Editing Dee Dee Ramone (section)

==Career==
===Ramones===
Colvin, later Dee Dee, and Cummings, later Johnny, quickly became friends, as they were both social outcasts in their middle-class neighborhood. After an unsuccessful guitar audition for [[Television (band)|Television]], Johnny convinced Dee Dee to form their own band with then-drummer Jeffrey Hyman, later [[Joey Ramone]], in 1974. Dee Dee initially wanted to be the band's lead vocalist in addition to being a guitarist along with Johnny, but had to switch to bass when their friend Richie Stern, who they had hired to be the band's bassist, proved incapable of playing the instrument.<ref name="Commando">{{cite book|last1=Ramone|first1=Johnny|author-link1=Johnny Ramone|title=Commando: The Autobiography of Johnny Ramone|date=April 2012|publisher=[[Abrams Image]]|location=New York City, New York|isbn=9780810996601|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dBZlyEn5H1gC&q=richie+stern&pg=PT47|access-date=7 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208073533/https://books.google.ca/books?id=dBZlyEn5H1gC&pg=PT47&dq=richie+stern&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjGmcu_3pbXAhVm34MKHWFaDi4Q6AEILjAB#v=onepage&q=richie%20stern&f=false|archive-date=December 8, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Joey later took over vocal duties after Dee Dee decided that he could not sing lead vocals for longer than a few songs as his voice shredded. Dee Dee would continue, however, to count off each song's tempo with his signature rapid-fire shout of "1-2-3-4!"

It was Dee Dee who first suggested naming the band the Ramones, after reading that [[Paul McCartney]] often signed into hotels under the alias "Paul Ramon". He added an 'e' to the end of that surname and the band members all agreed to adopt the surname "Ramone" as a means of conveying their unity.

In the early 1970s, Dee Dee worked at The Bureau of Advertising, located at 485 Lexington Ave., Manhattan, NYC. Later renamed The Newspaper Advertising Bureau, the agency promoted newspapers as the best media source for advertising. Dee Dee was a printer's helper for about one year in the company's small in-house print shop. Because of his creative abilities he would hang out, when he could, with the graphic designers in the company's art department. In 1973, Colvin became friends with [[Arturo Vega]], a Mexican artist who had relocated to New York City and would become a close associate of the Ramones for the duration of their existence. Officially dubbed their ''artistic director'', Vega designed their famous logo, oversaw [[stage lighting]] and had other duties as needed.<ref name=nyt>{{cite news
| first      = William
| last       = Yardley
| title      = Arturo Vega, Shepherd for the Ramones, Dies at 65
| date       = June 11, 2013
| work  = [[The New York Times]]
| url        = https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/12/arts/music/arturo-vega-spokesman-and-designer-for-the-ramones-dies-at-65.html
| access-date = January 10, 2015}}
</ref>

