I Slept with Joey Ramone: A Punk Rock Family Memoir By Mickey Leigh

I've read about 6 Ramones related books and this was definitely the most enjoyable. There are a number of key issues which affected the band hugely that appear in print for the first time. Even the parts about points you already know about are an interesting read and that's down to the author being likeable, so his opinion is worth your time. Leigh also comes across as credible so you don't find yourself questioning the validity of what you are reading, unlike Dee Dee's 'Poison Heart Surviving The Ramones'.

There are quite a number of Ramones books available plus Marky's is released in a few months, but between this book and 'Please Kill Me' you get the full story. Mickey Leigh sorry but Mickey Leigh has a good inside story to tell but he's really up his own behind in my opinion. Mickey Leigh Great insights growing up with Joey. I felt it was unnecessary to run a parallel story about Mickey’s musical career though. Mickey Leigh of course it's sad. we know how it ends, and being a story involving a ramone, it was bound to be anyway! never a dysfunctional collection of individuals ever got together to make music! ah, but what music! sublime and practically perfect pop music (well, for the first 3 albums at any rate!). mickey leigh, with assistance from legs mcneil, has produced an affectionate, at times touching, account of his older brother's life, through a very troubled childhood and, well, through an equally troubled adulthood as well. joey was no ordinary individual, and didn't everyone know it and make his life miserable until through his love of music he became the face of u.s. punk music that changed things. or did it? the story of the relationships among ramones is well known, but leigh manages to add to this from his view from ringside, and is able to relate joey's perspective on events on his behalf.
personally, i don't know any of leigh's music, and i have read criticism that this book highlights too much of his own career, but seeing as how most of the brothers ventures were intertwined in one element or another, i don't see how he could have left much out. plus, it's always interesting to learn about people on the ramones periphery. there were many in joey's support circle, none so than leigh and their mother!
johnny ramone doesn't come across well here, but he doesn't come out of any of the accounts well, and this lends credence to the general belief that he was the major 'spoiler' as the ramones career plunged sadly downwards toward mediocrity (sharing my theory that 'too tough to die' was the last great ramones record). strangely, though dee dee gets little mention, but then wasn't in the same 'faction'. complex inter band relationships, but saddening all the same.
however, this is a great and appropriate addition to my expanding library of ramones books. the most compulsively addictive (poor choices of words!) story in music! there are a few available that i wouldn't touch with the proverbial, but this is securely lodged on the essential list! Mickey Leigh I just started reading this book and so far it's really keeping my interest. If it takes a nosedive at any point I'll amend my review. Well , I finished the book and it's my favorite of all the Ramones books that I've read (#2 being On the road w/the Ramones #3 being Poisoned Heart by Vera Ramone King #4 being Commando by Johnny Ramone.) What I like about this book is that it starts at the VERY BEGINNING and continues to the VERY END of Joeys life and it doesn't skimp on the in between. You come away from reading this book feeling like you actually got to know him. It's very professionally written (No doubt in large part because of Leggs McNiel's contribution).I even came away from this a big fan of Mickey Leigh's. Throughout this book I thoroughly enjoyed looking up references to music that inspired them growing up and band s that Mickey was in such as Birdland with Lester Bangs etc. on Youtube. There is a song that was played for Joey on his Deathbed as he drew his final breaths , I had never heard this song before so I looked it up on Youtube and somebody had made a video montage of joey over this song. It is VERY moving to say the least. Not a whole lot of photos in this book but it's not a big deal because the writing than makes up for it. No stone goes unturned in this book and I came away feeling like I learned about as much as a person possibly could about Joey Ramone's life and times. Great book ! Mickey Leigh

