Courtesy of awardsdaily.com
Following the tenth annual Johnny Ramone tribute in Hollywood Cemetery this past Sunday, Ramones manager Jeff Jampol had some important news to share about the reunited Ramones estate. Jampol also manages Janis Joplin, The Doors, Tupac and Otis Redding estates, and in collaboration with Dave Frey, intends to move the Ramones estate and all future tributes forward together as a whole. “We’re all gonna focus on the Ramones, and it’s that whole thing of, ‘United we stand, divided we fall,’” Jampol told Billboard. “The legacy is the Ramones, the music is the Ramones, it was the four of them – it was Johnny, Joey, Dee Dee and Tommy, and everybody is cooperating and moving in one direction together as a team.” The Ramones estate had previously been split in half, shared between Johnny Ramone’s widow, Linda, and Joey’s brother, Mickey.
This “moving forward” of the Ramones entails a documentary, a book, a film, as well as a theatrical play. Many of the projects are schedule to coincide with the Ramones upcoming 40th anniversary in 2016. “That’s when the first album came out,” Jampol explains. Not only the first album, but also “Blitzkrieg Bop,” their debut hit single. “So we have a lot of projects leading up to that. We’re looking at a documentary on the Ramones, we just secured a ton of footage, much of which has never been seen before. It came from the Ramones on the road over the years in the Seventies and a little bit in the Eighties.” So far, the only thing known for sure is that Martin Scorsese will be directing, which means it will most likely be amazing if it’s anything like Scorsese’s previous work. In regards to the book, Jampol says, “You’ll see a book coming, which is not a biographical book so much, but a story of the band’s formation and those first few records and that craziness that happened. It’ll be a combination of prose, photographs and memorabilia and posters, just kind of documenting the scene. The Ramones were the first punk band and they started the punk movement.”
In addition to all of the creative projects, the Ramones will be resurfacing in the music scene in the form of remastered music, fashion, and music placement. “You’re gonna see some really interesting combinations of music and new music and remastered music and apparel,” Jampol tells Billboard. “As far as the apparel goes, and really everything, as a company, for me, authenticity is the foundation of everything,” Jampol explains. “And luckily, when you have a really genius artist like the Ramones you don’t have to spin it. It is what it is and what it is is a beautiful moment in time that sparked a revolution in music and in fashion.” He goes on to say, “So you look at 76 when the Ramones first album came out, and that really sparked that brand new wave of what I call the American rock and roll wardrobe, which is jeans, white t-shirt, leather jacket and sneakers.” Certainly the Ramones made this look grungier, more punk rock, but the originators were those of the 50’s rock ‘n’ roll era.