The New York Dolls: Too Much Too Soon by Nina Antonia
Omnibus Press 2003
Most bands wear their influences fairly openly but very few are able to surpass those reference points. The New York Dolls were a band who took pieces of those which came before and improved upon them, becoming the greatest pure rock n' roll band of all time, in the process. Unfortunately, the gold they mined was tied to the biggest stockpile of dynamite the world had ever known and, therefore, too volatile to last. Too Much Too Soon details the band's story--it's one that winds up in the gutter, literally, more times than you'd imagine, even when considering the Dolls' already legendary reputation for depravity.
Too Much Too Soon does well in giving you a fairly comprehensive look at New York Dolls history. You're not only taken on a trip up to and beyond the band's Red Patent Leather-era breakdown but you also get a glimpse of where each band member was at prior to the band being formed. Between those two points lies a story that is drama-filled bedlam, all the way. Particularly compelling subjects touched upon are the mysterious circumstances surrounding original drummer Billy Murcia's death, as well as an apparent record industry conspiracy to derail the New York Dolls. Through and through, it's all fascinating stuff.
This book benefits a great deal from the style in which it is written, leaning heavily on direct quotes from the Dolls themselves and many others who were key figures in their far too brief but glorious journey. That said, the actual written passages suffer just a bit due to overdone word painting on the part of the book's author, Nina Antonia. It's not a huge problem but the story of the New York Dolls isn't one which needs a great amount of embellished word play to support it.
All told, Too Much Too Soon is a worthy read. New fans of the New York Dolls will find just about all the information they'd ever need and diehards might even pick up a new thing or two. These men travelled a very hard road together as well as apart and, for rockers everywhere, it's a very important story to know, if only to learn which turns not to take as a band.
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