Gerard Nolan (May 7, 1946 – January 14, 1992) was an American rock drummer, best known for his work with the
New York Dolls
New York Dolls were an American rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground, the MC5, and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved ...
and
The Heartbreakers.
Career

A native of
Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Nolan joined the New York Dolls in the autumn of 1972 to replace
Billy Murcia, who had died of
asphyxiation
Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects all the tissues and organs, some more rapidly than others. There are ...
as a result of a failed attempt to revive him from a drug overdose while on tour in England, early in the band's career. The Dolls got a record deal with
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...
in 1973. Nolan was also a childhood friend of
Kiss
A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...
drummer
Peter Criss, who also auditioned for the Dolls at the same time. He previously played with
Wayne (Jayne) County's "Queen Elizabeth",
Billy Squier's "Kicks" and was the only male member of
Suzi Quatro's Detroit-based band Cradle. Jerry was drumming for the power trio "Shaker", a New York band that frequently opened for the Dolls, when he was recruited to replace Billy. Nolan played on the Dolls' first two albums (''
New York Dolls
New York Dolls were an American rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground, the MC5, and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved ...
'' and ''
Too Much Too Soon'').
After much internal fighting and a short stint under the helm of future
Sex Pistols manager
Malcolm McLaren, Nolan left the Dolls together with
Johnny Thunders in the spring of 1975. The two then placed a call to bassist
Richard Hell, formerly of the
Neon Boys and
Television
Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
, to form The Heartbreakers. Soon,
Walter Lure was brought into the fold and Hell was replaced by
Billy Rath. In 1976, The Heartbreakers were invited to tour with the Sex Pistols on their infamous "Anarchy in the U.K." tour which also included support from
The Clash
The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...
and
The Damned. Soon after the tour, The Heartbreakers took up permanent residence in London and played many shows throughout 1976–1977. Nolan quit the band soon after they released their only studio album, ''
L.A.M.F.'' in October 1977 because he felt the album was poorly mixed. Nolan still continued to play with The Heartbreakers, but as a "hired drummer" until the end of 1977.
In early 1978, Nolan joined The Idols led by
Steve Dior and Barry Jones. The Idols with ex-Chelsea bassist Simon Vitesse recorded four demos in London for
Track Records and then toured America later in the year with Arthur Kane on bass. The Idols also released a single including "You" b/w "The Girl That I Love" in 1978 on
Ork Records. Nolan also filled in on drums for Sid Vicious' ill-fated New York City solo performances in September 1978 along with
Arthur Kane and Steve Dior also backing up Vicious.
Mick Jones from The Clash also joined Vicious' backing band filling in on guitar on the last live date. The live recordings from these shows can be found on ''
Sid Sings''. The Idols continued to play shows up and down the east coast but broke up in 1979, the last line up consisting of Jerry Nolan,
Steve Dior, Barry Jones, Arthur Kane and Walter Lure. Nolan later joined back with Steve Dior and Barry Jones in their next band,
The London Cowboys, in the early 80s which also included
Glen Matlock from The Sex Pistols. Although Nolan did not play drums on The London Cowboys’ two studio albums ''Animal Pleasure'' (1982) and ''Tall in the Saddle'' (1984), he did play drums on their live album ''On Stage'' (1986).
While touring with Johnny Thunders in 1982, Nolan met Charlotte "Lotten" Nedeby, whom he soon married. Nolan took up residence in
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
, off and on, through the 1980s. In Sweden playing drums and singing lead vocals he recorded a solo single with the Teneriffa Cowboys of an unreleased Heartbreakers' song, "Take a Chance With Me" and a new song, "Pretty Baby" released in 1982 on Tandan Records. Other songs recorded with the Teneriffa Cowboys throughout 1982–1983 include
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and de ...
