Television

phone allows xposts...

tbh i remember it less for the performance than for the pigeon who shat on me afterward. The club was situated next to a tall viaduct, & people parked underneath (illegally, as it turned out -- that's nominally what did the club in, lack of legal parking, though what really did it in was NIMBY on the part of the good people of Old Roslyn). usually the pigeons would be kind enough only to use the cars for target practice, but this one was particularly ornery. The performance was great, of course. I'm an old fogy, though -- in 1978, the bar was just set higher. Lots of performances were great. I prolly just go to the wrong shows, now, i dunno...

i'm even jealous of your pigeon story. srsly, if i was granted one time machine trip it might be to go see television around that time.

just posted this - an imaginary third 70s television album made up of unreleased live tunes 1975-78 http://doomandgloomfromthetomb.tumblr.com/post/5667774473/kingdom-come-the-lost-television-album-dont-get

all over that thanks!!

damn tyler awesome

thaking u

no problem. it is pretty good!

:):):):):)

got around to getting Portland '78 off yr blog and jesus fucking christ

weirdness!
Metallica's Lars Ulrich On His Cult Heroes
To me, Television’s first record still sounds as fresh today and as all-round awesome as it did in 1977. I grew up in Copenhagen, and pretty much I got everything I knew about music came from this tiny record store there. There weren’t any Danish music periodicals, so it was all word of mouth in this place, and I remember this guy called Tim who put me onto all kind of things – including 'Marquee Moon'.

Television played Copenhagen around the time it came in, and I saw them in this tiny venue. The Pistols had played in Copenhagen in June or July of 77, the Ramones played as well. ACDC came down too, and played in early September. So in the span of about three months the Pistols, Ramones, ACDC and Television had all played in my home town as headline acts. Excellent! Those concerts were actually what kept me alive at that time.

With Television, I got the sense that here was a real band who were really connecting with each other. Obviously Tom Verlaine was the mainman, but some of the songs on that first album, like 'Friction', are just so intricate. That one's actually like this real hard rock track too. Don’t tell anyone this but 'Marquee Moon' is one of my secret tracks for Metallica to play. I'm gonna try and sneak that one in there without anyone noticing!

"i rememberuuuh how the darkness duhbuhlledyeaah"

Ah recalluh.....lightnin struck itselffffffah

the lightningggggah rode itself!

I'm imagining Lars' double-bass-drums bit from "One" ruining the post-solo breakdown.

who's actually had the guts to cover marquee moon? i've heard that kronos quartet version, but can't think of others.

One could argue that Richard & Linda Thompson covered it before it was recorded...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXB4q-V14TI
hee hee

this television cover band from NC actually sound pretty rad:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cIwVhL183A

Kronos Quartet covered Marquee Moon on an Elektra anniversary comp. Not on YouTube...

I remember liking it. Probably have the tape somewhere in the attic

I do have the cassette version that the previous owner transferred onto CD.

It's not all that, really.

Ha, just now seeing that tyler already mentioned it. Ah well, it's here: http://somegirlinspace.blogspot.com/2007/04/marquee-moon.html.

i heard a mashup of the original television "marquee moon" with the kronos quartet version. which was interesting. didn't quite work.

Ah recalluh.....lightnin struck itselffffffah

Been enjoying the lost third TV album!

oh cool, yeah there's some good stuff on there. amazing that there hasn't been some sort of television box set ... or at least a rarities comp.

tyler, the "lost" "third" "album" is aceee, thankyou very much.

^ seconded, well done Tyler

The actual third album is quite excellent – my introduction to the boys.

Thanks as usual Tyler

apparently there's a new television track on some japanese benefit LP? can't really find too much info, but it's without lloyd. so strange.

http://www.headheritage.co.uk/headtohead/unsung/topic/62553/

kind of a bizarre tracklist!
Vinyl Japan/Eikoku Ongaku
” OMOIYARI FOR JAPAN " international music rescue vol.1
vinyl japan label 英国音楽 2CD set 2100 ( inc: VAT )

