The Iconic Punk Band You Didn't Know Was Influenced By Bubblegum Pop

Bubblegum pop and punk rock seem like they occupy opposite sides of the musical spectrum, but they're not so different. Though bubblegum was viewed as simple, juvenile, and quickly churned-out rock 'n' roll candy marketed to children for whom rock of the late 1960s was inappropriate, the genre was admired by Ramones, one of the most important and lauded punk bands that emerged in the late 1970s. The key to understanding this affinity lies in looking at the structural similarities. Bubblegum pop was all about simple melodies with approachable lyrics — slightly refined shabby rock that made for great sing-alongs. Similarly, punk was built on three guitar chords with straightforward lyrics intended to be direct, affecting, and anthemic, and that's exactly what the Ramones did on classics like "Blitzkrieg Bop" and "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend."

Well after the Ramones had come and gone and inspired multiple generations of musicians by helping to invent punk, the truth came out: The leather-jacket-wearing band from Queens loved and lifted from bubblegum pop, particularly the Bay City Rollers' snappy and stomping 1976 No. 1 hit "Saturday Night."

Before the Beatles-led British Invasion of the 1960s, the music industry operated in a factory-like manner, with songwriters hacking out songs purchased by labels for their acts. That method returned in the late '60s in the form of bubblegum pop, a genre that was, in part, inspired by the Beatles. Though the Beatles didn't try to write music that appealed to younger audiences specifically, they sure were a hit with the youth regardless. It wasn't long before producers facilitated the creation of basic rock for kids, the demographic that played a key role in making Beatlemania a phenomenon. Bubblegum — hook-filled guitar rock with the edges sanded down — was all over the radio when the Ramones were growing up. 

In late 1975, bubblegum band the Bay City Rollers issued eventual chart-topping chant-rocker "Saturday Night." The Ramones were hooked. "We really liked bubblegum music, and we really liked the Bay City Rollers. Their song 'Saturday Night' had a great chant in it, so we wanted a song with a chant in it: 'Hey! Ho! Let's go!' 'Blitzkrieg Bop' was our 'Saturday Night,'" frontman Joey Ramone said, per the liner notes of the Ramones' "Anthology" (via Elsewhere). That single began the Ramones' self-titled 1976 debut LP.

In 2016, following the tragic deaths of all the original members of the Ramones, the group crossed over to bubblegum. To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the first Ramones LP and its own 75th birthday, Archie Comics issued "Archie Meets Ramones," a one-off title in which the Ramones befriend and play with the inspiration behind the Archies, the fake band that performed the 1969 bubblegum pop No 1 "Sugar, Sugar."