There seems to be some question whether this is a hoax, but Variety is reporting it as real, and if true, a sad day. Besides his drumming on the early Ramones albums, he also produced the excellent Replacements album Tim.
Oh, that is sad if true.
Tommy was indeed the unknown Ramone; if I recall correctly he was recruited into the band as drummer when Joey moved up as frontman. Not an auspicious beginning - Tommy didn’t play drums, but he quickly found a way to fit in, and his contribution to the Ramones sound (and by extension all of punk rock) cannot be slighted.
I was a DJ on college radio when RAMONES (the album) came out. There was resistance, to put it mildly. The Gentle Giant and Steve Hillage fans were having none of it. I admit I thought it was some sort of glitter rock offshoot at first, but somehow a switch got thrown and I saw the light; after that I was an insufferable Ramones boor for quite a spell.
Tum, tumtumtumtumtum, chhhhh chhhhh! Buh buh BUH buh, buh buh BUH buh…
If Tommy Ramone wasn’t a great musician, neither was Levon Helm. Oh, Levon was great? Well there ya go.
Fuck.
Just seeing this. Last of the originals. The man who produced the Ramones and helped shape their sound along with playing the hard n’ fast drums required. In Please Kill Me (the best book on Punk ever), he talks about producing the first album, and wanting to replicate Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound, but using guitar distortion instead of layers of instruments. Genius.
Thank you so much, Tommy.
RIP, Tommy.
Seems to be some question as to whether he was 62 or 65.
Well shit. Damn I feel old today. All of the original members of the Ramones are gone.
This news is not the way to start a weekend.
To the best of my knowledge, the Ramones now displace the Jimi Hendrix Experience as the most recent mainstream band to have no surviving original members.
This is a sad occasion indeed.
R.I.P. Tommy. I didn’t even know, but I wore my Ramones t-shirt with the picture from the first record on it yesterday. No shit.
And in that picture, Tommy’s belly button is proudly displayed. Did this start a trend? (Among male musicians, thankfully no.)
Damn. Of all the Ramones he seemed to have the sanest perspective - he was certainly the most mature. RIP Tommy Erdelyi.
This death made me go back to New Years Eve 1977 - I wasn’t there but I’ve see this excellent vid before:
It was a tough time to impress London (the Pistols, The Clash, Stranglers, were The Jam around yet?). Anyway, loads of huge local bands.The Ramones gave it a really good shot. For me, singing about sniffin glue and Sheena and stuff was okay but UK punk was essentially political and socio-political. The most real energy came from there - real in yer face anger. I dunno.
Anyway, Tommy, great toons, great memories. Cheers.
I’m the opposite. The Ramones and most glam of the time were both much more influenced by garage rock than most other varieties of rock at the time. It took me a long time to realize this due to their opposite approach to fashion.
I only realized this a couple years ago when a college radio station decided to play a bunch of modern garage-rock revival style songs in a row and interspersed them with some classic glam rock songs. Then a light went off in my head. It wouldn’t have been too much of a stretch to have some Ramones in there as well. At least more appropriate than either hardcore- or modern pop punk.
Truly sad. I mourned Joey with a bottle of scotch, Dee Dee with a case of beer, Johnny with rum. I’m afraid my liver is in for another assault 
Here is probably the best take on The Ramones courtesy of Mr. Henry Rollins - relevant part starts at about the three minute mark.
Damn I wish I could have been there.
My friend Frank co-wrote the book “On The Road With The Ramones” with Monte Melnick, roadie for the Ramones and childhood friend of Tommy. Judging from his Facebook posts and links to Monte’s posts, it’s sadly not a hoax. Definitely a sad day.
Yeah, well Britain had some great acts beyond a doubt but the ones that took themselves too seriously have not stood the test of time so well - yer Alternative TVs and Sham 69s with their dopey Kids Are United jive.
I liked the Damned, 999, Saints, (Australians but to us Yanks it’s the same thing) and a million pasty-faced fun seekers like them, many of whom put out one great 45 and called it a career. That first Ramones LP was like a religion to so many . Lots of kids in that 1976 Marquee audience couldn’t wait to run home and start a band!
Saw Tommy and his fellow Ramones at small club in Campbell, CA (The Bodega) way back when. The overwhelming impression that sticks with me today is that they were extremely FAST AND LOUD.
Smithers, have the Rolling Stones killed.
But sir, they’re not…
About 10 years ago, The Onion had a headline “Ramones Reunion Nearly Complete” after the 3rd Ramone died. I guess the reunion is finally complete.
I looked for the article on The Onion site, but it seems to only be a headline.
That’s that, then – they’re all gone.
Way, way back in the seventies, I was a teenager in New York City. CBGBs was our regular hangout, mostly because beer was cheap and the door people weren’t too picky about checking IDs.
I loved the Ramones. I and my friends had no idea that there was a “movement” called punk, or that the Ramones were ever going to be significant in any way. We just knew they were the best show in town. They’d slam through their whole set in about 30 minutes, barely stopping between songs. There’d be a couple of seconds when a song ended, and then Dee Dee would should “onetwothreefour” (without any relation whatsoever to the tempo of the song they were starting) and they’d be off again.
For sheer energy and joy and just plain fun, nobody ever beat the Ramones.