It is possible that The Ramones are the most critical rock act of the1970s. At a time when the softer cadence of pop rock music was making an insidious infiltration of the rock ‘n’ roll genre, punk rock threw an abrupt roadblock in its way. As drummer Tommy Ramone said of rock music in the early 70s, “I knew that what was needed was some pure stripped-down, no bullshit rock ‘n’ roll.” Hence, The Ramones were born. Rejecting common rock staples at the time, such as guitar solos, vocal harmonies, and relatively tame backbeats, The Ramones turned the rock dial back to its baseline with the loud fast paced, four-chord structured, screaming bombastry of punk. Given a Grammy Lifetime achievement award in 2011, these Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame inductees saved rock ‘n’ roll by taking it to its noisiest most energetic extremes in the form of pure, unadulterated punk.