The Ramones played before an audience for the first time on March 30, 1974, at Performance Studios.<ref name="HallofFame">{{cite web | url=http://rockhall.com/inductees/ramones/ | date=September 15, 2004 | title=Ramones | publisher=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame + Museum | access-date=July 9, 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150710095617/http://rockhall.com/inductees/ramones/ | archive-date=July 10, 2015 | url-status=live }}</ref> The band's debut album, ''[[Ramones (album)|Ramones]]'', was greeted positively by rock critics.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.albumism.com/features/ramones-eponymous-debut-album-ramones-turns-45-anniversary-retrospective|title=Ramones' Eponymous Debut Album 'Ramones' Turns 45 |last=Nelson|first=Terry|date=April 20, 2021|work=Albumism.com}}</ref> The album was not a commercial success, reaching only number 111 on the ''[[Billboard charts|Billboard]]'' album chart.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ramones Biography|publisher=[[Prometheus Global Media]]|work=[[Billboard charts|Billboard]]|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/359662/ramones/biography|access-date=August 30, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150613183522/http://www.billboard.com/artist/359662/ramones/biography|archive-date=June 13, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Their next two albums, ''[[Leave Home]]'' and ''[[Rocket to Russia]]'', were released in 1977.<ref>{{cite web| author =Jones, Chris| title =The Ramones Leave Home| publisher =BBC| date =January 24, 2008| url =https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/cz54/| access-date =November 5, 2009| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20090114204657/http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/cz54/| archive-date =January 14, 2009| url-status =live}}</ref> ''Rocket to Russia'' was the band's highest-charting album to date, reaching number 49 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard''&nbsp;200]].<ref>{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r16121|pure_url=yes}}|title=Charts & Awards ''Rocket to Russia|website=[[Allmusic]]|access-date=October 20, 2009}}</ref> In 1978, the band released their fourth studio album, ''[[Road to Ruin (Ramones album)|Road to Ruin]]''. It failed to reach the [[Billboard Top 100|''Billboard'' Top 100]]. However, "[[I Wanna Be Sedated]]", which appeared both on the album and as a single, would become one of the band's best-known songs.<ref>{{cite web|author=Boldman, Gina | url={{AllMusic|class=song|id=t4297980|pure_url=yes}} | website=Allmusic | access-date=November 5, 2009| title=I Wanna Be Sedated}}</ref> The artwork on the album's cover was done by ''Punk'' magazine cofounder [[John Holmstrom]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=5901|title=John Holmstrom: Floating in a Bottle of Formaldehyde|last=Morgan|first=Jeffrey|date=February 4, 2004|work=[[Metro Times]]|publisher=[[Times-Shamrock Communications]]|access-date=November 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090605180207/http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=5901|archive-date=June 5, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref>

Dee Dee wrote or co-wrote much of the Ramones' repertoire, such as "[[53rd and 3rd]]" (a song about male prostitution at 53rd Street and 3rd Avenue in [[Manhattan]], allegedly based on personal experience), "Glad to See You Go" (written about his then-girlfriend, a [[stripper]] and fellow drug user with a volatile personality), "It's a Long Way Back", "[[Chinese Rocks]]" (originally recorded by [[Johnny Thunders]] and [[the Heartbreakers]], as guitarist Johnny Ramone was not enthusiastic about the Ramones doing songs about drugs) and "Wart Hog" (a song Dee Dee wrote in rehab). After he quit the Ramones in 1989,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/06/06/deedee.ramone/|title=CNN.com - Dee Dee Ramone found dead; OD suspected - June 7, 2002|website=www.cnn.com}}</ref> Dee Dee continued to write songs for them, contributing at least three songs to each of their albums.

According to ''[[Mondo Bizarro]]'s'' liner notes, the Ramones once bailed Dee Dee out of jail in exchange for the rights to his songs "Main Man", "Strength to Endure" and "Poison Heart", which would become a minor hit for the band. The band's final studio album, 1995's ''[[¡Adios Amigos!]]'', features several of Dee Dee's solo songs, such as "I'm Makin' Monsters for My Friends" and "It's Not for Me to Know" from his album ''[[I Hate Freaks Like You]]'', and "The Crusher" from ''[[Standing in the Spotlight]]''.

Dee Dee was a special guest at the final Ramones show at the Palace in Los Angeles on August 6, 1996. He performed lead vocals on "[[Animal Boy|Love Kills]]".

Recognition of the band's importance grew over the years.<ref name="auto">{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/the-curse-of-the-ramones-165741/|title=The Curse of the Ramones|first1=Mikal|last1=Gilmore|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=May 19, 2016}}</ref> The Ramones ranked number 26 in ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine's list of the "[[Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time|100 Greatest Artists of All Time]]"<ref>{{cite magazine| title= 100 Greatest Artists| magazine= Rolling Stone| url= https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-greatest-artists-of-all-time-19691231/the-ramones-20110419| access-date= November 5, 2009| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121019204408/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-greatest-artists-of-all-time-19691231/the-ramones-20110419| archive-date= October 19, 2012| url-status= live}}</ref> and number 17 in [[VH1]]'s "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vh1-counts-down-the-100-greatest-artists-of-hard-rock-in-five-hour-five-night-special-premiering-november-13-17-at-1000-pm-etpt-75380612.html|title=100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock|publisher=VH1|access-date=November 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025064126/http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vh1-counts-down-the-100-greatest-artists-of-hard-rock-in-five-hour-five-night-special-premiering-november-13-17-at-1000-pm-etpt-75380612.html|archive-date=October 25, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2002, the Ramones were ranked the second-greatest band of all time by ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'', trailing only [[The Beatles]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/spin100.html#Greatest%20Bands|title=50&nbsp;Greatest Bands Of All Time|work=Spin|date=February 2002|access-date=November 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130825055959/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/spin100.html#Greatest%20Bands|archive-date=August 25, 2013|url-status=usurped}}</ref>

