New York Dolls  is the 1973 debut studio album by the American hard rock band New York Dolls.  By the time the album was recorded, the band had developed a following by playing regularly in lower Manhattan after forming in 1971.  However, they were unappealing to record companies because of their onstage cross-dressing and vulgarity, while most record producers were reluctant to work with them.  New York Dolls was released by Mercury on July 27, 1973, to widespread critical acclaim but sold poorly and polarized listeners.  The band proved difficult to market outside their native New York and developed a reputation for rock-star excesses while touring the United States in support of the album.  Despite its commercial failure, New York Dolls was an influential precursor to the 1970s punk rock movement and has since been named in various publications as one of the best debut records in rock music and one of the greatest albums of all time.  (More from Wikipedia)