On the day that the New York Dolls appeared on the BBC music show The Old Grey Whistle Test in 1973, they were openly derided by the host, Bob Harris. “Mock rock,” he opined to camera.
For all his snarling attitude, the band’s singer, David Johansen, who has died aged 75, might well have agreed. The last thing he expected was for his band to be taken seriously. The Dolls took their lead not from the “adult-oriented” rock and earnest singer-songwriters dominating the US album charts, but from the glam rock scene making headway in the UK singles charts. British acts from the Sex Pistols to Morrissey would later repay the compliment, citing the band as a key influence.
