Day After Day #247: Born to Lose

Day After Day is an ambitious attempt to write about a song every day in 2024 (starting on Jan. 4).

Born to Lose (1977)

The history of rock and roll is full of tragic figures who died young. While a lot of attention was paid to the "27 Club" of major artists who died at that age, there are plenty of talented but less heralded musicians who went before their time. One of those is Johnny Thunders (born John Genzale), who rose to fame in the early '70s as a member of the New York Dolls before forging a solo career.

The Dolls were a huge influence on punk rock, both in sound and attitude, even as they pushed the envelope by cross dressing and wearing makeup. Thunders, originally recruited as a bassist, switched to guitar and played on the band's first two albums before leaving the group in 1975. Thunders then formed The Heartbreakers with Dolls drummer Jerry Nolan and former Television bassist Richard Hell; guitarist Walter Lure joined them soon afterward. Thunders and Hell clashed and Hell left to form Richard Hell and the Voidoids, and was replaced by Billy Rath. 

The Heartbreakers (not to be confused with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, who began playing in 1976) became popular in New York City, headlining shows at now-iconic venues like CBGB and Max's Kansas City. The band played '50s-inspired punk rock and moved away from the glam look of the Dolls by getting their hair cut short and wearing '50s-style suits. The band also had a heroin problem, with Thunders, Nolan and Lure all becoming addicts. 

The Heartbreakers were on the ground for the U.K.'s early punk scene, opening for the Sex Pistols. They built a following in London even though most of the shows on tour got canceled. While in London, they recorded their first album, L.A.M.F. Thunders said the title came from New York gang graffiti; gangs would add "L.A.M.F.," or "like a mother fucker" after writing their gang name. Although the album was criticized for having a muddy mix, the Heartbreakers played with a ragged fury. They were proud scumbags, singing about drugs, sex and living in the gutter.

In addition to a searing cover of Dee Dee Ramone's ode to heroin, "Chinese Rocks," the album featured a mission statement of sorts in "Born to Lose." 

"That's the way it goes/This city is so cold/And I'm, I'm so slow/That's why I know/I said hit it!/Born to lose/Born to lose/Born to lose/Baby, I'm born to lose/Nothing to do/Nothing to say/Only one thing that I want/It's the only way."

The band was unhappy with the mixing on the album, so much so that Nolan quit over it. A cleaned-up version was released in 1994, highlighting the fuzz and crunch of Thunders' and Lure's guitars.

"Living in the jungle/It ain't so hard/But living in the city/It will eat out, eat out your heart/I said hit it!/Born to lose, I said hit it!/Born to lose, I said hit it!/Born to lose, oh/Baby, I'm born to lose."

After Nolan left, the band recruited Paul Cook of the Sex Pistols to play drums on a tour of the U.K., but later asked Nolan to return. He finished the tour and then left again to start a new band. They did another tour with Terry Chimes (the Clash) on drums. But then their label, Track Records, went bankrupt. Without a recording contract, Thunders went solo and the band split up in early 1978. 

The band played some farewell shows in New York and recorded a live album, Live at Max's Kansas City '79. Nolan returned to the band in March 1979 and they played in New York throughout '79 and '80. The Heartbreakers played a reunion tour of Europe in 1984; Rath left after the tour and was replaced by Tony Coiro. Thunders and Nolan continued their solo careers, and Lure formed his own band, the Waldos. The last Heartbreakers show was in November 1990 in New York City, with both Thunders and Nolan in poor health.

Thunders died in April 1991 at age 38, his body found in a New Orleans hotel room. Nolan died in 1992 after suffering a stroke while in the hospital, where he was being treated for meningitis and pneumonia. He had been diagnosed with HIV several years earlier. Lure worked as a stockbroker on Wall Street while also playing with the Waldos. He died from complications related to liver and lung cancer in 2020 at the age of 71. Rath left the music scene after quitting the Heartbreakers and eventually became a substance use disorder counselor. He died in 2014 at the age of 66.

Even though they only released on studio album, the Heartbreakers are one of the most influential early punk bands. They were born to lose, but they left behind a small but killer set of songs.