's "Havana Moon" which was released on ''Sword – The Best in Scandinavian Rock'' album in 1985 on Sword/Tandan Records and "Countdown Love" which was released on a posthumous split single with Johnny Thunders in 1997 on Sucksex Records. The other co-singer and guitarist of Teneriffa Cowboys, Michael Thimrén (who also occasionally played with Johnny Thunders from 1983–1988) contributed the songs "Lickin' My Boots" and "Notorious Liar" along with other unreleased songs from the 1982–1983 period. Also in 1983, Nolan recorded a single with the Swedish band Pilsner playing drums and singing lead vocals on "I Refuse (To Live in the U.S.A.)" and "Sleep With You". He was also a member of the short-lived Ugly Americans with fellow ex-Doll
Sylvain Sylvain. Collaboration with Johnny Thunders continued periodically, until Thunders' death in 1991.
Nolan outlived his long-time friend by only a few months. During that period he was working on a recording project with singer/songwriter/guitar Greg Allen and bassist Chicago Vin Earnshaw.
[Nina Antonia. "Johnny Thunders – In Cold Blood". Cherry Red Records. November 1, 2000)] In late 1991, while Nolan was being treated for
bacterial meningitis and
bacterial pneumonia at
St. Vincent's Hospital in New York, he suffered a stroke and went into a coma from which he never recovered. He spent his final weeks on a
life support
Life support comprises the treatments and techniques performed in an emergency in order to support life after the failure of one or more vital organs. Healthcare providers and emergency medical technicians are generally certified to perform bas ...
system and died on January 14, 1992. He was buried at Mount Saint Mary's Cemetery in
Flushing, New York. He had been diagnosed with HIV several years prior to his death.
A biography titled ''Stranded in the Jungle: Jerry Nolan's Wild Ride - A tale of drugs, fashion, the New York Dolls, and Punk Rock'', was released in 2017, from
Hal Leonard Corporation
Hal Leonard LLC (formerly Hal Leonard Corporation) is an American music publishing and distribution company founded in Winona, Minnesota, by Harold "Hal" Edstrom, his brother, Everett "Leonard" Edstrom, and fellow musician Roger Busdicker. Cur ...
's Backbeat imprint. Author
Curt Weiss, was formerly Lewis King, drummer for
Beat Rodeo and the
Rockats.
Discography
New York Dolls
*''
New York Dolls
New York Dolls were an American rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground, the MC5, and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved ...
'' – (1973)
*''
Too Much Too Soon'' – (1974)
*''
Red Patent Leather'' – (1984)
The Heartbreakers
*''
L.A.M.F.'' – (1977)
*''Heartbreaker Live at Max's'' – 1979
*''D.T.K. – Live at the Speakeasy'' – (1982)
The Idols
*"You" / "Girl That I Love" – (1979 – single)
Sid Vicious
*''
Sid Sings'' – (1979)
*''
The Idols with Sid Vicious'' – (1993)
Jerry Nolan (with The Teneriffa Cowboys)
*"Take A Chance With Me" b/w "Pretty Baby" – (1982)
*"Havana Moon" (Chuck Berry) released on "Sword – The Best in Scandinavian Rock" – (1985)
*"Countdown Love" released on posthumous split single with Johnny Thunders – (1997)
Jerry Nolan (with Pilsner)
*"I Refuse b/w "Sleep With You" – (1983)
London Cowboys
*"On Stage" – (1986)
Jerry Nolan and the Profilers
*''Jerry Nolan and the Profilers'' – (1991)
Jerry Nolan Band
*''Live at Great Gildersleeves October 07, 1983''
Released on Retro Records - U.K. (2012)
References
External links
My Life As A Doll– downloadable Village Voice article by Jerry Nolan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nolan, Jerry
New York Dolls members
American punk rock drummers
American male drummers
1946 births
1992 deaths
20th-century American drummers
The Heartbreakers (punk rock band) members
20th-century American male musicians
Musicians from Brooklyn
People from Williamsburg, Brooklyn
American protopunk musicians
Drummers from New York City