Dee Dee was present when the Ramones were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002, the first year they were eligible, and not long after lead singer Joey had died. Dee Dee humorously congratulated himself at the induction.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/07/arts/dee-dee-ramone-pioneer-punk-rocker-dies-at-50.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm |title=Dee Dee Ramone, Pioneer Punk Rocker, Dies at 50 – New York Times |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=June 7, 2002 |access-date=July 3, 2013}}</ref>

===Later music projects===
In 1987, before leaving the Ramones, Dee Dee embarked on a brief [[hip hop]] career as rapper "Dee Dee King" with the album ''[[Standing in the Spotlight]]''. Dee Dee had recorded "[[Funky Man (Dee Dee King song)|Funky Man]]" as Dee Dee King in 1987. Music critic Matt Carlson wrote that the album "will go down in the annals of [[popular culture|pop culture]] as one of the worst recordings of all time".<ref>{{cite web|last=Carlson |first=Matt |url={{AllMusic|class=album |id=r10919 |pure_url=yes}} |title=Standing in the Spotlight – Dee Dee King |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=July 20, 2011}}</ref> After the album failed, he returned to punk rock with various short-lived projects such as Sprocket (which also featured Richard 'The Atomic Elf' Bacchus of [[D Generation]] and the Spikey Tops). In 1987 Dee Dee wrote and produced a song called "Baby Doll" for [[the Chesterfield Kings]] ("Baby Doll"/"I Cannot Find Her", acoustic version 1987, Mirror Records, later recorded by American rock and roll band [[The Connection (band)|the Connection]], on their album ''New England's Newest Hit Makers'').
Months after he left the Ramones, in the fall of 1989, Dee Dee already performed songs such as "Poison Heart" and "Main Man" (later to be recorded by the Ramones) with his band the Spikey Tops.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://collectorsfrenzy.com/details/390476699720/DEE_DEE_RAMONE_And_The_Spikey_Tops_Street_Animal_112589_NM_LP_RAMONES |title=Dee Dee Ramone & The Spikey Tops – Street Animal, November 1989 |access-date=November 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105090723/http://collectorsfrenzy.com/details/390476699720/DEE_DEE_RAMONE_And_The_Spikey_Tops_Street_Animal_112589_NM_LP_RAMONES |archive-date=November 5, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1991, Dee Dee was briefly involved with transgressive punk rock singer-songwriter [[GG Allin]], playing the guitar with Allin's backup band [[the Murder Junkies]]. His involvement lasted approximately one week, enough for him to be briefly interviewed during the filming of [[Todd Phillips]]' Allin documentary ''[[Hated: GG Allin and the Murder Junkies]]''. In the film, Dee Dee reveals that he was unaware of the band's name, even after joining. Rehearsal recordings of him with Allin and the Murder Junkies appears on the ''Hated'' soundtrack, as well as on the posthumous live Allin compilation ''Res-Erected''. Video footage of the rehearsals is available on DVD through Allin's estate's website.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ggallin.com |title=Official Site of the True King of Rock and Roll |publisher=GG Allin |access-date=July 20, 2011}}</ref> Dee Dee never actually played a live gig with the band.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.staythirstymedia.com/1206media/HTML/1206merleallin.html |title=Thirsty : December 2006 : Merle Allin Featured Interview |publisher=Staythirstymedia.com |access-date=July 20, 2011}}</ref>

