Adopting a character is nothing new in showbiz. David Jones played David Bowie and then took on a number of different guises on top of that over the course of his career, like a musical matryoshka. David Johansen would create his own version of Ziggy Stardust — a boisterous, larger than life lounge lizard named Buster.

After the final breakup of The New York Dolls due to drinking, drugs, dissipation, and differences of opinion, David Johansen scored a solo deal and released four albums in the late 70s and early 80s. As with the records by The Dolls, his solo efforts met with critical acclaim — again, especially with the New York critics — and public disdain. Whatever it was audiences were looking for, Johansen didn’t have it.

Around 1982, David began playing shows at a New York club near his neighborhood. Wanting to avoid Dolls fanatics who would yell out for the old songs, he created the antithesis of a Dolls fan, a pompadoured gentleman who dressed in crushed velvet tuxedos and played a mix of jump blues, old-fashioned R&B, and novelty songs. A martini-swilling, over the top, party ringmaster.

He dubbed his creation Buster Poindexter.

He originally started with a small combo backing him up, but as his residency — and the lines outside the club — lengthened, Johansen put together a full orchestra called The Banshees Of Blue, supplemented by The Uptown Horns. As Buster Poindexter’s popularity grew, it led to appearances with the Saturday Night Live house band and a deal with RCA.

One of the songs Johansen chose to record for his first album as Buster was a party anthem titled “Hot Hot Hot,” originally released by Arrow, a singer from Montserrat, in 1982. Arrow’s version was a very minor hit in the UK — and a nonexistent hit in the US — but did gain more attention when it became the theme song for the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. Maybe Johansen heard the song in the dance clubs upon its initial release, or maybe he was just a massive soccer fan. Regardless of how it came to him, “Hot Hot Hot” was the perfect vehicle for his new character.

Released as a single in the summer of 1987, “Hot Hot Hot” peaked at #45 on the US chart but the song had a much greater impact than its chart placing would indicate, showing up in movies, TV shows, and commercials for decades afterwards. Johansen spun his newfound fame into a long-term sideline gig in acting, but he’s probably best known for his turn as The Ghost Of Christmas Past in 1988’s Scrooged with Bill Murray. He retired his alter-ego around the end of 90s, but for those who want to party down, he will always be there.

So let’s go rum-bum-bum-bum… with Buster Poindexter.