On Spotify: Commemorating Punk Pioneers New York Dolls
Before punk had a name, New York Dolls were melding heroin chic lyrics, girl group pop, slicing guitars and the glam rock of their forefathers Bowie and T. Rex. Despite only releasing two proper albums in their prime—1973's New York Dolls and 1974's Too Much Too Soon—New York's quintessential band became a primary influence on the city's then-burgeoning punk scene and remains a constant go-to for any band mixing theatricality with gutter-ready griminess.
On this day in 1974, the core group, including David Johansen (aka Buster Poindexter), Sylvain Sylvain and deceased guitarist Johnny Thunders, broke up, and while they would reunite to record new material more than 30 years later, you can never repeat the original formula. Take a listen to our New York Dolls playlist below, culling the band's classic tracks, live cuts and recent material for a compendium of the revered band.
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