Ramones Reunion Tour Kicks off at Dietle's

The Ramones, the iconic 1980s punk rock foursome, will begin a 26-week, 18-state U.S. reunion tour at Hank Dietle's Tavern in South Rockville next month. 

The Ramones stripped-down rock sound with three-chord simplicity and sing-along hooks has served as an instruction guide for hordes of punks for nearly 50 years, inspiring everyone from U2 to Soundgarden.

Hank Dietel's, the DC area go-to venue for septuagenarian musicians with enough dexterity to belt out a little ditty about Jack and Diane, is the "Gabba Gabba Gone" tour's first stop. 

Coming more than 28 years since Joey, Johnny, Tommy and DeeDee Ramone performed their last live show, Gabba Gabba Gone will feature a mix of classic hits and samples of their posthumous album, Not Too Tough to Die.

"It's the original lineup everybody loves," said the band's longtime tour manager Monte A. Melnick. “When you listen to a Ramones song, you don’t go ‘oh, that's 1977. I think that’s important to their legacy and being the innovators – that’s why they’re lasting forever. They’ll be around forever and ever and ever, you know."

Hank Dietle's regulars look forward to the nostalgia. "It'll be like before the fire, when nobody gave a fuck if it was 9 o'clock on a Saturday at an ersatz dive bar," said Rockville resident and punk historian Greg Barbera.

Tickets for the Gabba Gabba Gone tour are available now on Ticketmaster.