The Ramones: Joey Ramone (vocals); Johnny Ramone (guitar); Dee Dee Ramone (vocals, bass); C.J. Ramone (bass); Tommy Ramone, Marky Ramone, Ritchie Ramone (drums).

Producers include: Craig Leon, Tony Bongiovi, T. Erdelyi, Ed Stasium, Daniel Rey.

Compilation producers: Bill Inglot, Gary Stewart, Don Williams.

In a way, the Ramones are an ideal band to anthologize. No matter how cohesive their records were (or not), their albums always played like collections of singles and since singles are easy to anthologize, it stands to reason that the best of the Ramones' songs will sound good in nearly any context; hell, the haphazard Ramones Mania proved that. However, Rhino's double-disc Hey! Ho! Let's Go: Ramones Anthology has much greater goals than being just another collection -- it strives to be the final word on the Ramones. Weighing in at nearly 60 songs, with a hardcover book that includes an excellent history by David Fricke, it has to be said that the set has the heft of history, which is both a blessing and a curse. It's a blessing because Anthology does its job perfectly -- apart from "We're a Happy Family," no major songs are missing and it tells its history succinctly, even at its length. The problem is that the Ramones did drop in quality sometime after End of the Century. They never bottomed out, but their music became less exciting, which is evident in this anthology, as the second disc is simply not as compelling as the first. That's not to say it isn't good -- with "The KKK Took My Baby Away" and "My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes to Bitburg)," it can be great -- but it isn't timeless like the entire first disc is. Yet, this is nitpicking, since Anthology does a flawless job in summarizing the band's career. True, most listeners will wear out the first disc while rarely reaching for the second, but this is still essential. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

It took four Queens punks who could barely string together four chords to revitalize American rock & roll. The Ramones torpedoed self-important '70s arena-rock, stripping it down to its foundations. Thanks to their pop smarts, they became the nation's favorite and perhaps most influential punk rock outfit.

The Ramones' music has always echoed a Phil Spector-esque sense of melodic structure. HEY HO LET'S GO! is a delirious, nonstop rush of barreling drums and guitars topped with bubblegum melodies. The emphasis is on the band's seminal '70s output. "Blitzkrieg Bop," "Rockaway Beach," "Teenage Lobotomy," and "I Wanna Be Sedated" whiz past like no-frills Lear jets. The Ramones' power lies in their simplicity; you won't even find a guitar solo here. The band's post-'70s output is a mixed bag, but the second disc includes a sampling of its brighter moments. To the Ramones credit, they held on to their ideals and never played unplugged, released a concept album, or recorded a song that outstayed its welcome.