the New York Dolls, American band whose raw brand of glam rock revitalized the New York City underground music scene in the 1970s, foreshadowing punk rock by half a decade. The members were lead singer David Johansen (b. January 9, 1950, New York, New York, U.S.), lead guitarist Johnny Thunders (byname of John Genzale; b. July 15, 1952, New York d. April 23, 1991, New Orleans, Louisiana), drummer Billy Murcia (b. 1951, New York d. November 6, 1972, London, England), guitarist Sylvain Sylvain (byname of Sylvain Sylvain Mizrahi; b. February 14, 1951, Cairo, Egypt d. January 13, 2021), drummer Jerry Nolan (b. May