New York Dolls frontman David Johansen dead at 75
Well, that’s a shame. I was never hip enough to know about the New York Dolls or to follow David Johansen, but was fond of his alter ego, Buster Poindexter.
It probably says something about my lack of emotional depth or facetious nature, that I am drawn to bands that have a campy gimmick or offbeat presentation. The 1980’s was a good time for that. The musicians involved were usually creative and went on to do interesting things.
Here are a few that I liked:
Devo: I Can’t Get No Satisfaction was a better song than their song, Whip It, that was more popular. Mark Mothersbaugh has written musical scores for TV and movies, like Thor: Ragnarok.
Talking Heads: Once in a Lifetime was one of my favorites, but Burning Down the House was more popular. David Byrne has a solo career, and is always doing something interesting. Here is the Trump vs Talking Heads mashup.
Laurie Anderson O Superman and her other songs are just different. Like David Byrne, she’s always doing something interesting. Due to her Heart of a Dog movie, Laurie Anderson is Sparky’s godmother.
Adam Ant Goody Two Shoes was catchy, but he didn’t go anywhere. Actually, a lot of that music was just silly, but I could post my favorite videos all day.
Bow Wow Wow Do You Want to Hold Me
The 1980’s had less challenging music from Michael Jackson, Billy Joel, Madonna and Queen. The fun part was that any band who wanted to get weird by dressing like a native American, alien or a dramatic costume, did it.
It wasn’t that unusual for a singer from an early punk band would have a persona with a tuxedo and pompadour who sang lounge jazz and party swing music.