Tommy Ramone, last surviving member of punk band the Ramones, dies

Jul 12, 2014 06:38 pm

Tommy Ramone, the drummer and last surviving member of hugely influential American punk band the Ramones, has died at the age of 65.

The death was confirmed by Dave Frey, director at Ramones productions, the company that controls the band's copyright.

Born Thomas Erdelyi in Budapest, Hungary, Ramone was the co-founder of the band and its drummer from 1974 to 1978. He was the last surviving member of its original quartet.

The New York band, with mops of long hair, black leather jackets, torn jeans and sneakers, deeply influenced punk rockers in the United Kingdom and the "power pop" of ensuing decades.

They were seen as masters of minimalist, 2.5-minute tunes played at hyperkinetic tempo, such as Blitzkrieg Bop, I Wanna be Sedated and Sheena is a Punk Rocker.

Source: Reuters