Latest news updated: November 27, 2011.
YOU CAN FIND FROM THIS SITE LOT INFORMATION RELATED JOEY RAMONE'S SOLO ALBUM(S) AND OTHER RELEASES CONCERNING IT:
1) Basic infos of the Don't Worry About Me album, special releases and versions of the album, interviews and comments by Mickey Leigh and Daniel Rey...
2) Infos of Joey Ramone's second album which should be released in 2011.
3) Infos of Joey Ramone's Christmas Spirit... In My House -EP.
4) Infos of Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight) -single.
5) Infos of What A Wonderful World promo single and video.
JOEY RAMONE'S SOLO ALBUM DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME:
We fans were waiting for so many years Joey Ramone's solo album. All
tracks for this Joey's Don't Worry About Me album were finished before
he passed away. At all he recorded around 20 songs together with producer
Daniel Rey. Don't Worry About
Me was released on February 19, 2002. Some countries came later, like
in Japan album was released in March 21, 2002 and in Brazil by Zomba
Records on May 30, 2002. Also vinyl version is available.Joey's brother Mickey Leigh informed me that he shooked hands with the staff of Sanctuary records, making the decision official about releasing an album.
- Album contains 11 song and Don't Worry About Me is one of the song titles. It's one of my favorite songs on the album, and is right in the spirit of my brother liking to see people happy and having fun rather than being sad that he's not with us anymore. I wanted to use a title that was his own words rather than make something up myself or use other people's suggestions, told Mickey in 2002.
TRACKLISTING OF THE DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME:
1) What A Wonderful World (Robert Thiele and George David Weiss)
2) Stop Thinking About It (Joey Ramone and Andy Shernoff)
3) Mr. Punchy (Joey Ramone)
4) Maria Bartiromo (Joey Ramone)
5) Spirit In My House (Joey Ramone)
6) Venting (It's A Different World Today) (Joey Ramone)
7) Like A Drug I Never Did Before (Joey Ramone)
8) Searching For Something (Joey Ramone and Al Maddy)
9) I Got Knocked Down (But I'll Get Up) (Joey Ramone)
10) 1969 (Dave Alexander, James Osterberg, Ron Asheton and Scott Asheton)
11) Don't Worry About Me (Joey Ramone)
Joey said before that he entered a New York studio in late march, 2000, to begin recording. Joey was also asked (February 2000) Marky playing drums for a few songs. Marky played some tracks. Other way the line-up contain also producer/ guitarist Daniel Rey and Dictators bassist Andy Shernoff. Drummer Frank Funaro from the Cracker has also played songs. The Misfits and Captain Sensible guest on other tracks, and Mickey adds a vocal part to the album-closing Don't Worry About Me..
Joey performed some new songs on his "A Pre-CMJ Showcase Party Blowout" -show at CBGB on October wed. 18, 2000.
ALBUM REVIEWS:
Read some album reviews here.
SOME CHART POSITIONS OF THE DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME ALBUM:
- USA: 1st week = 109, 2nd week = 192.
- Finland: 1st week = chart position 25.
(I browsed many charts (+10) and couldn't find other chart positions...)
DIFFERENT PRESSINGS:
There are some differences between some album pressings, like in one pressing font color in front and back sleeve is yellow. In normal editions font color is red.
After album was released and when you ordered it from www.ramonesworld.com, you received Joey's CD with it's release cover PLUS you got the Arturo Vega designed cover that was not used for free.
From MusicToday.com store was received Joey Ramone poster and a limited-edtition special CD booklet insert.
SPECIAL 2CD RELEASE IN SPAIN:There was released a special 2CD Joey Ramone release with a special cover in Spain in January, 2003. Release is named What A Wonderful Joey 1951-2001. This is limited to 3000 copies and include Joey's album Don't Worry About Me and Christmas Spirit... In My House -EP.
DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME DVD WITH EXTRAS
Now is re-released - on USA, November 19th, 2002 - Joey's album Don't Worry About Me was re-released in DVD Audio 5.1 Surround Sound format on USA, November 19th, 2002.
RELEASE PARTY OF DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME AND DANIEL REY'S COMMENTS:
(Pic: Joey and Mickey with The Independents at
Manitoba's bar in New York.)Release party of the Joey's Don't Worry About Me -album was at CBGB February 19, 2002. It was a private party.
Daniel Rey told following at Rolling Stone -article by Colin Devenish:
"Joey was able to see the project almost all the way through to its conclusion. It wasn't mixed but all the recording was done. Ironically, right before he got sick was when he finished the last little bit, and then I mixed it after he passed. I'm sure he thought about [death], but he also didn't dwell on it, and I think he was just trying to be positive. It wasn't anything that he talked about. That's one reason why the vocals took long, because he wanted to sing when he felt good. I was basically on call for the last year or two. Whenever Joey was up to sing, I was there."
I (Jari-Pekka Laitio-Ramone) did long interview with Daniel Rey at his studio in 2003. Daniel produced many Ramones albums, Joey's albums, Dee Dee's Zonked album etc. Interview is in my second book Rock In Peace: Dee Dee And Joey Ramone.
Here are few samples of interview:
Jari-Pekka: What are your special memories while recording Joey's solo album Don't Worry About Me?
Daniel Rey: "Joey had been talking about making a solo album for like ten years. So we were finally in there in the studio and Marky was set up behind the drums and we were actually recording the first songs. I could look overat Joey and he was smiling, he was very happy that he was finally doing it and it was really exciting for him. More exciting than it had been for the Ramones. Because you know this was something new, a challenge."
Jari-Pekka: How did and when did you and Joey decide the best time to record the vocals for his solo record?
Daniel Rey: "Whenever he felt like singing, he would come over to my house and sing. We recorded it all here in the house and he liked to work early in the daytime and I liked to work late at night. But it worked out well. He liked to just keep coming over to my house and sing a vocal over again and again and everytime that he sang something good, I would keep it you know, and eventually it was all very good. This was Joey's solo album, so he wanted it to be perfect and he didn.t have any pressure to finish it. There wasn.t any record company or manager telling him to finish it and we were doing it in our houses, so it didn't cost any money, Joey took his time and made sure everything was perfect."
He also tell stories behing Joey's songs and much more of Ramones and Dee Dee sessions and his history with the Ramones since 1976 in that special interview which you can find from my book Rock In Peace: Dee Dee And Joey Ramone.
SECOND JOEY RAMONE SOLO ALBUM...:
Joey Ramone's brother Mickey Leigh told in December, 2008 that it looks like there will be a second Joey Ramone solo album released before Christmas 2009. Then in December 2009, Mickey told album will definitely be released in 2010, and all kinds of good things are on the horizon. Things were still rolling in Autumn of 2010 (read more below). In January 2011, Mickey wrote for me how this Joey Ramone's second solo album is coming along really well.
Anyway situation in November 2011 was, that Mickey is still in the process of looking for the right record label. As all of knows, the music business is in total collapse, record companies closing up by the dozens etc.
Mickey wrote packet might include as well DVD. So that is not confirmed...
Here are Mickey Leigh's older comments from December 27, 2008.
- The tapes and files we've been working toward re-acquiring for 7 years are finally in the hands of Joey's dear friend and Ramones producer Ed Stasium. Ed is currently working on seven of the tracks, several others will be produced by Tommy Ramone and Jean Beauvoir. Production is still in the early goings and the musicians who will be fleshing out these tracks are still being determined, wrote Mickey Leigh on December 27, 2008.
I spoke with different persons of this upcoming album while I was in New York because of the Joey Ramone Birthday Bash in May, 2010. Ed Stasium was then working with album. Richie Ramone recorded then some parts to the album. As well Andy Shernoff (The Dictators, The Master Plan) visited in studio to do some re-recordings to the album in May, 2010. I asked from Andy if he feels album is still going to be real Joey Ramone album after all re-recordings (you know what I meant...) Andy said Ed Stasium is main man behind of album, and Ed has taken good care of everything. So, that was great to hear in May, 2010.
