Pleasant Dreams
| Pleasant Dreams | ||||||||||
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| Studio album by the Ramones | ||||||||||
| Released | July 20, 1981 | |||||||||
| Recorded | March–April 1981 | |||||||||
| Genre | Punk rock | |||||||||
| Length | 33:53 (original) 53:15 (Expanded Edition) |
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| Label | Sire | |||||||||
| Producer | Graham Gouldman | |||||||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Robert Christgau | A− |
| Rolling Stone | |
Pleasant Dreams is the sixth studio album by the American punk rock band the Ramones released on July 20, 1981, through Sire Records. While the band members wanted Steve Lillywhite to produce, Sire chose Graham Gouldman in an attempt to gain popularity through a well-known recording manager. The recording process brought about many conflicts between band members, most notably the strife between Joey Ramone and Johnny Ramone, where Johnny began dating one of Joey's ex-girlfriends. There were also disputes about the overall genre of the album, with Johnny leaning towards hard rock and Joey towards pop music. Ultimately, the album incorporated a high production value and a variation of tone throughout the album. Pleasant Dreams featured songs such as "We Want the Airwaves," "She's a Sensation," and "Come On Now," strayed from traditional punk rock and took on different styles.
The album was not commercially acclaimed, which came as a surprise to Sire since they had insisted the band record with Gouldman in an effort to increase fan-base; it peaked at number fifty-eight on the Billboard 200 and only charted outside of the US in Sweden. The album was not critically acclaimed either, as it received several mixed articles by reviewers, who insisted the album to be less playable than their first four albums.
The writing process for Pleasant Dreams began in January 1981. With Sire Records management being insistent on allowing a celebrity record producer to work on the album, they hired Graham Gouldman—songwriter and musician for the British band 10cc—to produce the album. Prior to working with Gouldman, the Ramones had been with audio engineer Ed Stasium to record several demos and, though Sire rejected, the band had intended that Steve Lillywhite produce the album. The studio recording process began on March 30, 1981, and initiated several conflicts between band members. This tension was partially due to Dee Dee Ramone's drug addiction. Additionally, Marky Ramone and Joey Ramone were both developing alcohol problems, resulting in the frustration of Johnny Ramone. These conflicts and differences became evident in the song writing, as each song was credited to individual rather than multiple members; Pleasant Dreams was the first album in which writing is acknowledged this way.
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