Group Members:
Similar Artists:
R.E.M.,
The Heartbreakers,
Wire,
Talking Heads,
Matthew Sweet,
Suicide,
The Ramones,
Blondie,
Peter Laughner,
Patti Smith,
XTC,
Sonic Youth,
The Soft Boys,
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Can
Influenced By:
Followers:
The Head Set,
The Westside Daredevils,
Third Harmonic Distortion ,
The Cuts,
The Loft,
Josef K,
The Comsat Angels,
U2,
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Matthew Sweet,
Sonic Youth,
The Feelies,
Lawrence Hayward ,
The Super Friendz,
This Perfect Day,
Wake Ooloo ,
J Mascis,
Ira Kaplan,
Jeff Buckley,
Soda Stereo,
Schramms,
The Family Cat,
The Wild Flowers ,
The Weather Prophets,
Scientists,
Lee Ranaldo,
Das Damen,
Matthew Parker ,
Batteries ,
Dubious Ranger,
Paul Myers ,
Red Monroe ,
Heavens,
City-State ,
The Walkup,
The Girls,
Lansing-Dreiden,
The Kill Pill ,
Echoboy,
Vidi Vitties,
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead,
Weird Summer,
East River Pipe,
Cobra Verde,
Felt,
Luna,
Baustelle,
Water School,
Radio 4,
The Blackouts,
The Killers,
The Ponys,
Back in Spades ,
The Witnesses,
Interpol,
Starlite Desperation,
Life Without Buildings,
Nisi Period ,
Gang of Four,
The Rapture,
Moving Units,
The Strokes
Formal Connection With:
- Formed: 1973, New York, NY
- Disbanded: 1978
- Genres: Rock
- Representative Albums: "Marquee Moon," "Adventure," "The Blow-Up"
- Representative Songs: "See No Evil," "Marquee Moon," "Venus"
Biography
Television were one of the most creative bands to emerge from New York's punk scene of the mid-'70s, creating an influential new guitar vocabulary. While guitarists Tom Verlaine and Richard Lloyd liked to jam, they didn't follow the accepted rock structures for improvisation -- they removed the blues while retaining the raw energy of garage rock, adding complex, lyrical solo lines that recalled both jazz and rock. With its angular rhythms and fluid leads, Television's music always went in unconventional directions, laying the groundwork for many of the guitar-based post-punk pop groups of the late '70s and '80s.In the early '70s, Television began as the Neon Boys, a group featuring guitarist/vocalist Tom Verlaine, drummer Billy Ficca, and bassist Richard Hell. At the end of 1973, the group reunited under the name Television, adding rhythm guitarist Richard Lloyd. The following year, the band made its live debut at New York's Townhouse theater and began to build up an underground following. Soon, their fan base was large enough that Verlaine was able to persuade CBGB's to begin featuring live bands on a regular basis; the club would become an important venue for punk and new wave bands. That year, Verlaine played guitar on Patti Smith's first single, "Hey Joe"/"Piss Factory," as well as wrote a book of poetry with the singer.
Television recorded a demo tape for Island Records with Brian Eno in 1975, yet the label decided not to sign the band. Hell left the band after the recording of the demo tape, forming the Heartbreakers with former New York Dolls guitarist Johnny Thunders; the following year, he began a solo career supported by the Voidoids, releasing a debut album, Blank Generation, in 1977. Hell was replaced by ex-Blondie bassist Fred Smith and Television recorded "Little Johnny Jewel," releasing it on their own Ork record label. "Little Johnny Jewel" became an underground hit, attracting the attention of major record labels. In 1976, the band released a British EP on Stiff Records, which expanded their reputation. They signed with Elektra Records and began recording their debut album.
Marquee Moon, the group's first album, was released in early 1977 to great critical acclaim, yet it failed to attract a wide audience in America; in the U.K., it reached number 28 on the charts, launching the Top 40 single "Prove It." Television supported Blondie on the group's 1977 tour, but the shows didn't increase the group's following significantly.
Television released their second album, Adventure, in the spring of 1978. While its American sales were better than those of Marquee Moon, the record didn't make the charts; in Britain, it became a Top Ten hit. Months later, the group suddenly broke up, largely due to tensions between the two guitarists. Smith rejoined Blondie, while Verlaine and Lloyd both pursued solo careers; Lloyd also played on John Doe's first solo album, as well as joined Matthew Sweet's supporting band with the 1991 album Girlfriend.
Nearly 14 years after their breakup, Television re-formed in late 1991, recording a new album for Capitol Records. The reunited band began its comeback with a performance at England's Glastonbury summer festival in 1992, releasing Television a couple months later. The album received good reviews, as did the tour that followed, yet the reunion was short-lived -- the group disbanded again in early 1993. In 2001, Television again reunited for a handful of shows in the U.K., as well as an appearance at the Noise Pop Festival in Chicago. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