Mid October, 2010, Ed Stasium wrote: "Songs I worked on for the Joey Ramone solo project are finished."
Next Ed started to finish next Misfits album (it got published in Autumn 2011).
Here are some Mickey Leigh's comments said in March, 2010:
- We are making this record the same way Joey made his last one, which is making the record ourselves and getting a label later. In other words, I'm funding the recording myself (and, brother, times are tough all over. Truly.), so there is no label yet, explained Mickey in March, 2010.
The tracks are songs that Joey had written, several co-written with Dee Dee Ramone and one with Ramones producer Daniel Rey.
- These 12 tracks will be combined with the 5-6 we already had planned for a second album. Those include songs co-written by and featuring Richie Stotts, Andy Shernoff, and myself, added Mickey, and listed sixteen songs (not 17-18).
So tracklisting will be added with one or two more songs...
ADVANCE TRACKLISTING OF THE SECOND SOLO ALBUM BY JOEY RAMONE:
1) New York City
2) Party Line
3) Eyes Of Green
4) Give Me More
5) Going Nowhere Fast
6) Spanish Eyes
7) Cabin Fever
8) I Couldn't Sleep At All
9) Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)
10) Duke Of Earl
11) Makes Me Tremble
12) There's Got To Be More To Life Than This
13) Rock And Roll Is The Answer
14) Waitin' For That Railroad
15) Seven Days Of Gloom
16) What Did I Do To Deserve You?
JOEY RAMONE'S CHRISTMAS SPIRIT... IN MY HOUSE -EP:
Joey Ramone's Christmas Spirit... In My House -EP came out: December 10, 2002.
EP Contains songs:
1.Merry Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
2.Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)
3.Spirit In My House
4.Don't Worry About Me
5.What A Wonderful World
JOEY RAMONE'S MERRY CHRISTMAS (I DONT WANT TO FIGHT TONIGHT) -SINGLE
At last song Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)
not appeared on the Don't Worry About Me album, but on a single, which
features also a track I Couldn't Sleep At All. This single came out
December 18th, 2001 on
Sanctuary. The single is sold-out and they wont be pressing any more.
Mickey Leigh told following in 2001:
- Joey and I started recording Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight) after we made the demo of the one used by the Ramones. Often, I helped Joey put his songs on tape as demos, so that he could then play them for the band. We put down the fast version of Merry Christmas... and then we tried a slower, steamier variation and Joey sang this beautiful, really romantic vocal. It's a little different than most Ramones songs, but it's Joey and it is a Christmas song, so we thought it's OK to be a bit sentimental. Completed about two weeks ago (end of August, 2001), I played guitar and bass, and some our old friends: Steve Jordan (from the David Letterman and Blues Brothers band) played drums and Tommy Mandell (Bryan Adams band) on keybords, mention Mickey.
WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD -PROMOSINGLE AND -VIDEO
Also Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight) is included in promosingle, where maintrack is classic cover of Louis Armstrong's What A Wonderful World. This was sent to radio outlets for airplay beginning in early January, 2002.
Mickey wrote for me - January 27th - of the video.
- Very recent news you are hearing first Jari-Pekka, we are planning to make a video very soon for "WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD". Using some of the footage of Joey performing the song taped at CBGB and Continental with Andy Shernoff of the Dictators and other home, road and backstage footage.
Mickey wrote more news of the video for me in March 27, 2002.
- Have been busy making the video for Wonderful World.. I filmed some scenes for it on Sunday with actor, Michael Pitt, from the movie "Headwig And The Angry Inch" and his girlfriend. We will edit this week and next. We will use that footage along with performance and home movie footage. It is going to be great. Should be ready in about 2 weeks.
Marky told that it contains lot material from his archives and he's really satisfied for video. Mickey said in April 10.
- Finished the video for What A Wonderful World last week. It came out great. I hope you like it... It's now on www.joeyramone.on in RealVideo format, 56K Dialup and Cable Modem