Editing Leave Home (section)

== Composition ==
''Leave Home'' has various lyrical themes throughout its track list. The opening song, "Glad to See You Go", is rather [[uptempo]] and frenetic. The track was about Dee Dee's then-girlfriend Connie, who was well known in the punk rock scene as having once dated [[New York Dolls]] bassist Arthur Kane and attempting to cut his finger off with a knife. Connie also harmed Dee Dee in several ways, such as slicing his buttocks with a beer bottle. At the time, every other member of the band despised Dee Dee's girlfriend and he eventually broke up with her. Joey recalls: "Dee [Dee] and I came up with the song 'Glad to See You Go,' about Connie's leaving." In the mid-1980s, Connie died from a drug overdose.<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=McNeil|first1=Legs|author-link1=Legs McNeil|last2=Holmstrom|first2=John|author-link2=John Holmstrom|title=We're A Happy Family|magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|volume=2|issue=5|date=August 1986|page=69}}</ref> "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment" utilizes Joey's singing abilities with its vocal-demanding melody.<ref name="Mednick 168">Mednick 2013, p. 168</ref><ref name="Mednick 169" /> Author Scott Schinder called the song a "sing-along mental-illness ode."<ref name="SS 546">Schinder & Schwartz 2008, p. 546.</ref> The next song, "I Remember You" was said by author Greil Marcus to be all about the moment where "Joey's voice turns the single word "you" into pure poetry."<ref name="Marcus 110">Marcus 2007, p. 110</ref> "Oh, Oh, I Love Her So" pays homage to the 1950s [[doo-wop]] genre, and consists of a three-chord barrage.<ref name="Mednick 170" /> The song was written solely by Joey, where in the song he humorously tells of how he met a girl at [[Burger King]] and they fell in love by a [[soda fountain]].<ref name="Marcus 110" />

"Carbona Not Glue" was written as a follow-up to "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue" from their debut album. The song was Legs McNeil's favorite song from ''Leave Home'', who relates: "[The song] was meant to clarify that while glue might not be good for you, the cleaning fluid Carbona was definitely a better high."<ref>Leigh 2007, p. 164.</ref> The song contemplates around Beach Boys harmonies, and it uses "bouncy" guitar riffs.<ref name="Mednick 169" /><ref name="allmusic">{{cite web|last=Erlewine|first=Stephen Thomas|author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/leave-home-mw0000318811|title=Leave Home – Ramones|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=2014-01-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170714180650/http://www.allmusic.com/album/leave-home-mw0000318811|archive-date=2017-07-14|url-status=dead}}</ref> "Suzy Is a Headbanger" was inspired by the 1947 [[film noir]] ''[[Nightmare Alley (1947 film)|Nightmare Alley]]'', with the lyrics detailing a female involved in the punk rock scene.<ref name="Mednick 170">Mednick 2013, p. 170</ref>

{{Listen|filename=Ramones - Pinhead.ogg|title="Pinhead"|description=The song "Pinhead" begins with a chant "Gabba gabba we accept you, we accept you, one of us."<ref>Wolf 2007, p. 112.</ref> Tommy Ramone explained that the song was about how "all the freaks were welcome to join the Ramones. It was our way of goofing on the media, for saying we were not too bright."<ref>True 2002, p. 84.</ref>
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The lines "Gabba Gabba Hey" at the end of "Pinhead" were taken from the [[horror film]] ''[[Freaks (1932 film)|Freaks]]'', which the band saw in [[Cleveland, Ohio]] after their gig was cancelled. Joey's brother [[Mickey Leigh]] said that it was specifically taken from the scene where "the midget groom does a dance on the banquet table and sings 'Gobble gobble, we accept you, one of us' to his bride." The song is an audience participation song, and during live performances, Leigh appears on stage holding a sign that bore the text "Gabba Gabba Hey".<ref name="leigh 141">Leigh 2007, p. 141.</ref> "Pinhead", the album's longest piece, leads into "Now I Wanna Be a Good Boy", which portrays a confused adolescent wanting to be good, yet also yearning to run away from home.<ref name="SS 546" /> The next song on the album, "Swallow My Pride", was a piece written solely by lead singer [[Joey Ramone]], who states that the concept deals with their record company [[Sire Records]]; Tommy used the expression "you gotta swallow your pride" when signing to their record company.<ref>Leigh 2007, p. 139.</ref>  ''[[Record World]]'' said of "Swallow My Pride" that the Ramones "pack more energy into a two minute song than just about anyone else."<ref name=rw>{{cite magazine|magazine=Record World|date=March 26, 1977|accessdate=2023-02-16|title=Single Picks|page=22|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/70s/77/Record-World-1977-03-26.pdf}}</ref> "What's Your Game" is one of the band's most melodic songs and was called "wistful" by Marcus.<ref name="Marcus 110" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rhino.com/article/out-now-ramones-the-sire-years-1976-1981|title=Out Now: Ramones: The Sire Years (1976–1981)|publisher=[[Rhino Entertainment]]|date=2013-10-31|access-date=2014-01-25}}</ref> It was written by Joey about how he yearns for a girl to be herself instead of something she's not.<ref name="Popmatters">{{cite web|last=Begrand|first=Adrien|url=http://www.popmatters.com/review/ramones-leave/|title=The Ramones: Leave Home|work=[[PopMatters]]|date=2003-06-26|access-date=2014-01-26}}</ref>

The album's only cover song, "California Sun", was written by [[Henry Glover]] and [[Morris Levy]], and originally recorded by [[The Rivieras]]. While the lyrics and musical structure remain the same throughout the piece, Joey's pronunciation upon words significantly lessened the similarity to the original song. The sound output tone also differs from the original, with more distortion as well as a faster [[tempo]]. Author Steve Waksman relates: "From the opening bars, 'California Sun' becomes subject to the Ramones' distinctive brand of musical minimalism paired with sonic excess. The chords go by in a blur of distortion; the drums and bass kick at seemingly twice the speed of the Rivieras."<ref>Waksman 2009, pp. 118–119</ref> The twelfth track "Commando" has a theme which deals with war movies and contains multiple military references. Author Avram Mednick said the song was a successor to "[[Blitzkrieg Bop]]", released on the band's debut album. He also noted that it has a "bouncy melody and an infectious call-and-response chorus."<ref name="Mednick 169">Mednick 2013, p. 169</ref> "You're Gonna Kill that Girl", which was written very early in the band's career, was also rooted in doo-wop genre. Mednick commented that it appealed highly to those tuning into the Ramones in the UK, and also said it has a "lovely misogynistic tune."<ref name="Mednick 169" /> The final guitar chord on the track is played by drummer Tommy since Johnny rarely played [[acoustic guitar|acoustic]].<ref name="commando" /> The album's final track, "You Should Never Have Opened That Door", was written by Dee Dee and Johnny, and circles themes of horror films and hints that people in these movies tend to be naïve and unintelligent.<ref name="SS 547">Schinder & Schwartz 2008, p. 547.</ref><ref>True 2002, p. 81.</ref>