Last week came the shocking news that David Johansen has been privately battling stage 4 cancer for a decade and a brain tumour for the past five years. He's been forced to go public with his condition since breaking his back in two places following a fall in November, leaving him bedridden and incapacitated. His daughter has created a site to raise funds for full-time nursing, physical therapy and day-to-day living expenses. The immediate outpouring of love and good wishes from all corners of social media has been heart-warming to see and is a testament to the high esteem Johansen is held in throughout the music world.
I have enough miles on the clock to have seen the legendary Old Grey Whistle Test performance by The New York Dolls in 1973 when it originally aired. I was 13 years old at the time and it scared and excited me in equal measure. I followed Johansen into his post-Dolls career, particularly his first three solo albums. The second of those, 1979's 'In Style', is my favourite. It's a Mick Ronson co-production, an unashamedly commercial record, a little of its time perhaps, but chock-full of big hooks and catchy choruses. Sending you all my best David.
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