Characters I Slept with Joey Ramone: A Punk Rock Family Memoir

A good but not great account of the Ramones and Joey, a great story about the love of two brothers. As for the Ramones, not a lot new here. Like Monte Melnick, Mickey uses a lot of quotes you've read before or seen in youtube interviews. I've read all the Ramones books now, and have yet to read a great one, but maybe cause it wasn't that great an experience for them. Johnny was a tyrannical jerk, Joey was often sick and suffered with OCD, and Dee Dee was Dee Dee. They drove eachother nuts, which I think was a product of growing up in a time the kid brother of Joey Ramone. Like most, he doesn't hide his disdain for Johnny Furor, and most of his Ramones writing is about the early years when he was the roadie. If you love Joey though, and who doesn't, this is worthwhile. This is as good as Melnick's book. Dee Dee's are fun too, but like fiction. Commando was Johnny's version and the worst, and Marky's book was just okay. Long live the memory of the Ramones! Mickey Leigh This book is a wonderful insight into the birth of punk music, and as a fan of both the punk genre and the Ramones specifically, it was a very intimate look inside for me, and I loved it for that. It is well worth the read for the historical value alone.

More than that though, it introduced me to a person I never knew Jeff Hyman. I was a pool of tears at the end of the book, which concludes with Joey Ramone's passing. By this point though, I was no longer thinking of him as Joey Ramone, but as Jeff a man who suffered from birth to death with one ailment or another, of one type or another, whether it be physical, emotional or mental.

After reading the book, I almost felt dirty thinking of him as anything other than Jeff. I still love the Ramone's for their music and what they did historically in music, but my heart breaks for the man who was Jeff Hyman. I just wanted to make his hurting stop and make all the pain go away.

Mickey, thank you for introducing us to your brother and your family. I'll never look at Joey the same way again. Mickey Leigh I loved this book! I was a fan of the Ramones the instant I heard the first chord they played back in the 70's. I tried to attend every show remotely close to me along the East coast and was blessed to be able to get to know Joey as a person, not just as the lead singer of my favorite band. Mickey's book is written in a way that draws you into his family life warts and all. He doesn't hold back anything. You truly can't appreciate the Ramones or Mickey Leigh without knowing what made them tick as individuals and Mickey Leigh did a great job telling their story through his eyes and experiences. Most of all, you feel the love of two brothers even in the midst of termoil. You come away with even respect for Joey and Mickey knowing the challenges they faced and overcame and the ones they just could not get past. It's a fascinating story whether you're a Ramones fan or not, and I highly recommend reading this book. Mickey Leigh Some interesting and amusing anecdotes about Joey's childhood, early Ramones, NYC punk in the 70's. Tough to finish as it devolves into a Mickey Leigh pity fest and collection of recriminations. Mom, Dad, Johnny, Marky, and especially Joey, are all blamed in turn for Poor Mickey's lack of success, lack of credit, and general misery. Each petty slight and argument, pain stakingly (and one sidedly) detailed. Everyone kinda guessed the Ramones were coming from somewhere that wasn't all cotton candy and unicorns, not sure that trashing their personal reputations was necessary, but hey, what are brothers for? Meanwhile, along with Johnny's widow, guess who's cashing those Ramones checks? Mickey Leigh Mickey Leigh seems to take credit for many things ranging from originally wearing the classic Ramones style, to doing incredbile backup vocals, to writing songs, etc.. The most annoying thing about this book is the constant theme of me too; Nobody cared about The Rattlers, they were terrible. Tribe was terrible also.

Instead of thanking God he won the life lottery by being Joey Ramone's brother, this book is the utterings of a very jealous failed musician. I always thought the song Bop Til You Drop was about Mickey.

Not everybody gets to be an astronaut Mickey, be yourself FFS.

My favorite part of the book is the RIchie part. Richie Ramone saved the Ramones. Mickey Leigh

A powerful story of punk rock inspiration and a great rock bio ( Rolling Stone), now in paperback.When the Ramones recorded their debut album in 1976, it heralded the true birth of punk rock. Unforgettable front man Joey Ramone gave voice to the disaffected youth of the seventies and eighties, and the band influenced the counterculture for decades to come. With honesty, humor, and grace, Joeys brother, Mickey Leigh, shares a fascinating, intimate look at the turbulent life of one of Americas greatestand unlikeliestmusic icons. While the music lives on for new generations to discover, I Slept with Joey Ramone is the enduring portrait of a man who struggled to find his voice and of the brother who loved him. I Slept with Joey Ramone: A Punk Rock Family Memoir