THE NEW YORK DOLLS AND HEARTBREAKERS GUITARIST WHO CRYSTALLIZED THE ESSENCE OF STREET-COOL ROCK ’N’ ROLL
WORDS BY MARK McSTEA PHOTO BY GIJSBERT HANEKROOT
The first time
I saw Johnny Thunders — with the New York Dolls on U.K. TV in 1973 — I immediately connected with the reckless abandon that was apparent in every gesture, every guitar-hero pose he struck. And then there was the rawness of the band’s approach at a time when mainstream rock was still mired in the keyboard-laden pomposity of prog and the tired blues-rock tropes that had become the standard fallback for many so-called “serious” bands of the time. As a huge fan of British glam rock, particularly T. Rex and Slade, here, at last, was an American band unafraid to transcend the predictable and the expected, to deliver their own brand of shock rock ’n’ roll. Even 50 years later, when taking a solo, if in doubt, I’ll ask myself, “What would Johnny Thunders do?”
The mystery is why Thunders remains relatively uncelebrated, yet the artists who have admitted his influence — including John Frusciante’s gushing comments in the June 2022 issue of GW — dominate modern rock music. It’s time to address Thunders’ legacy and restore him to his rightful place in the pantheon of rock ’n’ roll.
Thunders was the embodiment of the “live fast, die young” guitar hero mythology. With his low-slung Les Paul Junior, leather jacket and shock of black hair, he became an instant cultural icon when the New York Dolls started to attract attention. Unfortunately for Thunders, addiction issues dogged him from the early Seventies; while fellow Heartbreaker Walter Lure managed to kick the habit in the late Eighties, Johnny was never able to do the same and was to meet an untimely end in a New Orleans hotel room in 1991. The cause of death? It was officially an overdose, but mystery surrounds the details.
The HUGE INFLUENCE of Thunders in particular, and the New York Dolls and the Heartbreakers, is apparent from the legions of fans who’ve gone on to form successful bands, citing the mystique of Thunders as a prime motivator in their own desires to forge a career in music.
Born John Anthony Genzale in Queens, New York, in 1952, Thunders formed his first band, the Reign, when he was 15. By the time he was 17, he was a familiar face at shows around NYC and was even to be seen in the audience at a Rolling Stones show at Madison Square Garden, captured forever in the 1970 film Gimme
