Sylvain Sylvain, guitarist for the New York Dolls, dead at 69

[glasshand]

Sylvain Sylvain was hardly a household name, but I always loved his work with the Dolls. He wasn't a shredding superstar, but he played raw, gutsy stuff that fit the song perfectly. I always thought they were one of the rare bands that actually did really good stuff in their later, reformed, incarnation too.

[toomanycats]

Sylvain Sylvain was a great rock and roll player. In that first video from 73 you can clearly hear the Dolls influence on what was to become punk.

It's amazing how far rock music traveled in the four short years from 69 to 73. I don't necessarily mean "progressed," but more like "moved." In 69 it was Woodstock, hippies, peace and love, folky and political protests songs, socially conscious lyrics. Four years later we have this kind of materialistic, nihilistic, decadent, angry, aggressive music. Understand, I don't mean that in a critical way. Just pointing out that by 73 the Dolls has perfected the template both musically and visually for a lot that would follow for the next decade and a half. Half the guys in "hair bands" in the 80s were copying this look pioneered by the Dolls. The Dolls where probably themselves inspired by others, the Rolling Stones I would guess.