I don't know if i agree that the Ramones didn't have a bad album -- who would listen to "Adios Amigos" or "Acid Eaters" if it didn't say "RAMONES" on the cover, and "Greatest Hits Live" was pretty lame. But, that said, i'll bite:
1) "Pleasant Dreams" is an underrated album. The production doesn't do it any favors, and Joey's weird "songwriterly" efforts like "We Want The Airwaves" and "It's Not My Place" and "This Business Is Killing Me" and "7-11" are pretty lousy. However, the record's got a number of really good songs on it, and it all works together fairly well. Everyone knows "All's Quiet On The Eastern Front" and "The KKK Took My Baby Away;" less appreciated songs on that record are "You Sound Like You're Sick" and "Sitting In My Room."
2) I love "Subterranean Jungle." I know lots of people really hate it. I love the bubblegum metal production, and even Walter Lure's guitar solos. The "hit" is obviously "Psycho Therapy," but "Every Time I Eat Vegetables It Makes Me Think Of You" is great as well, as are their covers of the CHAMBERS BROTHERS and BOYFRIENDS. I think the whole album is fun from start to finish.
3) I am also a fan of "Too Tough To Die." The songs are grouped together in an interesting way -- three drudgey slow ones to start ((in itself an odd thing)), then three punk tunes to kick it in the ass...then four synth-pop type things ((most of which are pretty good!)), two more punk ones, and it ends with "No Go," which is kind of a punkabilly thing. I thought the production could be brighter, i guess, but overall you can make a decent case for this one being the strongest album since the first three. "Durango 95," "Danger Zone," "Chasing The Night," "Humankind" and "No Go" are all underappreciated ((along with more appreciated numbers like "Wart Hog" and "Endless Vacation" and "Howling at the Moon" and "Daytime Dilemma" and such)).
4) I also like "Animal Boy," although i think it's a reasonable secondary jumping-off point for people who want to own all the Ramones records up to a certain point -- that point being somewhere after the first 3/4 albums but before "Adios Amigos" et al. I enjoy Richie Ramone's drumming more than Marky's. I think "Crummy Stuff" is the great forgotten song on this one. "Freak of Nature" and "Love Kills" are cool, too. I think the willfully-thrashy stuff like "Animal Boy" is sort of self-conscious and weak-ish, however, and "Something To Believe In" doesn't do much for me.
5) "Halfway To Sanity" -- this record is about halfway to good and halfway to shit. I liked "Weasel Face" and "Go L'il Camaro Go" and "Bop Til You Drop" and "I Lost My Mind" and "Real Cool Time." I did not like the gloomy crap like "I Wanna Live" or "Garden of Serenity" whatsoever. Lots of real duds on this album.
6) "Brain Drain" -- this is their first real dud. I liked "Palidsades Park" and i thought "Zero Zero UFO" was ok. Other than that, ick. I hate stuff like "Pet Sematary" and "Merry Christmas."
7) "Loco Live" -- yuck. It was depressing to go see them at this point, they had clearly played the songs so many times that they'd forgotten how to play them. I'd be trying to get into it, and they'd respond with these half-assed, raced-through tippy-tappy-tippy-tappy versions of songs that i once loved. Bleah.
8) "Mondo Bizarro" -- I thought this one was pretty decent, probably their last legitimately good record. The production was great; i think "Censorshit" "Heidi Is A Headcase" and "Touring" were the three hits ((although it should be noted "Touring" had been around since at least the "Pleasant Dreams" sessions, underscoring the band's difficulty in writing a dozen simple songs every two years)). I dislike stuff like "Poison Heart" and "Strength To Endure." Not my scene at all.
9) "Acid Eaters" -- um...tried to like it. Could not. Having C.J. singing lead on three songs, including the album's leadoff track, also did not sit well with me.
10) "Adios Amigos" -- not much here. Table scraps. So much outside songwriting influence as to render the final product completely incoherent. I guess C.J.'s songs like "Scattergun" and "Got A Lot To Say" were ok. The Tom Waits thing was kinda decent.
11) "Greatest Hits Live" and anything else i am missing -- yuck!
That's my take. Thanks for asking.
