''Commando'' is the autobiography of guitarist and songwriter

Johnny Ramone John William Cummings (October 8, 1948 – September 15, 2004), better known by his stage name Johnny Ramone, was an American musician who was the guitarist and a founding member of the Ramones, a band that helped pioneer the punk movement. ...

of the punk rock band

The Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United St ...

. The book was released in 2012 by Linda Ramone, surviving spouse of Johnny Ramone, following the death of Johnny in 2004 from

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that su ...

Content

''Commando'' is an autobiography on the life of Johnny Ramone. He began writing the book in 1999 when he was diagnosed with

. In an interview with Billboard Magazine, Linda Ramone stated: The book is 176 pages and contains pictures that were chosen by Linda Ramone. It contains musings from Johnny's childhood and personal stories of his life and time with The Ramones. Events he includes in the book are his admission to getting a New York City police officer to release mace into an audience at a Ramones concert. Additional events include him beating up

Malcolm McLaren Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren (22 January 1946 – 8 April 2010) was an English impresario, visual artist, singer, songwriter, musician, clothes designer and boutique owner, notable for combining these activities in an inventive and provo ...

as well as his bandmates Joey and Dee Dee. The book also covers his relationship with his wife Linda Ramone and the events surrounding her initially dating Joey Ramone before she left Joey for Johnny. The epilogue was written by

Lisa Marie Presley Lisa Marie Presley (born February 1, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter. She is the only child of singer and actor Elvis Presley and actress Priscilla Presley, as well as the sole heir to her father's estate. Presley has developed a caree ...

, a close friend of Johnny and Linda Ramone. The foreword of the book was written by the only surviving original member of The Ramones at that time, Tommy Ramone. Tommy was quoted as saying:

Reception

The book was released in April 2012. Prior to and following the release, Linda Ramone promoted the book by giving numerous interviews in both print and televised national media, including Fox News, Billboard Magazine, and

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

. The book was reviewed by numerous well known publications including the

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...

, the

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television ...

, and MTV which called the book a must-have for any Ramones fan.

References

External links

Publisher website
{{Ramones Ramones Abrams Books books 2012 non-fiction books