In 1992, Dee Dee formed another short-lived project named [[Dee Dee Ramone and the Chinese Dragons]], which was followed by the most successful of his post-Ramones projects, a group named [[Dee Dee Ramone I.C.L.C.]] (Inter-Celestial Light Commune), which lasted from 1994 to 1996. The group featured New York City bassist [[John Carco]] (formerly of [[Queens]] [[New York hardcore|hardcore]] group Misguided) who befriended Dee Dee when the two attended [[Alcoholics Anonymous]] meetings together during the summer of 1992. After writing more than a dozen songs and recording several demos for an upcoming Ramones album with producer [[Daniel Rey]], Dee Dee decided to keep the material for his new band. After working with several drummers and playing several live shows in the New York City area, Dee Dee and Carco moved to [[Amsterdam]] to record a four-song [[Extended play|EP]] and fourteen-track album for [[Rough Trade Records]]. ''[[I Hate Freaks Like You]]'' was released on April 17, 1994. It features [[Nina Hagen]] on two of the album's fourteen tracks. The three-piece line up now consisted of Dee Dee (vocals, guitar), Carco (bass, vocals), and Dutch drummer Danny Arnold Lommen.

I.C.L.C. would go on to promote the ''I Hate Freaks Like You'' album by touring 22 countries over a 10-month period.<ref name="auto2">{{cite web|url=http://ramones.kauhajoki.fi/gigs/deedee/barbara.html |title=Ramones: Interview With Barbara Zampini |publisher=Jari-Pekka Laitio-Ramone |access-date=July 20, 2011}}</ref> In January 1995, the group had completed their 10-month tour and returned to their headquarters in [[Amsterdam]] to begin recording a second album. The group was soon dropped, however, by their record label, Rough Trade World Service. With this development, bassist John Carco left the group and moved to Los Angeles where he formed and played with Frankie O. and [[Pete Stahl]] (singer of D.C.H.C. group [[Scream (band)|Scream]]) in the group Metro. Carco would later pursue an acting career. Songs written by Dee Dee and Carco for the never-released second I.C.L.C. album would appear on the Ramones' final album ''[[¡Adios Amigos!]]''. One of these songs, "Born to Die in Berlin", appeared as the final song on the final Ramones' album, and featured Dee Dee singing in German on the bridge of the song. "Fix Yourself Up" was recorded by Dee Dee on the album ''[[Zonked]]''.

Dee Dee formed a Ramones' tribute band called [[the Ramainz]] with his wife Barbara ("Barbara Ramone", bass) and former Ramones' member Marky (drums). They recorded an album, ''Live in NYC'', released in Argentina and many other countries, and played a couple of times with [[C.J. Ramone]].

Dee Dee also recorded several solo albums. ''[[Zonked!]]'', the first album release under the Dee Dee Ramone moniker, was retitled ''Ain't It Fun?'' for the European release. Other than the addition of the bonus track "Please Kill Me", the releases are the same the line-up for this album was Dee Dee Ramone on guitars and lead vocals, Marky Ramone on drums, longtime partner Daniel Ray producing and on guitars, and Barbara "Ramone"/Zampini on bass and lead vocals. Guests included Joey Ramone singing lead on "I am seeing UFOs", and [[the Cramps]]' vocalist [[Lux Interior]] doing so on "Bad Horoscope".

The second solo album was called ''[[Hop Around]]''; the line-up consisted of Dee Dee Ramone, Barbara Ramone/Zampini, [[Chris Spedding]] on guitars and Billy Rogers on drums. Dee Dee also released ''[[Greatest & Latest (Dee Dee Ramone album)|Greatest & Latest]]'', with Barbara, Spedding and Chase Manhattan on drums. This album consisted of re-recordings of Ramones songs, a re-recorded solo song ("Fix Yourself Up", originally from ''Zonked!''/''Ain't It Fun?''), cover-songs and an unreleased new solo-song ("Sidewalk Surfin'").

