Richard Lloyd, whose fluid, fiery guitar playing was an essential part of the influential 1970s New York band Television, died Saturday at his home in Chattanooga, Tennessee, according to the New York Times. The cause of death was bile duct cancer; he was 75 years old.
Although commonly associated with the punk rock movement of the time, Television’s sound was anything but punk, driven by Lloyd and frontman Tom Verlaine’s complex, virtuoso solos, unusual song structures, and Verlaine’s understated, deadpan vocals. The band’s classic 1977 album, “Marquee Moon,” is a defining document of the era, including oft-covered songs like “See No Evil” and the nearly 11-minute title track, and was a vast influence on future alt-rockers like REM and Sonic Youth.
Yet the TV era was brief, lasting only two albums before the group broke up in 1978 and Verlaine and Lloyd pursued solo careers, although the group reformed in 1992 and regrouped several times over the years.
While Verlaine, who died in 2023, is commonly recognized as the group’s leader and author, Lloyd’s contributions have always been underappreciated. The two men’s styles were complementary and similar in many ways, but generally speaking, Lloyd brought the fire and Verlaine the finesse. While his mental health and substance abuse issues undoubtedly blighted his career, in addition to his flamboyant work with television, Lloyd released nine solo albums and contributed notable work to Matthew Sweet’s classic 1991 album, “Girlfriend,” which also featured CBGB-era guitar master Robert Quine.
Ironically, Television, formed in 1973, was the band behind the Lower Manhattan club CBGB, which proved to be the key incubator of punk rock. According to legend, Verlaine and Lloyd were walking past the venue, saw owner Hilly Kristal outside and asked what kind of music the venue featured. When “Country, Bluegrass and Blues” was announced, hence the club’s title, the two men responded that their band played something like that (it didn’t).
Still, the band got a booking, other bands like the Ramones, Blondie, and Talking Heads quickly followed suit, and by 1975 CBGB was home to a scene and sound that would eventually revolutionize rock music.
Lloyd was born Richard John Alt on October 25, 1951, in Pittsburgh and moved to New York with his mother shortly thereafter. He grew up in Greenwich Village, took up guitar at a young age, and attended concerts at the legendary Fillmore East as a teenager; his mental health and substance abuse issues also began around this time. He attended the prestigious Stuyvesant High School in New York, but dropped out before graduating.
After living briefly in Boston and Los Angeles, he returned to New York and turned his attention to the emerging scene around the precursors of punk, the New York Dolls. Verlaine and his longtime friend Richard Hell had formed a band called the Neon Boys with drummer Billy Ficca and, after being introduced to Lloyd through Terry Ork (who would later release Television’s first single, “Little Johnny Jewel” on his self-proclaimed independent label), brought him into the group. Hell left in 1975 and was replaced by Blondie bassist Fred Smith, greatly increasing the band’s instrumental prowess.
Things progressed quickly from there – David Bowie called Television “the most original band I’ve seen in New York” – and the group signed with Elektra Records in 1976 and released “Marquee Moon” in February 1977. National sales were unimpressive, but the band and scene captured the imagination of the influential British rock press, and Television actually recorded three hit singles, successful tours and two albums among the top 10 in the UK.
However, the success was short-lived, as the band – marred by Lloyd’s debilitating heroin addiction – broke up shortly after the release of their second album, ‘Adventure’. Despite this, “Live at the Old Waldorf,” recorded in San Francisco just weeks before the group disbanded, finds them at the height of their powers.
Lloyd regrouped the following year and released his first solo album, “Alchemy,” and played on albums by John Doe of X as well as Sweet. In 1992, at the height of their influence on the alternative rock era, Television reformed, released a self-titled album and toured. They reunited for tours several times over the next few years, although usually without Lloyd, whose relationship with Verlaine continued to be strained.
Yet there is no doubt that Television and Lloyd have long left their mark on the history of rock music.
Gn entert
