Album
Brain Drain
Brain Drain is the eleventh studio album by the Ramones, released in May 1989. It arrived at an awkward moment for the band: it was the last record to feature Dee Dee Ramone as bassist, songwriter and vocalist, and the first to bring Marky Ramone back after his departure following Subterranean Jungle in 1983. It was also their final studio album for Sire Records, though the Chrysalis label is the one listed on this release.
Daniel Rey produced it, a role he would not take on again until ¡Adios Amigos! in 1995. The record closes with "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)", an unlikely seasonal number that sits oddly and rather charmingly at the end of a late-eighties punk album. For anyone tracing the band's story, it is a useful snapshot of a line-up in transition.
Brain Drain: tracklist, credits and charts
12 tracks · 34:36Tracklist
- 1I Believe in MiraclesDouglas Glenn Colvin and Daniel Rey3:18
- 2Zero Zero UFODee Dee Ramone and Daniel Rey2:24
- 3Don’t Bust My ChopsRamone, Ramone, Rey2:25
- 4Punishment Fits the CrimeDee Dee Ramone and Richie Stotts3:00
- 5All Screwed UpRamone, Ramone, Rey, Shernoff3:57
- 6Palisades ParkChuck Barris2:16
- 7Pet SemataryDee Dee Ramone and Daniel Rey3:32
- 8Learn to ListenRamone, Ramone, Ramone, Rey1:48
- 9Can’t Get You Outta My MindJoey Ramone3:18
- 10Ignorance Is BlissJoey Ramone and Andy Shernoff2:35
- 11Come Back, BabyJoey Ramone3:59
- 12Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want to Fight Tonight)Joey Ramone2:04
- Produced by
- Bill Laswell, Jean Beauvoir, Daniel Rey
- Recorded at
- B.C. Studios, Sorcerer Sound, Quad Recording, Sigma Sound, (New York City)
- Recorded
- December 1988 – March 1989, ("Merry Christmas" recorded in 1987)
- Mixed by
- Jason Corsaro, Robert Musso
- Mixed at
- Platinum Island Studios
- Engineered by
- Martin Bisi, Robert Musso, Judy Kirschner
- Labels
- Chrysalis, Sire
- Length
- 34:36
Line-up
- Dee Dee Ramone · bass guitar · guest
- Johnny Ramone · guitar · guest
- Marky Ramone · drums (drum set) · guest
- Joey Ramone · lead vocals · guest
Singles
- “Pet Sematary” · June 1989
- “I Believe in Miracles” · November 1989 (German promo)
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1989 | 75 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1989 | 122 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1989 | 23 |
| German Albums · 1989 | 40 |
| Swedish Albums · 1989 | 41 |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
74.0
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
4.4k
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53k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
9.6k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 23 May
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Full discography →
Ramones
1976
Leave Home
1977
Rocket to Russia
1977
Road to Ruin
1978
It’s Alive
1979
End of the Century
1980
Pleasant Dreams
1981
Subterranean Jungle
1983
Too Tough to Die
1984
Chasing the Night / Howling at the Moon (Sha‐La‐La)
1985
Howling at the Moon
1985
Bonzo Goes to Bitburg
1985
Something to Believe In
1986
Animal Boy
1986
Halfway to Sanity
1987
Ramones Mania
1988
All the Stuff (and More), Volume 2
1990
All the Stuff (and More), Volume 1
1990
Loco Live
1991
Mondo Bizarro
1992
Acid Eaters
1993
¡Adios Amigos!
1995
Greatest Hits Live
1996
We’re Outta Here!
1997
Anthology: Hey Ho, Let’s Go!
1999
Ramones Mania 2
2000
Ramones You Don't Come Close 2001
You Don't Come Close
2001
Best of the Chrysalis Years
2002
The Chrysalis Years
2002
Loud, Fast Ramones: Their Toughest Hits
2002
NYC 1978
2003
The Best of the Ramones
2004
Weird Tales of the Ramones
2005
Greatest Hits
2006
Meltdown With the Ramones
2014
Spider‐Man
2019
LIVE FM Radio Broadcast Concert (City Hall Plaza, San Francisco, USA, 8th June 1979)
2025
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More on Chrysalis
The label →
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia 1989-05-23 vs 1989-05-18 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 18 May 1989 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 23 May 1989 | |
| Wikidata | May 1989 | |
| US release | 18 May 1989 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 1989 | earliest UK or European date |
13 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | AR | Chrysalis | 094632172525 | other |
| 1989 | XE | Chrysalis | 4007192099986 | other |
| 1989 | GB | Chrysalis | 4007192599981 | other |
| 1989 | GB | Chrysalis | 094632172525 | other |
| 1989 | XE | Chrysalis | 077732172527 | other |
| 1989 | — | Liberation Records | 9399310521826 | other |
| 18 May 1989 | US | Sire Records | 075992590525 | original |
| 23 May 1989 | US | Sire Records | 081227990046 | other |
| 23 May 1989 | US | Sire Records | 075992590525 | other |
| August 1989 | US | Sire Records | 075992590518 | other |
| 1992 | BR | Chrysalis | 094632172525 | other |
| 2004 | GB | Captain Oi! | 5032556124423 | other |
| 16 August 2005 | CA | Rhino | 603497087464 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · cropped: cropped from 2840x2811 to 2811x2811
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 2840×2811 | cropped: cropped from 2840x2811 to 2811x2811 |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |