"I Wanna Be Sedated" is a song by American punk rock band Ramones, originally released on the band's fourth studio album, '' Road to Ruin'' (1978), in September 1978. The B-side of the UK single "She's the One" was released on September 21, 1978. The song was later released as a single in the Netherlands in 1979, then in the U.S. in 1980 by

RSO Records RSO Records was a record label formed by rock and roll and musical theatre impresario Robert Stigwood and record executive Al Coury in 1973. The letters "RSO" stood for the Robert Stigwood Organisation. RSO managed the careers of several ma ...

from the ''

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...

'' soundtrack album. The song has since then remained one of the band's best known songs.

History

"I Wanna Be Sedated" was written by

Joey Ramone Jeffrey Ross Hyman (May 19, 1951 – April 15, 2001), known professionally as Joey Ramone, was an American musician, best known as the lead singer and a founding member of the punk rock band Ramones. His image, voice, and his tenure with the R ...

. In an interview about the song, Joey explains the chorus:

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

for the song, directed by Bill Fishman, was released in September 1988, about ten years after the song was originally released, to promote the compilation album '' Ramones Mania''. The iconic video features the Ramones sitting at a table (left to right: Johnny, Joey, Marky and Dee Dee), nonchalantly reading and eating generic

corn flakes Corn flakes, or cornflakes, are a breakfast cereal made from toasting flakes of corn (maize). The cereal, originally made with wheat, was created by Will Kellogg in 1894 for patients at the Battle Creek Sanitarium where he worked with his bro ...

(branded "Corn Flakes") while the background hallway erupts into a venue for

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

acrobats Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acr ...

ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...

s, monsters, cheerleaders, clowns, doctors, fetish nurses, and smoking schoolgirls. The film is intentionally sped up to show the excitement of the background, while the band's actions are in regular motion. This was achieved by having the band members move very slowly, while the crowd moved normally, and then speeding up the film. (Furthermore, one of the video's characters is a young

Courtney Love Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, her career has spanned four decades. She rose to prominence as ...

.) A still from the video was featured in the liner notes of the band’s 1989 album '' Brain Drain'', though the song itself does not appear on that album.

Reception

"I Wanna Be Sedated" was number 145 on the ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...

Marky Ramone Marc Steven Bell (born July 15, 1952) is an American drummer. He began playing in hard rock bands in the New York City area, notably Dust and Estus. He was asked to drum for punk rock band Richard Hell and the Voidoids. He replaced drummer Tom ...

is the drummer on this track. In 1999,

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

included the song in the "NPR 100", in which NPR's music editors sought to compile the one hundred most important American musical works of the 20th century.

Kelefa Sanneh Kelefa T. Sanneh (born 1976) is an American journalist and music critic. From 2000 to 2008, he wrote for ''The New York Times'', covering the rock and roll, hip-hop, and pop music scenes. Since 2008 he has been a staff writer for ''The New Yorke ...

said of the song, "I loved it because it seemed like the beginning of a tradition, pointing away from all the conventional thing a rock 'n' roll band might do, and pointing toward anything and everything else." According to

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...

acknowledged the similarity to Cooper's earlier 1972 song "

Elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

," explaining that the Ramones listened to a lot of Alice Cooper.

Cover version

* English punk rock band

The Adicts The Adicts are a British punk rock band from Ipswich, Suffolk, England. One of the most popular punk rock bands in the 1980s, they were often in the indie charts during that decade. The Adicts originated as The Afterbirth in late 1975 but n ...

covered the song in the mid-'80s when they were on Sire although it wasn't released until the 1992 compilation ''Totally Adicted''. It was later included as a bonus track on some versions of '' Sound of Music''.

In popular culture

* Ramones Time: At 12:00 am on December 31, 2020, many people posted that it was, "2020, 24 hours to go." * The song was featured in the penultimate episode of '' The Magicians'' which aired on March 25, sung by most of the cast during a heist operation in a musical episode.

Certifications

References

{{authority control 1978 songs 1978 singles Ramones songs Songs written by Joey Ramone Song recordings produced by Ed Stasium Song recordings produced by Tommy Ramone Songs about drugs Sire Records singles