May 072007
Hey, hey, hey! Tomorrow morning I am scheduled to conduct an interview for Rock Town Hall with Richard Lloyd, guitar legend from Television… Solo artist… One of two men who most made listening to Matthew Sweet albums essential… Producer and fill-in for Peter Laughner in the reunited Rocket from the Tombs… I’m psyched. I’ve stood at the feet of this man and wept at his solos. Maybe you have too. At this moment, however, I stand at your virtual feet and ask for your input. Send me your killer question for Richard Lloyd, and maybe I’ll be able to use it! Come on, rock nerds! I thank you in advance.
Hot video. Seriously. Simple questions: Will the audience be given the set list before or after the show? Why the songs of Jimi Hendrix – how did they choose which songs to cover (significance and to whom)? Richard Lloyd, …as his music was meant to sound!
In case you were unaware of this, from the Verlaine list:
“After the scheduled show at the Summer stage in New York, Richard (Llloyd)
will
be severing his ties with Television, after 34 years.”
Hey Richard: what was *your* favorite fake TV rock band?
When I saw RFTT, Lloyd was playing what looked like an ancient Strat. It was battered but still it must be worth quite a packet. Does he take any extra precautions. Is it insured? Why not take a more workaday guitar on the road?
Lloyd has a new record coming out soon. He says he wants to devote his energies to his own music. He’s made a couple of fine records in the past, but he’s better known as a sideman or a hired gun. Is that just the way the business works? Or do some people just have a special skill in fitting what they can do into other people’s music?
That’s very cool! I fear he might find rehashing the late 70s tiresome and old-hat, but I’d love to read some Entertainment Tonight type stories about the whole CBGBs scene. Was it a communal vibe, or purely competitive? Whose drug use was really apparent, and disruptive during gigs? Did the Ramones and other punks find Television to be too prog rock? Was there any band debate questioning the wisdom of having a 4 minute guitar solo end Marquee Moon? Was Patti Smith jealous of how hot Debbie Harry was?
I’m curious about the sessions for Matthew Sweet’s Altered Beast. Does that album sound like he wanted? I haven’t listened to it in a while, but it’s like the exact polar opposite of Girlfriend, which was pretty crisp, whereas Altered Beast was a muddled mess, both sonically and conceptually. Where they trying to make an album that wouldn’t be popular?
Again, I’m not sure how much he played on it.
There was also the reunion of sorts of the classic Matthew Sweet band, Kimi Ga Suki Raifu. What was his involvement in that, was it less labored over than the other Sweet albums he played on? I know it was allegedly written and recorded in the studio. How did that hurt or help his playing.
I’m trying to think of some questions in relation to Alchemy, but it’s been so long since I listened I can’t think of any.
what’s he listening to these days? has he paid any attention to Robert Quine’s Nephew’s band The Black Keys? That guy’s a helluva player.
edit:
looks like the dude in The Black Keys is Quine’s cousin…
I know Lloyd wasn’t happy with the production on Alchemy. I read that he was interested in getting the master tapes and remixing it. Ala Iggy and Raw Power. Any updates on that?
I’m curious about why he chose to go in that more poppy direction after the initial breakup of Television. was he totally fed up with being the Allman Brothers of punk Rock? what influenced his decision? what sort of album was he trying to make? All things considered, how does he feel about the album NOW? Specifically the production.
Am I the only one who finds even the original Television just a tad stuffy and boring? Not that there isn’t some good playing to be had. But I’ll take Richard Hell over Television any day.
Kevin, he did go back and remix and partially re-record his second album, Field of Fire. Check out Lloyd’s liner notes for the reissue at http://www.richardlloyd.com/fofdelux.htm. He talks about consciously having gone in a more poppy direction with Alchemy to distinguish it from the Television sound and then reversing course towards a darker sound for Field of Fire.
Yo mwall,
I’m with you on the whole Television thing. I don’t get it. Give me a double sided single of “See No Evil” and put the rest of the catalog out on the curb.
As far as I’m concerned, Lloyd’s best accomplishments are found on the first fourth of the “Girlfriend” LP. I always use that thing as the prime example of what happens to a so-so artist when he’s given a canvas too big for his britches. 60 minutes or so is way too long for anyone for that matter. 12-14 songs is just about all that anyone could/should ask from anyone.
You might want to ask Lloyd what he thinks about the Dixie Chicks. If he’s interested in that question you might want to push a little harder and ask him what he thinks about those Chuck Berry Mercury LPs.
Hey, Plurbie — once again, I gotta ask: can I be on your Team? That TV album is one of the undergroundy icons I’ve never really been thrilled by, save for the single you mention. I mean, it ain’t *bad*… No, wait, in spots it *is* bad. Kind of proggy or something, very self-involved. Not for me.
Mind you, I do really like Verlaine’s “Dreamtime” LP, which may get me thrown off Team Plurbie before I even get to enjoy team pizza night.
Anyhow, just wanted the world to know that, though you may be a peculiar blowhard, you’re one of my favorite peculiar blowhards out there.
Your pal,
HVB
I’m going to keep a foot in both camps on this one. I think Marquee Moon is one of the best one sided albums of that whole era. All four songs on side one are killer great. I’m bored when I flip it over.
Hrundi,
It’s good to hear from you.
Look, I don’t wanna waste any time gabbing about Television. Honestly now. What are they? A 30th tier band or something? Christ, if we’re gonna go there let’s reexamine the Captain Beyond catalog.
Here’s a good question for ya. What’s the shittiest piece of musical equipment you’ve ever owned? We’re talkin’ so shitty that that you swear at it everytime you try to play around with whatever it is.
Up for consideration is any piece manufactured by the Peavey Organization. Now there’s a pack of charlatans for ya! I once had a Peavey Classic guitar amp. Man was it a stinker. The pots began to crackle less thatn two weeks after I bought the turd. Practices would be interrupted frequently due to the fact that I’d have to adjust the volume just so in order to find that little nitch between crackles and sputters where continuous sound was actually granted. For some reason or another, my brother-in-law was always facinated with the Classic, which was fine by me because he eventually gave me 50 bucks for the thing. Good riddance to bad rubbish. To this day, he’s still pissed off at himself for pissing away the 50 bucks.
What about you? What piece of garbage has had you so frustrated with its performance that you swear at it, give it a good punch, or bad mouth it behind its back?
Hope to hear from you soon,
Epluribus
Good question, EPG. I’m going to move it up to its own thread, if you don’t mind. If you do mind, well, just start going off on those Chuck Berry Mercury albums again. That’s your best putdown in years. I’m jealous you thought of it first!
Chickenfrank’s right: Marquee Moon may be the greatest 1-sided album ever. I can see why it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but in light of what I see there’s nothing I could say to make folks feel otherwise.
I spoke to Lloyd for 45 minutes today. Let’s just say he answered A LOT of unasked questions. Stay tuned.