Lynn Clevenger and I met up on a Ramones Facebook group in 2023. There have been many books written about the Ramones, each good and unique in their own way and perspective. The hardest part was writing a Ramones book that was not redundant with a unique angle. That unique angle was the fan perspective. As the author of All Good Cretins Go To Heaven: The Enduring Spirit of the Ramones, I came across great stories and photos from fans who saw the Ramones.
Our approach was to have the book be an open love letter to the Ramones. Fans were so generous with their stories and photos along with sharing their connection to the Ramones. As we researched the band, we discovered the Ramones were without ego and loved and respected their fans. It was their dedicated fanbase that kept the Ramones playing across three decades as a touring band. Any internal strife in the van was never seen by the fans. They put aside their differences once they hit the stage and whenever they interacted with the fans.
Most of the fans describe seeing the Ramones perform as life-changing. I can’t remember the exact moment but I do remember seeing them on TV’s Sha Na Na in 1979 and then on repeat on cable TV in 1980 or so with Rock ‘n’ Roll High School. I was and still am a huge fan of 1960s music and for years thought they were a ‘60s band because of their cover songs and was disappointed I didn’t hear them on the oldies radio stations. You have to remember 1950s and 1960s music was getting new life in the late 1970s. The movie Grease was popular so it only made sense to me with the Ramones because they looked the part of greasers. When MTV came on air in 1981 was when I quickly realized they weren’t an oldies band -- they were the coolest band that rocked the earth.
Growing up in the suburbs of New Haven I always saw ads for them playing at New Haven clubs like Toad’s Place. My life-changing moment finally came on April 23, 1993 in New Haven at Southern Connecticut State University where the Ramones played at a campus commuter parking lot. They had a tractor trailer with a generator as the backdrop to their show. I attended with my friend Eric T. with our earplugs ready. We walked around beforehand excited with anticipation that we were getting to see the Ramones!
As the show began, I heard the theme from The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly and saw the student crowd head to the stage. We then hit the mosh pit where I lost him ‘til the end of the show. I only lasted two songs and said to myself, “Fuck this.” I pushed and shoved to the front barriers by Joey’s feet and not far from Johnny. A guy behind me did his best to protect himself and me from the jostling. Let me tell you, those barriers flexed and I thought for certain were going to give way. I watched Joey with awe during the hour-long set. I remember seeing his eyes through his signature red-tinted glasses, me thinking, “Can he see me?”
The show was definitely loud. I pulled one earplug out briefly and quickly put it back in. I remember CJ on the far right side of the stage interacting with the audience. By the end of the show, Johnny threw his guitar pick out to the audience. It was pitch dark and a bunch of guys clamored for it. At the last song, Joey threw down his microphone as if he was disgusted. I learned later that throwing down his mic was part of his schtick.
Crowds dispersed and I caught up with Eric. We left feeling a high energy and excitement. I have seen a lot of shows through the years: nothing matches the energy of a Ramones show. The Ramones were loud, loved, and put out energy like no other. I regret seeing them only once, yet I am also very grateful to have seen the Ramones so close by those flimsy plywood barriers.
