INTERVIEW WITH BARBARA ZAMBINIInterview: Sunday May 7, 2000: Örebro, Sweden
Like everybody knows Barbara Zambini is Dee Dee Ramone's wife.
I was hanging out and partying with Dee Dee, Barbara, Chase Manhattan and Dee Dee's crew members after the Orebro-gig in the backstage, there were also girls from the support band. I talked with Barbara maybe an hour and here's something from our discussion.
JARI-PEKKA: 1) Here's more great version and statictics from my Ramones-vote On first prints which I showed some day ago for you, could't see results fully, now you can? Thanks for the Tompa about these prints, I got these from him in Helsingborg, when we were keeping Ramones-night. Here's many songs written by Dee Dee.
- BARBARA:
JARI-PEKKA: 2) It was sad you didn't played on the set anything from the Ain't It Fun/ Zonked -album, songs like Disguises. I really love that song.
- BARBARA:
JARI-PEKKA: 3) Can you tell best memories about Ramainz-gigs and -times?
- BARBARA: I don't have any. We don't have
any good memories, only bad memories?
JARI-PEKKA: 4) Your favourite Ramones-songs?
- BARBARA: Loudmouth, I Don't Wanna Go
Down To The Basement, Havana Affair, Rockaway Beach ...mmm..., I like to
play Chain Saw sometimes, we didn't play it tonight. Let me see from the
set list.
JARI-PEKKA: 5) What was the last song which you played tonight before Masterplan?
- BARBARA: Havana Affair
JARI-PEKKA: 6) Sure I know that it wasn't Havana Affair.
- BARBARA: Oh it was You Can't Catch Me, "
Oh Baby, You Can't Catch Me" (Barbara singing)
JARI-PEKKA: 7) Do you wanna tell something
of your first meeting with Dee Dee?- BARBARA: I freaked out, I freaked out so
bad. I couldn't stop shaking. I could't believe that all was happening to
me. Dee Dee was like a god for me. I was such a huge Ramones-fan. I
could't understand when Dee Dee came to talk to me and wanted to hang with
me.
I started to listen Ramones when I was 12 year old and I was only 16 year old when I met Dee Dee. After Ramones there was nothing about what I would say that I like it. All what I wanted to hear was Ramones. To me everybody else suck. Even Sex Pistols suck to me, I didn't care about Sex Pistols. All what I wanted to hear was Ramones, Ramones, and Ramones. Ramones was only what I wanted to listen.
I couldn't believe that I would be never happy, Ramones was so far away. I think that it wasn't possible to met them, 'cause there was 50 000 people looking Ramones in Argentina, there was too many people like me. You wouldn't even try to get to backstage. Security man hit you and threw out if tried.
Dee Dee also did gigs in Argentina and then I met Dee Dee and somehow I wasn't listening Ramones-music when we met. Dee Dee was talking with people 'cause someone stole his guitar or he left it somewhere. He was outside, looking guitar and freakin' out, asking from everybody where is his guitar.
I didn't talked then much english, only regular stuff like ask what is your name, where do you live, what is your favourite color etc. I couldn't understand then too much what Dee Dee was talking, I knew sure Ramones-songs, but not what words meant. Then I stop listening Ramones mostly 'cause he don't want to listen himself. I listen Ramones a lot now, but I'm interested also other music, more Rock'N'Roll, such keeping inside Ramones. Adios Amigos was pretty good. It told me a lot.
After meeting Dee Dee, I got feeling wow there's somebody out there, who's doing same things you feel like to be doing with your friends, singing about drugs, taking drugs and stuff like that.
I belong someone now. Three month I was flying, you know, I could't believe what was going. I could't believe what was happening to me. I can't explain to you. Can't understand he wanted to go out with me. It was more, movie or something.
JARI-PEKKA: 8) Maybe I can feel something, I can't believe that this all is happening to me. Can't realize that I'm now talking with you, Dee Dee is here just now, I was singing some days ago with you on stage, that Dee Dee gave his tour diary to me. You, Dee Dee and whole crew are so friendly to me.
