Doll that you can't leave behind
Survivors don’t come more grizzled than the New York Dolls’ David Johansen. Here he recalls shooting the breeze with Muddy Waters and explains how Morrissey persuaded the Dolls to get back together over lunch.
Stuart Clark, 23 Oct 2006
For a man who spent the ‘70s trying to drink/smoke/snort/inject himself into an early grave, David Johansen is in remarkably good nick.
“I think it’s fair to say that my life expectancy now is far greater than it was then,” the New York Dolls lead singer cackles. “What can I say? They were decadent days, which didn’t seem that decadent at the time because everybody in New York was behaving that way.”
Oh my god, a whole city full of Pete Dohertys!
“That’s the English kid, right? A rude but very effective wake-up call is when people around you start dying. Choices present themselves and hopefully you take the right ones.”
Although “certainly not vice free”, Johansen gave his act a thorough spring-clean after Dolls bandmates Billy Murcia (1972, drug and drink-related suffocation) and Johnny Thunders (1991, OD) completed their live fast, die young mission.
“Brain cells were lost, but thankfully no limbs or vital organs,” he laughs before admitting that sections of the ‘70s are a bit of a blur.
“Sylvain (Sylvain, guitar) on the other hand has total recall,” he resumes. “We can be in Denver or something and he’ll say, ‘Remember the last time we were here together? The sheriff broke down the door and pinned you to the floor while the deputies pulled the place apart.’ And I’ll be like, ‘Er, no, can’t say I do!’”
Following the Dolls’ disintegration in 1977, Johansen variously fronted his own eponymous group; adopted the louche lounge lizard persona of Buster Pointdexter; appeared as part of the Saturday Night Live house band; cameod in films like Scrooged; and paid tribute to his American folk heroes with The Harry Smiths.
Reliving his lipstick ‘n’ mascara days wasn’t on the agenda until über-Dolls devotee Morrissey begged them to reform for the posh London festival he was curating.
“I’d eaten peas or something with him before at the request of a record company guy called Danny Goldberg who thought me being there would persuade Morrissey to sign to his label,” Johnansen reveals. “I found him delightful, but he did have a lot of questions about arcane ephemera!”
Page 1/3 <Previous 1 2 3 Next>
©Hot Press 2011. Why be a member? | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy