Roberta Bayley's photograph of Joey Ramone at Coney Island in 1977 has become her most popular image, outselling even the iconic Ramones album cover she shot. Despite its popularity, Joey Ramone himself disliked the photo, complaining, “You made my legs look thin,” as if it were her fault he had skinny legs. The image, which captures a rare smiling Joey Ramone carrying a surfboard he never used, has found its way into the homes of notable fans, including Eddie Vedder, Karen O, and producer Andrew Watt.
From Beatlemania to Punk Photography
Bayley's journey into photography began with a deep fascination for the Beatles. She attended her first concert on 19 August 1964 at the Cow Palace Arena near San Francisco, where she was one of 17,000 screaming fans. The experience, complete with thousands of flashbulbs lighting up the stadium, sparked her curiosity about the photographers behind the images in her magazines. She started by taking photos of Beatles photographs with her family's Kodak camera.
After dropping out of college and selling her Nikon, Bayley moved to England, where she dated Ian Dury. Later, a friend gave her a one-way ticket to New York, where she began a relationship with Richard Hell of Television. After their split, Hell asked her to take his picture, leading to the famous fake blood photo of the Heartbreakers. Hell suggested captioning the poster “Catch them while they’re still alive” due to the band's nefarious reputation.
Shooting the Ramones at CBGBs
In January 1976, Bayley started working for Punk magazine while also working the door at CBGBs. This position gave her constant access to the bands playing there, including Television, Talking Heads, Blondie, and the Ramones. Sire Records paid her $125 to photograph the Ramones against a wall for their debut album cover. Because they were friends, there was no hair or makeup, and she didn't direct their poses. She shot three rolls of film, and one shot turned out to be perfect for the cover.
However, her most popular photo is the Coney Island beach shot. The session was part of a Punk magazine “fumetti” – an Italian-style comic strip – featuring Joey and Debbie Harry as star-crossed lovers, with Andy Warhol as a mad scientist and Lester Bangs as a biker. John Holmstrom drew the cover, but this particular photo was unused because Joey was smiling at the camera, breaking the fourth wall. Bayley notes it's a perfect picture, unusual because Joey didn't surf and was just having fun at the beach.
A Lasting Legacy
Bayley used Plus-X film for this outdoor session, the only time she ever used it, as most photographers preferred Tri-X for its better light range. A Schaefer beer can, a New York beer no longer made, is buried to the right of Joey in the photo, adding a cool touch. The Ramones never smiled in photos after a Sire Records attempt to market them as a cute band failed; Joey insisted, “No way. Bury that picture. Never use it again.”
Despite Joey's dislike, Bayley keeps this photo on top of her bookshelf, and it makes her happy. She sells more copies of this image than the album cover, with fans like Eddie Vedder, Karen O, and Andrew Watt owning copies. Bayley never wanted to be a professional photographer taking pictures of strangers; for 98% of her career, she worked unpaid but had fun photographing friends. She is the recipient of the Icon award at the 2026 Abbey Road music photography awards, with winners announced on 24 September at Abbey Road Studios in London.
