Brain Drain (album)

Brain Drain is the eleventh studio album by the American punk rock band the Ramones, released on March 23, 1989.[1] It is the last Ramones release to feature bassist/lyricist/vocalist Dee Dee Ramone, the first to feature Marky Ramone since his initial firing from the band after 1983's Subterranean Jungle and the band's last studio album on Sire Records.

Brain Drain
Studio album by
the Ramones
ReleasedMarch 23, 1989
RecordedDecember 1988
GenrePunk rock
Length35:02
LabelSire
ProducerBill Laswell, Jean Beauvoir, Daniel Rey
Ramones chronology
Halfway to Sanity
(1987)		 Brain Drain
(1989)		 Mondo Bizarro
(1992)
Singles from Brain Drain
  1. "Pet Sematary"
    Released: 1989
  2. "I Believe in Miracles"
    Released: 1989
  3. "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)"
    Released: 1989
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert ChristgauB[2]
Punknews.org[3]

On the making of the album, Dee Dee Ramone recalled: "It was tough recording the Brain Drain album because everyone took their shit out on me. I dreaded being around them. It drove me away — I didn't even end up playing on the album. Everybody in the band had problems; girlfriend problems, money problems, mental problems".

Johnny Ramone expressed similarly unfavorable sentiments in his 2012 posthumous autobiography, Commando, calling it "one of my least favorite albums, but it has a couple of bright spots, like '[I Believe in] Miracles' and 'Punishment Fits the Crime.'" He awarded both the Brain Drain album and its follow-up, Mondo Bizarro, a "C" letter grade.

Brain Drain was originally intended to be a "comeback" album for the Ramones, following the belated success of "I Wanna Be Sedated";[4][5] however, despite some good reviews, the album failed live up to commercial expectations, peaking at number 122 on the Billboard 200 chart.[6] Nonetheless, the album's first single "Pet Sematary" became the band's highest-charting hit in the US, peaking at number four.[7] Dee Dee appears as the bassist in both of the music videos for "Pet Sematary", while the videos for "I Believe In Miracles" and "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" feature his replacement C.J. Ramone.

Songs

"Palisades Park" is a cover song, originally recorded by Freddy Cannon in 1962.

"Pet Sematary" was written for the Stephen King movie adaptation of the same name and was issued as a single, becoming one of the Ramones' biggest radio hits and a staple of their concerts during the 1990s.[8]

"Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" was later included in the film Christmas With The Kranks.[9]

Cover versions

"I Believe in Miracles" was covered by Eddie Vedder and Zeke for the We're a Happy Family—A Tribute to the Ramones album and is frequently covered by Pearl Jam at their shows.

"Pet Sematary" was performed live by German industrial metal band Rammstein (in conjunction with Clawfinger) and was released as a b-side to their single "Ich will" in 2001. Rammstein was joined onstage by Marky Ramone, C. J. Ramone and Jerry Only of the Misfits when performing the song in New York as a tribute to Joey Ramone who had died three months prior. The song was later covered by a psychobilly band, the Creepshow, as a bonus track for their second album, Run For Your Life, in 2008. It was also performed by the Plain White T's for the film Frankenweenie (Unleashed)'

"Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)" was covered by Joey Ramone on his second posthumous album ...Ya Know?, and by Mattiel in December 2019.

The end credits of the 2019 version of "Pet Sematary" include a cover version of "Pet Sematary" by the American punk rock band Starcrawler.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Believe in Miracles"Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey3:19
2."Zero Zero UFO"Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey2:25
3."Don't Bust My Chops"Dee Dee Ramone, Joey Ramone, Daniel Rey2:28
4."Punishment Fits the Crime"Dee Dee Ramone, Richie Stotts3:05
5."All Screwed Up"Joey Ramone, Andy Shernoff, Marky Ramone, Daniel Rey3:59
6."Palisades Park"Charles Barris2:22
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Pet Sematary"Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey3:30
8."Learn to Listen"Dee Dee Ramone, Johnny Ramone, Marky Ramone, Daniel Rey1:50
9."Can't Get You Outta My Mind"Joey Ramone3:21
10."Ignorance Is Bliss"Joey Ramone, Andy Shernoff2:38
11."Come Back, Baby"Joey Ramone4:01
12."Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)"Joey Ramone2:04
Captain Oi! reissue CD bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Pet Sematary" (Bill Laswell Version)Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey3:35

Personnel

Ramones

Additional musicians

  • Jean Beauvoir – guitars (on "Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want To Fight Tonight)" and "Pet Sematary"), bass
  • Artie Smith – additional guitars
  • Robert Musso – additional guitars

Production

  • Jean Beauvoir – producer and arranger
  • Bill Laswell – producer
  • Daniel Rey – producer, musical coordinator
  • Gary "Muddbone" Cooper – production assistant
  • Mark Sidgwick – production assistant
  • Nicky Skopelitis – production assistant
  • Kim White – production assistant
  • Fernando Kral - engineer
  • Robert Musso – engineer, mixing
  • Martin Bisi – assistant engineer
  • Oz Fritz – assistant engineer
  • Judy Kirschner – assistant engineer
  • Robbie Norris – assistant engineer
  • Jason Corsaro – mixing
  • Howard Weinberg – mastering
  • George DuBose – artwork, coordination
  • Matt Mahurin – artwork

Charts

Album
Chart (1989) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[10] 40
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[11] 41
UK Albums (OCC)[12] 75
Billboard 200122[6]

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1989 "Pet Sematary" Modern Rock Tracks 4[13]

References
  1. Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Brain Drain - Ramones". AllMusic.
  2. "Robert Christgau review".
  3. "Ramones - Brain Drain". Punknews.org. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  4. "The Ramones' Brain Drain: The Untold Story". joelgausten.com. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  5. "Readers' Poll: The 10 Best Ramones Albums". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  6. "The Ramones". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-01-27.
  7. "Ramones Chart History: Alternative Airplay". Billboard. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  8. "MattFini's Halloween Top 10 Lists: Most Memorable End Credit Songs".
  9. Christmas with the Kranks: Music from the Motion Picture - Original Soundtrack | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic, retrieved 2021-01-27
  10. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  11. "Swedishcharts.com – Ramones – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  12. "Ramones | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  13. "Billboard singles chart history-The Ramones". Retrieved March 2, 2009.
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