There is something about this guy's way of playing the guitar that reaches me on a higher level. I can't explain how great it is to listen to a band featuring a guitarist who can so masterfully transcend the cliches of traditional, archetypal rock guitar, and enter territory that is truly his. And only his. There are many people who say that Tom Verlaine is to the guitar what John Coltrane was to the saxaphone. I agree. Not only are their works very spiritual and intensely cerebral in nature, they are also very much alike in tone and overall character. You can notice a certain atonality in Verlaine's guitar that you can also hear in Coltrane's saxaphone. Unlike the shallow vapidry of a lot of the guitar work heard over the past 30 years - particularly in "rock" music - Verlaine's chords exude a very wide range of emotions, ranging from ecstatic to melancholy, to the absolute sublime, always sounding completely genuine, unique and filled with feeling. I was listening to Television's Adventure album today. While the songs on here are not as solid as those found on the debut, and the production is a bit too clean, it features some of Verlaine's most beautiful guitar work; my favorite being on tracks like 'The Fire,' 'The Dream's Dream,' and the title-track. Television's latest, self-titled album from the early 90's, as well as Tom Verlaine's own solo work, is also filled with the idiosyncratic yet memorable chords that he is so known for on Marquee Moon and Adventure. I think everyone needs to listen to Television's Marquee Moon at least once. It's one of the most important albums of the late 70's New York punk and "new wave" scene, if not one of the most important albums in music history. If I was to describe the band's sound, I would say it's music played with a Patti Smith-like, New York punk delivery, backed with the proficiency of a classic band from the late 60's. In a way, they make me think of what Moby Grape might sound like if they were punk. Then again, Television was greatly influenced by the music of the late 60's, including Moby Grape. Do yourself a favor and check out this band if you haven't already.
I totally agree with you, Matt. Tom Verlaine is an amazing guitarist, and Television is an amazing band. That was a great summary you wrote about their work, although I have only heard Marquee Moon so far. Your writing describing them is articulate, intelligent, and serves as an excellent introduction to those who may not know about their music. Anyway, I have only gotten into Television recently - I got their debut back in the beginning of May - but I love them so far. And like you, I am particularly fond of Verlaine's guitar work. I would already call him one of my favorite guitarists. I would never have made the connection between Verlaine and John Coltrane myself, but as you mention it, I definitely see the resemblance. The two musicians in question both sound very similar in their tones, as you observed, and I love the soloing coming from both of them. I've actually thought to myself several times while listening to the debut that Verlaine sounded like a jazz guitarist at times. The solo on the title track of Marquee Moon (which is one of my favorite songs that I've ever heard) has such a fluid spontaneity to it, which sounds highly professional, but not pretentious or ponderous in the least. His solos always seem to have an underlying theme or purpose to them, unlike the solos of a group like the Grateful Dead, which are fairly boring, aimless, and unengaging. As I say this, I was listening to Miles Davis' Kind of Blue a couple days ago, and reading the liner notes to it, comparing the improvisation of the jazz musician to a form of Japanese painting, and I feel an analogy to Verlaine as well, except that his guitar improvisations are more in the context of rock and roll. I also have a huge amount of respect for Richard Lloyd as a guitarist, or more importantly, the bizarre guitar interplay between Lloyd and Verlaine. While Lloyd is more traditional in his solos than Verlaine is, I still like them very much, particularly on 'See No Evil' and 'Elevation'. To me, Lloyd's solos were more oriented towards rock and roll, with a fiery, incendiary edge to them, while Verlaine's were much more beautiful and reserved. I think that the dual rhythm parts of Lloyd and Verlaine are the most incredible aspects of this album. They are so unique and original, yet they maintain a raw, punk-like energy, which in turn makes the album very accessible and untedious. Just listen to the harmonics and the off-kilter strumming of 'Prove It'...what other groups can you think of that sound quite like that? And when I ask that, I certainly don't mean other punk groups only. I literally can't think of any bands of any genre that sound like Television. The melodies and grooves displayed on this album are nothing less than hypnotizing and amazing. I remember a while back, when the old forums were still up, I replied to a thread that you made about Marquee Moon asking whether Television was similar to the Talking Heads, and now, I do find a similarity between these two groups. Although Television relied more on guitars and melody and the Talking Heads placed a larger emphasis on rhythm, both of them absolutely transcended punk/new-wave music. I find it hard to believe that these two groups both played alongside Blondie, as well as the Ramones, because what Television and the Heads did with punk was so much more artistic and intellectually inclined (but once again, neither of them were ever pretentious). I just love the energy of these two groups. Listening to either of them never fails to lift my spirits and/or put a smile on my face. They are truly incredible.
any links to some streaming tracks featuring him? I don't believe I've ever listened to the band, but I'm intrigued.
Just download that whole debut, if you can. Or more preferably, these songs: 'See No Evil' 'Venus' 'Friction' 'Marquee Moon' 'Elevation' 'Prove It' There are also 'Guiding Light' and 'Torn Curtain', but I don't like those two nearly as much as the ones I just listed.
thanks but from where? I download a lot of live material from archive.org but I doubt this band is available from there. Not necesarily the place to go for studio material, which is what I assume this album is.
Hi dhs, Marquee Moon has been on mid price for years so you'll not struggle picking the CD up on online mailorder or in any decent record store very cheaply.
I remember my dad gave me his vinyl copy of Marquee Moon and told me not to listen to it too much because he didn't want it to get worn out, and I must have listened to it at least 30 times before I got the CD. But I later gave him a copy of it on CD, so it's fair. Marquee Moon is one of, not only my favorite albums but one of my absolute favorite albums.
Thanks for your input, Chris. 'Prove It' is my favorite track on the album, along with the title-track. Yes, the tonal quality of Verlaine's guitar on this particular track is what I like so much about it. The solo on here is also one of Verlaine's best. Also, I don't care much for 'Torn Curtain' myself, but I love the guitar melody the end of 'Guiding Light.'
It's sad that Television didn't last long enough to record any more albums. I've seen recent releases of MARQUEE MOON and ADVENTURE that contain previously unreleased material, but it's nothing to die for. Verlaine himself has released a number of solo albums, most of which I haven't heard. If any of you know of one solo effort that approximates his great work with Television, I'd appreciate it.......
