Then Dee Dee said he was unable to sing while playing bass so Tommy got Joey to sing and then played drums himself leaving Dee Dee to backup sing . Soon after the band was formed , Dee Dee realized that he could not sing and play his bass guitar simultaneously ; with Erdelyi 's encouragement , Joey became the band 's new lead singer . Dee Dee would continue , however , to count off each song 's tempo with his signature rapid-fire shout of `` 1-2-3-4 ! ''