Culture 3 min read By Trevor Kendall
Billie Joe Armstrong, Travis Barker and Tim Armstrong lead all-star Ramones 50th anniversary tribute
The supergroup The Cretin Family, featuring Billie Joe Armstrong, Travis Barker, Tim Armstrong and CJ Ramone, made its live debut at the official Ramones 50th anniversary tribute show in Los Angeles, with surprise appearances from Billy Idol, Fred Armisen and The Linda Lindas.
An all-star punk supergroup calling itself The Cretin Family made its live debut on Friday night at the official Ramones 50th anniversary tribute show at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles. The one-off band brought together Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong, Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker, Rancid guitarist Tim Armstrong and former Ramones bassist CJ Ramone to celebrate five decades since the release of the band's self-titled 1976 debut album.
The event marked the first time Billie Joe Armstrong and Travis Barker had ever performed together, a fact the Green Day singer pointed out to the crowd from the stage. «First time in my entire life,» he said of sharing a bill with Barker, before introducing CJ Ramone with a nod to the legacy of the band that helped ignite the punk revolution with songs like «Blitzkrieg Bop,» «Judy Is A Punk» and «Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue.»
The set drew heavily on the Ramones catalog, with the group running through «Rockaway Beach,» «Cretin Hop,» «Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment,» «Sheena Is a Punk Rocker,» «Commando,» «Havana Affair» and «Oh Oh I Love Her So,» among others. The band also reached beyond the Ramones songbook for covers of Bobby Freeman's «Do You Wanna Dance?,» Dee Dee King's «The Crusher,» Motörhead's «R. A. M. O. N. E. S.» and The Trashmen's «Surfin' Bird.»
Several surprise guests joined the celebration as the night progressed. Fred Armisen appeared for «Danny Says,» Jason Freese came out during «Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio?» and The Linda Lindas joined for «I Wanna Be Sedated» and a cover of Joe Jones' «California Sun.» The final surprise came at the end of the show, when Billy Idol took the stage for «Beat on the Brat,» Generation X's «Ready Steady Go» and the evening's closer, «Blitzkrieg Bop.»
John Travolta introduced the entire set, with the event also featuring a double screening of the 50th anniversary deluxe edition of «Carrie» and Travolta's new film «Propeller One-Way Night Coach.»
Green Day and Rancid both have prior ties to the Ramones, having appeared on the 2003 tribute album «We're A Happy Family: A Tribute To Ramones.» Green Day covered «Outsider» for the record, while Rancid contributed a version of «Sheena Is A Punk Rocker.» Billie Joe Armstrong has also developed a reputation for cover sets with his side project The Coverups, which has featured guest appearances from Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan and Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson.
Green Day recently announced the soundtrack to their upcoming coming-of-age film «Nimrods» and shared a new track, «I'm Never Gonna R.I.P.» Their latest album, «Saviors,» arrived in 2024 and was praised as their best work since «American Idiot.»
