¡Adios Amigos!

¡Adios Amigos! is the fourteenth and final studio album by the American punk rock band the Ramones. It was released on July 18, 1995, through Radioactive Records. The Ramones disbanded a year after its release and the subsequent tour.

¡Adios Amigos!
Studio album by the Ramones
Released	July 18, 1995
Recorded	January–February 1995
Genre	Punk rock
Length	33:58
Label	Radioactive
Producer	Daniel Rey
Ramones chronology
Acid Eaters (1993) ¡Adios Amigos! (1995)

Background

While bassist and songwriter Dee Dee Ramone had left the band following 1989's Brain Drain, ¡Adios Amigos! features six of his compositions, including three previously released: "The Crusher" was originally recorded for his debut solo album Standing in the Spotlight (a rap album released under the name Dee Dee King), while "Making Monsters for My Friends" and "It's Not For Me to Know" were originally recorded for the album I Hate Freaks Like You, which he performed with I.C.L.C. ¡Adios Amigos! also contains cover versions of Tom Waits' "I Don't Want to Grow Up" and Johnny Thunders' "I Love You."

The Japanese version of the album features the bonus track "R.A.M.O.N.E.S.," originally recorded by Motörhead as a tribute to the Ramones on their 1916 album. The American version of the album features a hidden track, "Spider-Man," slightly different from the version the Ramones originally recorded for the Saturday Morning tribute album. C.J. Ramone sings lead vocals on tracks two, four, eight and ten, as well as the bonus track "R.A.M.O.N.E.S." Dee Dee Ramone makes his first appearance on a Ramones album since 1989 during the bridge of the closing track "Born to Die in Berlin," singing in German and recorded via telephone.

Artwork

The album cover of ¡Adios Amigos!, which features two Allosaurus wearing sombreros, is a digitally altered version of a painting by artist Mark Kostabi, named Enasaurs, which features the dinosaurs wearing yellow witch hats.[1] Johnny Ramone added that the dinosaurs were "what we felt like," possibly referring to the band's decline in popularity at the time.[2] The back cover shows the band tied and bound before being executed by a firing squad. The Mexican man seated next to the band is their longtime road manager Monte Melnick.

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	A−[4]
Punknews.org	[5]
Q	[6]
Robert Christgau	[7]
Rolling Stone	[6]
Uncut	[6]
Rock Hard	7.0/10[8]

¡Adios Amigos! received mixed to positive reviews from several publications such as Rolling Stone and Uncut, being viewed by many fans as a return to form for the band.

In contrast to the Ramones' long-running inability to break through on singles charts, the band's cover of Tom Waits' "I Don't Want to Grow Up" managed to become something of a hit for the group, breaching the top 40 of Billboard's modern rock chart and peaking at #30.

Track listing

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"I Don't Want to Grow Up" (Tom Waits cover)	Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan	2:46
2.	"Makin Monsters for My Friends"	Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey	2:35
3.	"It's Not for Me to Know"	Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey	2:51
4.	"The Crusher"	Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey	2:27
5.	"Life's a Gas"	Joey Ramone	3:34
6.	"Take the Pain Away"	Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey	2:42
7.	"I Love You" (Johnny Thunders cover)	Johnny Thunders	2:21

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
8.	"Cretin Family"	Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey	2:09
9.	"Have a Nice Day"	Marky Ramone, Garrett James Uhlenbrock	1:39
10.	"Scattergun"	C.J. Ramone	2:30
11.	"Got a Lot to Say"	C.J. Ramone	1:41
12.	"She Talks to Rainbows"	Joey Ramone	3:14
13.	"Born to Die in Berlin"	Dee Dee Ramone, John Carco	3:32

Unlisted/hidden track on 1995 American version initial releases

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
14.	"Spiderman"	Paul Francis Webster, Robert Harris	1:56

1995 Japanese edition & 2004 Captain Oi! CD Bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
14.	"R.A.M.O.N.E.S." (Motörhead cover)	Motörhead	1:24

Personnel

• Joey Ramone – lead vocals (tracks 1, 3, 5–7, 9, 11–13 & "Spiderman"), backing vocals (track 4)
• Johnny Ramone – guitar
• C. J. Ramone – bass guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals (tracks 2, 4, 8, 10 & "R.A.M.O.N.E.S.")
• Dee Dee Ramone – co-lead vocals (track 13)
• Marky Ramone – drums

Charts

Album

Chart (1995)	Peak position
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[9]	16
UK Albums (OCC)[10]	62
US Billboard 200[11]	148

Singles

Single	Chart (1995)	Position
"I Don't Want to Grow Up"	US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[12]	30
	Canada Rock/Alternative (RPM)[13]	18

References

1. "Ask Mark Kostabi". artnet.com. Retrieved January 8, 2010.
2. Ramone, Johnny. "Johnny Ramone Grades the Ramones". New York Entertainment. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
3. ¡Adios Amigos! at AllMusic
4. "¡Adios Amigos! review". Entertainment Weekly.
5. Mitchell T (May 26, 2015). "Ramones - ¡Adios Amigos!". Punknews.org. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
6. "¡Adios Amigos! album reviews". CD Universe.
7. "Robert Christgau review".
8. "Review Album: The Ramones - Mondo Bizarro". Rock Hard (in German). No. 98. 1992. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
9. "Swedishcharts.com – Ramones – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
10. "Ramones | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
11. "Ramones Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
12. "Ramones Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
13. "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 10362." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved October 28, 2020.