New York Dolls

Oh yes, it's an enjoyable eye witness account

Ghostwritten by Dave Thompson, always a good portent, it's Sylvain's account of the New York Dolls brief car crash of a career

What I wrote afterwards...

For a brief period in the early 1970s the New York Dolls were the next big thing. Unfortunately drugs, egos (David and Johnny), mismanagement, and a glam/transvestite image that was never going to appeal much outside New York, LA, Detroit and (then) Glam Rock obsessed Europe, did for them.

Sylvain Sylvain is only one of the two surviving New York Dolls so his recollections of the band's history are timely and welcome. He has a good memory, an eye for evocative period detail, and a fistful of insightful and interesting anecdotes. His early life was also quite eventful and he shares some illuminating family history of growing up in Egypt, Paris, Buffalo and New York. That he spent time travelling all over in his formative years including London, Amsterdam and central America, also gives his stories plenty of variety. That said, it's the New York Dolls sections which are most rewarding.

The book's epilogue concludes with a letter to Sylvain Sylvain from Malcolm Maclaren (a staunch Dolls fan from their inception in the early 70s) urging him to get over to London ASAP and join his new group, the Sex Pistols, complete with photo-booth snaps of Johnny Rotten, Steven Jones and Glen Matlock. Another of those great what ifs. Malcolm Maclaren also briefly reinvigorated the Dolls in their twilight months with his enthusiasm and energy. Indeed Maclaren emerges from this book with a huge amount of credit.

You'll already know if this book is likely to appeal to you. If it does then grab a copy - there's lots to enjoy and appreciate.