"Blitzkrieg Bop", titled "The Blitzkrieg Bop!!" on its single release, is a song by American

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of th ...

, released in February 1976 as their debut single in the United States. It was the opening track on the band's self-titled debut album. Although its composition was credited to the band as a whole, the song was written by drummer Tommy Ramone (music and lyrics) and bassist

Dee Dee Ramone Douglas Glenn Colvin (September 18, 1951 – June 5, 2002), better known by his stage name Dee Dee Ramone, was an American musician. He was the bassist, occasional lead vocalist and a founding member of the punk rock band the Ramones. Throughou ...

(lyrics). The song's "big dumb chant" ("Hey! Ho! Let's go!") became a global rallying cry at sporting events. "Blitzkrieg Bop" was number 92 on the 2004 ''

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. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' list of

The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring song ranking 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 2 ...

. In March 2005, ''Q'' magazine placed it at number 31 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks, and in 2008 ''Rolling Stone'' placed it number 18 of the top 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.

Origin and meaning

The song was mainly written by drummer Tommy Ramone, while bassist

came up with the title (the song was originally called "Animal Hop"). The precise meaning and subject matter of the song is, unlike many of The Ramones' other early compositions, somewhat vague and obscure. Tommy Ramone said it was the story of the young audience attending a rock concert ("they're forming in a straight line", "are losing their minds", "are shouting in the back now"). Blitzkrieg is a reference to the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

tactic ''

blitzkrieg ''Blitzkrieg'(Lightning/Flash Warfare)'' is a word used to describe a combined arms surprise attack, using a rapid, overwhelming force concentration that may consist of armored and motorized or mechanized infantry formations, together with ...

'', which means "lightning war" (fast attack). Dee Dee also changed one other line: the original third verse had the line "shouting in the back now", but Dee Dee changed it to "shoot 'em in the back now". The idea for a chant at the beginning of the song came from the 1973

Bay City Rollers The Bay City Rollers are a Scottish pop rock band known for their worldwide teen idol popularity, as a band in the 1970s. One of many 70s acts heralded as the "biggest group since the Beatles", they were called the "tartan teen sensations fro ...

hit song " Saturday Night", which begins with the chant "S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y night"; Tommy Ramone wanted the Ramones to have a similarly catchy chant. The lyrics "Hey ho, let's go" were inspired by the line "High, low, tipsy toe" from the 1963 song " Walking the Dog" by

Rufus Thomas Rufus C. Thomas, Jr. (March 26, 1917 – December 15, 2001) was an American rhythm-and-blues, funk, soul and blues singer, songwriter, dancer, DJ and comic entertainer from Memphis, Tennessee. He recorded for several labels, including Chess Re ...

, and specifically the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

' cover of the song; the band had enjoyed mocking

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...

's pronunciation of the line, which they thought sounded more like "hey ho". Tommy stated later that he "came up with the chant walking home from the grocery store carrying a bag of groceries."

Reception

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said the song had "a hard rock style, crudely fashioned, yet infectious in its energy" and said that "the tune is powerful, and the band's street punk stance is all part of the music." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' said it has "a

wall of sound The Wall of Sound (also called the Spector Sound) is a music production formula developed by American record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios, in the 1960s, with assistance from engineer Larry Levine and the conglomerate of session m ...

effect and poutspunk lyrics."

Certifications

Bibliography

* Bessman, Jim (1993). ''Ramones: An American Band'' (New York: St. Martin's).

References

{{authority control 1976 debut singles 1976 songs ABC Records singles Ramones songs Sire Records singles Song recordings produced by Craig Leon Songs about World War II Songs written by Dee Dee Ramone Songs written by Tommy Ramone