Today in Labor History April 23, 1991: Johnny Thunders died, either from a drug overdose or by homicide. Thunders sang and played guitar with the New York Dolls, with the Heartbreakers, and solo. In their early days, the Dolls worked with Malcolm McLaren, who modeled the Sex Pistols after them. Thunders left the Dolls in 1975, blaming Malcolm McLaren for their demise, and then formed the Heartbreakers, with former Television bassist Richard Hell (who later formed the Voidoids and recorded the classic, Blank Generation). I was fortunate enough to see Johnny Thunders perform before solo he died (or misfortunate, depending on your perspective). It was in New York City, at a small club. He announced to us that he was finally clean and then proceeded to fall off his stool several times. https://youtu.be/KJpDXVMxzpc

48 years ago
The New York Dolls for an East Village photoshoot April 1977

Roberta Bayley

Left to right - Johnny Thunders, Arthur “Killer” Kane, Sylvain Sylvain, Jerry Nolan and David Johansen

Rest in Punk Boyz

LES NEW YORK DOLLS EN PRÉPARANT LES FRITES À 19H16 !!

PERSONALITY CRISIS !!!

#NowPlaying #GlamRock #PunkRock #NewYorkDolls #DavidJohansen

Memories hold onto illusion
'Cause we're just human
And that's all right

Duality is so confusin'
You think you're not dreamin'
Then you awake

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccjT0Afp16c

I was traveling last week and only just heard today that David Johansen died. I don't generally like to go around eulogizing geriatric rock stars, but damn, this feels like kind of a loss.

The New York Dolls were in their prime around the time I was in the womb, but they were still local heroes in NYC even when I was a teenager (it's absurd how many Johnny Thunders wannabes you could find roaming St. Marks Place on a Friday night ca. 1994 -- well after the rest of the world had moved on from big hair).

Also, I'm not sure when cross-dressing was legalized in NYC, but if it was before the Dolls started, it wasn't long before, and they still deserve credit for jumping in head-first (in platforms!), if you ask me.

Anyways, RIP, y'old dog. Hope it wasn't too painful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a5Uf7Hs5c4

David Johansen died at the weekend at the age of 75, meaning all founding members of The New York Dolls are now gone. The band never had a top 100 hit, but @RollingStone's critic Robert Christgau says they still changed the world. Here's his story of the band, from the first gig he attended in 1972 to the 2005 album, "Some Day It Will Please Us to Remember Even This."

https://flip.it/Us6-Ul

Ah man. David Johansen died.

https://pitchfork.com/news/david-johansen-famed-new-york-dolls-singer-dies-at-75/

Ciao David

New York Dolls - Looking for a Kiss

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvmvMFXWzc8&t=22

R.E.M., Soccer Mommy, New York Dolls, The Mars Volta, Lollapalooza and more feature in this week’s curated collection of punk rock, alt rock and indie music news and writing.

https://tangleofwires.substack.com/p/weekly-digest-25

Artists wearing their own t-shirt

#newyorkdolls #DavidJohansen #photography #music

Modern Popcorn

More sad news from the music world - David Johansen, lead singer of the New York Dolls and also known as Buster Poindexter, has died at 75 after a battle with cancer. Johansen also appeared in "Scrooged" and "Let It Ride".

#RIP David Johansen, singer and icon from the #NewYorkDolls #1970s https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/mar/01/david-johansen-frontman-of-new-york-dolls-dies-aged-75

Via con dios #DavidJohansen
He was all of it, and the last New York Doll
#NewYorkDolls

https://youtu.be/Ua_q8-aVJPo

AeschTunes News Report: R.I.P. David Johansen http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WjCZvGEmIY http://aeschtunes.com/2025/03/01/aeschtunes-news-report-r-i-p-david-johansen/

#Music, #DavidJohansen, #NewYorkDolls, #BusterPoindexter

#DavidJohansen has died at the age of 75 after being diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. Johansen was known for his work as the lead singer of the seminal proto-punk band the New York Dolls.
https://time.com/7263313/david-johansen-dead-singer-new-york-dolls-tributes/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=bluesky

Got his autograph on my 14th birthday. So long, God bless and thank you for the music #DavidJohansen. #Music #NewYorkDolls #RockAndRoll #ClassicRock

#DavidJohansen era l'ultimo dei #NewYorkDolls ancora in vita. Delle #dragqueen tossiche che ispirarono il #punk inglese, il #glam e l'#hairmetal senza guadagnarci nulla se non il rispetto | Full Documentary Movie - Invidious https://iv.duti.dev/watch?v=a7oHhHGzf3w&listen=false #music