Obituary: David Johansen, musician
Inspired by British glam rock and inspirational to the emergence of punk rock, David Johansen was the face of influential United States band the New York Dolls.
A New York native, Johansen gravitated to Andy Warhol's Factory scene.
Having cut his teeth in several bands and the theatre industry, Johansen's break came in 1971 when the Dolls then singer Johnny Thunders opted to stick to his bass.
Their raucous lifestyle, androgynous look and wild-eyed hard rock earned them a cult following but not commercial success.
The band's last show was in December 1976, just before the many bands who had taken their cue from the Dolls look and sound started to make it big.
Johansen went solo, with limited success, although his blues/swing alter ego Buster Poindexter did trouble the lower reaches of the charts and one single, a cover of Hot Hot Hot, made the US top 20.
The surviving New York Dolls reformed in 2004 for a London festival, touring until 2011.
Johansen was also an accomplished actor whose credits included appearances in the films Scrooged and Freejack, as well as TV shows Oz and The Equaliser. David Johansen died on February 28 aged 75. — APL/agencies
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NZ Herald
17 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Taylor Swift announces 12th album for ‘pre pre-order'
"The Life of a Showgirl" will be Swift's 12th studio album. Photo / Getty Images Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech. "The Life of a Showgirl" will be Swift's 12th studio album. Photo / Getty Images US popstar Taylor Swift announced her 12th album, titled The Life of a Showgirl, for 'pre pre-order' just after midnight on Tuesday in posts on her website. Her online shop displayed blurred images of a record, CD and cassette tape overlaid with a glittery orange lock, explaining the album artwork would be 'revealed at a later date'. A disclaimer also notes that the release date has not yet been announced, and the album will ship before October 13. 'So I wanted to show you something,' the singer says in a video clip posted to her Instagram as she holds up a vinyl album, its cover completely blurred. 'This is my brand new album The Life of a Show Girl,' she says in the clip from the New Heights podcast, hosted by her boyfriend, American football player Travis Kelce, and his brother, ex-NFL player Jason Kelce.
Otago Daily Times
19 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Kiwi singer stuns judges on The Voice Australia
Award-winning Christchurch singer Cassie Henderson has blown away the panel of celebrity judges at an audition for reality competition show The Voice Australia. The 26-year-old, who recently won Best Pop Artist at the Aotearoa Music Awards, sang Chappell Roan's 'Good Luck, Babe!' in a blind audition which had the judges all vying for a chance to coach her. American singer Richard Marx called her an 'absolute star', British Spice Girl Mel C told her she was born to do this and Australian singer Kate Miller-Heidke and Irish singer Ronan Keating were desperately pleading with her to join their team. Keating said her performance felt like that of an established artist, which is not far from the truth. Henderson has been singing from a young age, going from busking on the streets as a teenager to performing on X Factor New Zealand in 2013, coming fifth. 'I had a few setbacks and I kind of stopped singing for a long time and I kind of realised one day that there is nothing else I want to do in this world and in my lifetime,' Henderson told the judges. 'There was a point where I had sort of like online commentary about my voice and just about me and I think I just took it to heart because I was quite young at the time, I was like 14, and I think when you're a 14-year-old girl, anything anybody says is going to hit home.' Ultimately, Henderson decided to join Mel C, who could resonate with Henderson's story of dealing with trolls from a young age. 'I feel like there's a lot I can offer you. Being a Spice Girl, becoming successful at a very young age, there was a lot to deal with and I like to think I would be able to help navigate that with you. We can get strong and we can shut out the negativity because you have so much to offer.' Earlier this year, the 'Seconds To Midnight (11:59)' singer told RNZ's Music 101 that she was in awe after winning Best Pop Artist Award, which also had Frankie Venter and Georgia Lines as finalists. 'I am so grateful for the work ethic that I had when I was younger like I was busking for maybe four or five hours every weekend and that would be in Christchurch, freezing winters in the morning, and I just really wanted to a) make a bit of pocket money but b) I wanted to get in front of people and sing, and I think all of that experience and all of that failure and success and all of the ups and downs has made me who I am today. 'I feel like you have to have a level of confidence and some thick skin to work in this industry and I spent most of my first coming years just basically being ignored by people in the streets so that's like the perfect intro into being a singer really.' She said she had the final chapter in the trilogy of her EPs under way.
Otago Daily Times
20 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Chch pop star stuns judges on The Voice Australia
Award-winning Christchurch singer Cassie Henderson has blown away the panel of celebrity judges at an audition for reality competition show The Voice Australia. The 26-year-old, who recently won Best Pop Artist at the Aotearoa Music Awards, sang Chappell Roan's 'Good Luck, Babe!' in a blind audition which had the judges all vying for a chance to coach her. American singer Richard Marx called her an 'absolute star', British Spice Girl Mel C told her she was born to do this and Australian singer Kate Miller-Heidke and Irish singer Ronan Keating were desperately pleading with her to join their team. Keating said her performance felt like that of an established artist, which is not far from the truth. Henderson has been singing from a young age, going from busking on the streets as a teenager to performing on X Factor New Zealand in 2013, coming fifth. 'I had a few setbacks and I kind of stopped singing for a long time and I kind of realised one day that there is nothing else I want to do in this world and in my lifetime,' Henderson told the judges. 'There was a point where I had sort of like online commentary about my voice and just about me and I think I just took it to heart because I was quite young at the time, I was like 14, and I think when you're a 14-year-old girl, anything anybody says is going to hit home.' Ultimately, Henderson decided to join Mel C, who could resonate with Henderson's story of dealing with trolls from a young age. 'I feel like there's a lot I can offer you. Being a Spice Girl, becoming successful at a very young age, there was a lot to deal with and I like to think I would be able to help navigate that with you. We can get strong and we can shut out the negativity because you have so much to offer.' Earlier this year, the 'Seconds To Midnight (11:59)' singer told RNZ's Music 101 that she was in awe after winning Best Pop Artist Award, which also had Frankie Venter and Georgia Lines as finalists. 'I am so grateful for the work ethic that I had when I was younger like I was busking for maybe four or five hours every weekend and that would be in Christchurch, freezing winters in the morning, and I just really wanted to a) make a bit of pocket money but b) I wanted to get in front of people and sing, and I think all of that experience and all of that failure and success and all of the ups and downs has made me who I am today. 'I feel like you have to have a level of confidence and some thick skin to work in this industry and I spent most of my first coming years just basically being ignored by people in the streets so that's like the perfect intro into being a singer really.' She said she the final chapter in the trilogy of her EPs under way.