DISC1:
1.AUTAMATA / OUT OF THIS ( from the album " MY SANCTUARY " )
2.BOZ BOORER / TOKYO CALLING ( special recording for this charity album " )
3.DAGMAR KRAUSE / MESSAGES ( previously unreleased song )
4.DEAF SCHOOL / TAXI ( live version )
5.THE DIVINE COMEDY / CERTAINTY OF CHANCE ( previously unreleased version )
6.ELLIOTT MURPHY AND THE NORMANDY ALL STAR BAND FEATURING OLIVIER DURAND
/COUNTERCLOCKWISE ( from the album " ELLIOT MURPHY " )
7.FRIENDS / THIS IS THE START (TRUMPET MIX)( unreleased different version )
8.THE HEP CHAPS / JUST DUG SPUDS ( from album " CLOSE YOUR EYES " )
9.HONEY BANE / THIS AIN'T REALITY ( from the album
" ACCEPTANCE OF EXISTENCE "
10.JEREMY GLUCK & KATE McEWAN / WHISPER(MARTY THAU MIX)
11.JIMMY RIP & THE TRIP / SLOW SOUTHERN WAYS ( unreleased version )
12.THE LOTUS EATERS / IF YOU LEAVE ME NOW ( from the album " DIFFERENCE " )
13.MENACE / I DON'T CARE ( from the album " TOO MANY PUNKS ARE DEAD " )
14.THE MONOCHROME SET / EINE SYMPHONIE DES GRAUENS( unreleased live version )
15.PAT FISH / ALL THE SAINTS ( unreleased song )
DISC2:
1.RICHARD HELL / TIME ( from the album " DESTINY STREET REPAIRED " )
2.RICHARD LLOYD / GLURP ( from the album " THE RADIANT MONKEY " )
3.TELEVISION / MISTAKES ( previously unreleased )
4.TOM VERLAINE / LEAVES ( special new recording for this charity album )
5.PHIL WILSON / I OWN IT ( previously unreleased demo version )
6.THE POOH STICKS / JUST ANOTHER MINUTE ( from the album " MULTIPLE ORGASM" )
7.SECRET AFFAIR / LAND OF HOPE ( from the album " THE SINGLE COLLECTION " )
8.SNIFF'N' THE TEARS / PRAY ( from new album " DOWNSTREAM " )
9.STRANGEFRUIT / THE BELL ( previously unreleased song )
10. TENDER TRAP / SUDDENLY ( from the album " DANSETTE DANSETTE " )
11.TREE / ALRIGHT ( special new recording for this album )
12.THE UNDERTONES / THRILL ME ( from the album " GET WHAT YOU NEED " )
13 VANESSA CONTENAY-QUINONES / SHOW ME HOW ( special new recording )
14.WOODENBOX WITH A FISTFUL OF FIVERS / TWISTED MILE ( unreleased version )
15.THE ZOMBIES / SHE'S NOT THERE ( from the live album " LIVE AT THE BLOOMSBURY THEATRE, LONDON " )

There was a great 80s jangle band from Mississippi called The Windbreakers that did a pretty good job covering Glory. I can't find any links to it on youtube but you can hear 30 seconds of it here:

http://www.amazon.com/Windbreakers/e/B000ARA13E/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1306506196&sr=8-1

The Windbreakers were okay, but I think they had the worst band name ever.

was actually surprised this didn't already exist, but i guess it's coming out next week:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41C4w8sJiXL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg

ooo

looks to be pretty long! at least long compared to some of these 33 1/3 books. guess you've gotta have at least 100 pages to discuss verlaine's solo on the title track.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rh9fHZ17HWE&feature=player_embedded
new track! ummm underwhelming, but sort of cool.

So I caught a bit of a pretty rad broadcast on WNYU yesterday -- they had a guest who seemed to have written a book about Television or maybe just the CBGB scene or something, but I didn't catch who he was. Anyway, the guy played this version of Friction from some demos recorded by Eno while Hell was still in the band, so fucking awesome. Found it here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjEFuUNc3Uc

Whole broadcast is here:
http://wnyu.org/2011-09-29_newafternoonshow

BrYan Eno, ha.

Marquee Moon with the guitar lick on the other beat:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YS27RAXhBWQ

http://www.thedailyswarm.com/headlines/televisions-richard-lloyd-tells-his-side-story-comment-section/

Ha. Verlaine is kind of my least favorite thing about Television, although I'm kind of shocked at how bitter Lloyd is after all these years.

I saw Television play maybe a decade ago, and they were pretty good. But Lloyd broke a guitar string a couple of minutes into "Marquee Moon." Surprisingly, the band did not stop playing while Lloyd - patiently, almost slowly, definitely not smiling - crouched at the side of the stage and changed the string. The rest of the band sort of ambled through the song til Lloyd joined in again at the very end. Wasn't terrible, but it was strange!

was that the Metro show -- odd, I don't remember that at all! I remember the whole show being fantastic tho, what a high!

It was the Metro show, yeah. It was totally great, wasn't it? I want to say it ended with "Prove It" and feature some "Nuggets" cover. "MM" didn't sound bad minus Lloyd, oddly. I just thought it odd how he handled it, and that he had neither a second guitar nor a roadie to change the string for him.

Oh yeah, they covered "Psychotic Reaction."

Josh, yeah that show was super duper good. couldn't believe I was standing there watching Television! the thing that struck me the most was Billy Ficca's drumming -- what a fantastic drummer! like, I always thought of Television as a guitar band, and never really concentrated on the rhythm section, but watching Ficca live really noticed how solid he is

I also want to say that show was the same night Joey Ramone died. or was it John Fahey? they both passed in quick succession. I remember driving home and learning that one of them had died. wiki tells me it would have been feb or april 2001

Lloyd spilling all this bile after leaving the band he was in for 30+ years is just kind of uncomfortable and unnecessary -- like even if every word he says is true, it's like dude, you hung in there that long by choice, you have noone to blame but yourself, stop patting yourself on the back for being so 'loyal' to the guys you're now trashing all over the internet.