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Television (the band)


Eric

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About 25 years late, but I am really getting into Marquee Moon. I do hear some guitar lines that come straight outta the early Talking Heads. Wish I was a guitarist so I could describe in more detail, but I am wondering - does anyone else hear any similarity - and if so, who influenced who? I am guessing the Heads picked it up from Television ...

Eric

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You beat me to it, Eric. I've long wanted to start a Television thread, and now's a great time for one, as Rhino recently re-issued both MARQUEE MOON and ADVENTURE, as well as releasing a concert CD, LIVE AT THE OLD WALDORF, as part of their Handmade series. Lots of good talk about Television in Clifton Heylin's FROM THE VELVETS TO THE VOIDOIDS; they were strongly influenced by Ayler and late Coltrane, among others. Certainly I hear much free jazz influence in Lloyd & Verlaine's guitar lines.

I'm disappointed by how little the Rhino re-issues add--there is some prime Television sitting in the vaults, much of it with Richard Hell on bass. If you can find the bootleg DOUBLE EXPOSURE, it makes for a worthy addition to the public canon of the band.

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Thanks Ghost - I will look for that book and boot. I can definitely hear the late Trane influence. And ... did I read in the MM liners that Verlaine wanted RVG - yes that RVG - to be his engineer???

I did snag the Rhino Hommade CD. I also picked up the Richard Lloyd and Tom Verlaine solo CDs that Collectors Choice put out not too long ago. I knew Lloyd from a prior Matthew Sweet obsession and really like his solo CD.

This is very good and unique stuff. I actually think I had the MM lp in college but never took the time to really get into it and sold it back. Musically, these guys hardly sound like punks, but not sure where else I would place them, although it hardly matters ...

Eric

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The CBGB's scene of the mid 70's saw an attitude that went forth and multiplied,bands fed into one another...I'd hazard a guess that Television in it's early Richard Hell incarnation laid the path for the Heads but could be wrong...I wasn't there.Ultimately David Byrne took the ball and ran with it into the glorious music that is Fear Of Music and Remain In Light,but the influence of Eno cannot be underestimated on these sessions.However Marquee Moon and Adventure(plus the ROIR bootleg tape)are seminal works.The Tom Verlaine sets that followed were good but failed to capture that "sound of surprise"(and lest we forget ,it was the dreaded 80's).Despite being British(Welsh in fact)I always found the US new wave scene to be far more interesting and imaginative than the UK scene,Televison,Heads,Patti Smith,Dolls/Johnny Thunders etc. influence can still be heard today and some of the lines that Verlaine and Lloyd spun on those records no doubt led me back to the world of Coltrane and Ayler whereas Never Mind The Bollocks just sounded like rehashed Black Sabbath riffs played by brats.I never heard the "comeback" Televison album and sadly missed them live,but the debut album is surely one to pack for a desert island for any fan of great guitar music...I see no evil....

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Just saw them at the Fillmore a month or so ago. They are still great. Sound as good as they must have 25 years ago. For an encore they did "Psychotic Reaction" - classic!

I missed them the first time around, but got hooked on them in the 80's. Picked up all the Verlaine solos and the first couple of Lloyd albums. Lloyd's "Alchemy" is a really great pop album, BTW. I HIGHLY recommend the 'comeback' album, too.

Haven't picked up the Handmade album, but will probably order it eventually. There's a Verlaine import collection called "The Miller's Tale" that looks pretty good for anyone wanting an overview of Television and solo stuff.

Finally - here's a great web site devoted to 'all things' Television: The Wonder

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Get THE BLOW-UP. Bootleg sound quality, but the version of "Little Johnny Jewel" finally lays bare just how deeply affected this band was by Coltrane.

And Billy Ficaa is one of the best rawk drummers I've ever heard. Television was a great guitar band, but they would have been nothing without Ficca. The somewhat lackluster Verlaine solo albums demonstrate as much.

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As to the question of influence... Television was playing gigs in NYC as far back as 1973. And I always heard a strong Television influence on... Dire Straits (!).

My understanding is also that Brian Eno produced some of their early demos. Another Heads connection.

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My strong impression is that the unique chemistry of Television would be impossible without the particular drummer and bassist that they had. Damn me for forgetting the bassist's name (Smith?), but he and Ficca are ESSENTIAL ingredients of the Television sound.

BTW, two of my all time best record deals was, in 1980, finding Adventure as a $2.99 cut-out and MM for $4.99! I still listen to them occasionally with pleasure.

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  • 1 month later...

My brother gave me the MARQUEE MOON Rhino re-issue as an early birthday present last night. Planning to pop it in the player at work later on today, but I was skimming the liner notes & came across this interesting tidbit:

With the recording deal in place, the next step was to find a producer. Verlaine wanted to work with Rudy Van Gelder, who'd recorded dozens of classic Blue Note jazz records in his small studio in New Jersey. This was perhaps too out of left field for even a CBGB band...

Richard Lloyd also provides an anecdote about auditioning for Atlantic Records. As he went to use the bathroom, he overheard Ahmet Ertegun say to Jerry Wexler, "Jerry, I cannot sign this band; this is not earth music." Lloyd says he thought, Wow, what a compliment!

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  • 10 years later...

Television fans--check out the 33 1/3 book on Marquee Moon:

http://www.amazon.com/Televisions-Marquee-Moon-Bryan-Waterman/dp/1441186050/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1386909595&sr=1-1&keywords=33+1%2F3+marquee+moon

Definitely worth reading. And I never did get around to picking up At The Old Waldorf... :(

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Saw them live a month ago in the Sage in Newcastle, UK (no Lloyd, not sure of the name of the second very capable guitar player) really enjoyed it particularly Verlaine's guitar work. Agreed that the bass and drums add to the uniqueness.

Played nearly all of Marquee Moon which is one of those albums where every track is near perfect.

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Saw them live a month ago in the Sage in Newcastle, UK (no Lloyd, not sure of the name of the second very capable guitar player) really enjoyed it particularly Verlaine's guitar work. Agreed that the bass and drums add to the uniqueness.

Played nearly all of Marquee Moon which is one of those albums where every track is near perfect.

Jimmy Ripp is the 2nd guitar player. Has been a Verlaine 'sidekick' for many years.

A friend saw them at the Roundhouse in London - loved the show AND the venue!

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  • 5 years later...

Love that Television reunion album quite a lot.  Like the OP, I was SUPER late to the party, and only got into Marquee Moon barely 12 years ago.

Actually saw the current configuration of the band live here in DC a couple years ago.  Great show!  Really a unique voice, both literally and figuratively.

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