Why it matters: Johansen was the frontman of the New York Dolls, which rose to prominence ... loud animal prints and women's clothing. The backstory: Last month, his family revealed that he ...

loud animal prints and women's clothing. The New York Dolls perform at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York on Oct. 31, 1973. At right is lead singer David Johansen, with guitarist Sylvain Sylvain.

Not because Johansen — who died Feb. 28 at the age of 75 — was one of those folksingers associated with the neighborhood, but because his first major band, the New York Dolls, made its name ...