- BARBARA: You just can't believe what is
going on.
- BARBARA: Realize that this's is really
true, *wow* what fuck is going on here. I was then only 16 when I met with
Dee Dee.
JARI-PEKKA: 10) How old you're exactly now?
- BARBARA: I'm now 22 years old. Someones
ask if I'm Dee Dee's dorother, no I say but I'm his wife. Tell that for
everybody!!!!!
- BARBARA: Really, is that May 19th.
- BARBARA: Yes. That's cool, that's nice.
- BARBARA: I was born April 9th, 1978, in
Argentina.
JARI-PEKKA: 14) Do you wanna tell something of your first gig with Dee Dee.
- BARBARA: Now we're playing mostly in New
York, LA and in Germany, Dusselfdorf was the first show I ever played.
People were in Dusselfdorf in a little club called Jungle Club, it was
such small and it was really punk. After that we
played ten days in Spain, we played in Barcelona etc.
- BARBARA: Maybe 5,5 years ago, I was then
only 16 year old. I was then so nervous and bad, I wanted to go my home. I
did millions mistakes.
JARI-PEKKA: 16) When did you started to play bass?
- BARBARA: I was fourteen. I wanted to
play drums
really, but I didn't got money to buy drum kit myself. I only had 80
dollars, My father say that he hopes that I buy drums, but first I've to
buy some part, but I wanted to get whole drum kit or nothing. Then I
bought bass. I was always loved Dee Dee.
- BARBARA: Then I realized it was too much
work with drums. Then I get bass and started to play it. It was natural to
me, it was easy, it wasn't difficult. I started to play with Ramones-songs
and first song I ever played by bass was Ramones-song, I Don't
Care.
JARI-PEKKA: 17) Do you wanna tell something
about wedding day. - BARBARA: Our wedding day was September
12, 1996. First day I met with Dee Dee was November 4th, 1994.
We got married in New York, Dee Dee not wanted to get big wedding. I had blue jeans, normal shoes. We get married and then we left. I don't have any religious. I don't want to get married in church, with white dress. There was only 2 witnesses, if someone ask and not believe, they can tell that we get married.
JARI-PEKKA: 18) Are you planning to get children some day?
- BARBARA: Yeah, maybe one day. Right now
I think I'm too young, I wanna enjoy about my life right now. When I was a
kid I was really fucked up, it was horrible. I don't think that right now
I would be a good parent. If I had a kid, it mean that I'm trap again,
have to look somebody, I'm not free. If has kid you're responbility of
someones life. If you can't give good life, it's better not to bring kids
into the
world.
- BARBARA: Yeah, maybe when I'm 35 or
something. I don't want now *ups* I get a kid, what I've to do now. If
you've got a kid you can't go out, you've to stay home.
JARI-PEKKA: 20) You've got a dog.
Kimmo shown pic where's dog like Barbara's and Dee Dee Pupsi. Barbara liked about card, Dee Dee also said *oh what's that*. Kimmo asked Dee Dee's and Barbara's autographs for the card.
- BARBARA: Dog is better now, it's our
baby. I've got bunch of "kids" anyway, If I wanna play with kids, I go to
my home.
- BARBARA: I've got 4 sister and 1
brother. I've 2
sister on my ages, one is 20, she has baby already. Then I has got 6 year
old sister, 5 year old brother and 3 year old sister. My mom kept break
and then she wanted more.
Then we talked about road crew members: Joanna,
Brian and Frank.- BARBARA: They're really great, we can
really trust for them. Example many bands are competing, who's the most
loud. We don't want sound that way, we can trust that we got a good
sound.
- BARBARA: This's been so long tour. Dee
Dee wanna be a lot alone also. Dee Dee is a very alone person, he like to
be alone. Sometimes he looks to be lost and far away. Can we take a
picture now and then we taked it.