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Cause I Sez So is clearly David Johansen's album, and it's a great showcase for one of the great rock singers of his generation. But is it the New York Dolls? Well, that's what it says on the front cover, and if the sound is different, the "Whatsit to You?" spirit of this set is as keen as ever, and that counts for a lot with these guys.
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With a dual guitar attack that's resolutely old-school but lyrics that often take on contemporary subject matter, Sez So has heart, soul, and swagger to spare.
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No such luck on 'Cause I Sez So, an album that, despite a few bright spots, is too flimsy and forgettable to honor the Dolls' legacy.
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Even if the strut is more tentative and the recollections come with a twinge of regret, Cause I Sez So is certainly one for the ages.
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The reconstituted New York Dolls stack up awfully well against the original Seventies band, whose glam rock inspired thousands of acts.
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Sez So doesn't particularly benefit from the brighter light. It's all fun and harmless garage blooze--the bottom-heavy slow-burn 'My World' is a standout--but it's ultimately as trifling as their '73 debut was essential.
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It’s just solid, classic Dolls, with all the swagger, muscle, righteous kitsch, and ballsy defiance you expect, plus some new twists.
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Long shots this winning are rare, but 'Cause I Sez So pays off in spades.
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Now at ease with their legacy, the New York Dolls have allowed themselves to break free from the stifling constraints of their name. Even if the music’s a bit different, the spirit’s still there.
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'Cause I Sez So is true to the album's title--cocky, purposefully cretinous and rude as hell.
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’Cause I Sez So isn’t on the same plane as the Dolls’ early work--referenced directly by a curious, slowed-down reggae lope through their self-titled debut’s 'Trash'--but it’s no embarrassment, either.
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The unlikely resurrection of the New York Dolls is solidified by this second recent album, an output that now matches in quantity and mirrors in quality their epic early-'70s sprint.
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Aside from a couple of visceral rockers like the title track and Better Than You, Cause is dominated by mid-tempo blues jams.
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MojoTheir second with this new line up comes up trumps again. [Jun 2009, p.104]
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Alternative PressFor anyone familiar with these progenitors of glam punk, 'Cause I Sez So won't surprise. [Jul 2009, p.130]
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UncutAgainst considerable odds--'Cause I Sez So is a bit of a hoot. [Jun 2009, p.95]
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The fourth Dolls album and second of their second life is the first one that's less than epochal. Not all the tunes are surefire.