Transmission Impossible

The gigs and shows played by the Ramones between 1977 & 1980 were perhaps the finest they ever performed. Despite having, during their 22 year career, played live over 2000 times - more than The Grateful Dead ever did, and without all the hoo-ha - it was the three years following the release of the group s debut album on the Sire label (issued in February 1976) that their most electric, dynamic and passionate live appearances took place. The recording and release of The Ramones had instilled a communal confidence in the group and this translated into making their shows less chaotic, somewhat longer and certainly featuring a lot more new material than had ever surfaced prior to the album coming out. What remains a huge advantage for fans of this unique collective is that many of these concerts were broadcast live on FM Radio, by various supportive stations local to where such gigs were taking place, and thus a library of these shows in excellent quality, remains in existence. This superb box-set features three such broadcasts, one each from 1977, 1978 and 1979, all featuring quite remarkable sound - considering they were transmitted close to 40 years ago - and illustrating perfectly the sheer power of late 1970s Ramones shows a welcome reminder for those old, albeit lucky, enough to have attended one or more of the early gigs - or heard one of them broadcast live and a unique listening experience for those who to date have only read or been told about such legendary events.