on
TopPop television program, 1973 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 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 in 1973. Nolan was also a childhood friend of
Kiss 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 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, 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 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, 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'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. 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 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's Backbeat imprint. Author
Curt Weiss was formerly Lewis King, drummer for
Beat Rodeo and the
Rockats. ==Discography==