In the 21st century, Dee Dee teamed up with [[Paul Kostabi]], leader of the [[hardcore punk]] band [[Youth Gone Mad]] and former guitarist for [[White Zombie (band)|White Zombie]]. An established artist, Kostabi was instrumental in getting Dee Dee's new career as a painter off the ground. Together with Barbara, the trio collaborated on several hundred works that sold quickly for a few hundred dollars each. In 2012, the tenth anniversary of Dee Dee's death was observed by a show at a prominent art gallery in California.<ref name="auto1">{{cite web|url=http://deedeeramone.com/archives/DeeDeeBirthday2012.html |title=Happy Birthday Dee Dee Ramone! |publisher=Deedeeramone.com |access-date=July 3, 2013}}</ref>

On [[Halloween]], 1998, while staying at the [[Hotel Chelsea]], Dee Dee and Zampini met the Hollywood band SEXYCHRIST, which featured adult film star [[Kurt Lockwood]]. Lockwood encouraged them to move to Hollywood, and together the two bands shared a successful tour of the U.S. in early 1999. Afterwards, Dee Dee formed the Dee Dee Ramone Band, with members including [[Christian Martucci]] (vocals and guitar), Anthony Smedile (drums), Chase Manhattan (drums), and [[Stefan Adika]] (bass). With the exception of one show at the Spa Club in NYC and a Club Makeup performance, this would be his last touring band. Dee Dee would release a book, entitled ''Legend of a Rock Star, A Memoir: The Last Testament of Dee Dee Ramone'', written while on tour in Europe in 2001.<ref>{{cite book |last= Ramone |first= Dee Dee |title= Legend of a Rock Star, A Memoir: The Last Testament of Dee Dee Ramone |publisher= Thunder's Mouth Press, formerly [[Four Walls Eight Windows]] |year= 2002 |isbn=978-1-56025-389-1 }}</ref>

Dee Dee later moved to California, where he continued to make music and pursued an acting career. He was  unsuccessful as an actor but landed a major role in the 2002 low-budget film ''Bikini Bandits''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361394/|title=Bikini Bandits|date=November 12, 2002|via=IMDb}}</ref> He contributed the song "In a Movie" to the film's soundtrack, featuring his wife Barbara on lead vocals.

His next album, a live album produced by [[Gilby Clarke]] (formerly of [[Guns N' Roses]]) would have been recorded on June 12, 2002, at Hollywood's Key Club, but plans fell through. [[Bootleg recording|Bootleg]]s of the Dee Dee Ramone Band exist, amongst them ''Live in Milan, Italy''. Dee Dee's final studio recordings were released by [[tREND iS dEAD! records|Trend iS dEAD! records]] as the 2002 album ''[[Youth Gone Mad featuring Dee Dee Ramone]]''. He also worked with the band Terrorgruppe.

===Equipment===
Though he used both a [[Danelectro]] and [[Fender Musicmaster Bass]] in the first two years of the Ramones, he is primarily associated with the [[Fender Precision Bass]], which he used exclusively between 1976 and 1986. In the late 1980s, he began using a variety of custom [[ESP Guitars|ESP]] basses which he would use for the rest of his tenure with the band. He used [[Ampeg]] amplification during his entire career with the Ramones.<ref>[http://www.rockometer.com/ramones/equipment/snd_bass.html Ramones: Bass equipment] rockometer.com Retrieved:2009-10-01</ref>

===Writing===
Dee Dee Ramone's autobiography ''My Right to Survive'' was published as ''Poison Heart: Surviving the Ramones'' in 1998. A second revision edition appeared in 2001. It was republished as ''Lobotomy: Surviving the Ramones'' in 2016. Dee Dee co-authored the book with Veronica Kofman. Another nonfiction work, ''Legend of a Rock Star'', written by Dee Dee alone, presents daily journal of commentary on his last, hectic European tour in the spring of 2001.

His novel ''[[Chelsea Horror Hotel]]'' relates a story in which he and his wife move into New York City's famous/notorious [[Hotel Chelsea]] and believe they are staying in the same room where [[Sid Vicious]] allegedly killed his girlfriend, [[Nancy Spungen]]. Ramone is visited by Vicious, as well as other dead punk rock friends such as [[Johnny Thunders]], [[Stiv Bators]], and [[Jerry Nolan]].