Television: Marquee Moon [RHINO/ELEKTRA]

Why you'll love it

This 180g edition was pressed in Germany and comes with a printed inner sleeve carrying the lyrics and a band photo. Rolling Stone ranks Marquee Moon No. 107 of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

This edition

• 180g vinyl
• Printed inner sleeve with lyrics
• Pressed in Germany

About the album

Television turned down Island Records and a set of demos produced by Brian Eno, which takes a certain confidence for a band without a record deal. Tom Verlaine wanted strong, expressive guitar music, and after a long residency at CBGB the band signed with Elektra and recorded at A & R Recording in November 1976, with Verlaine co-producing alongside Andy Johns.

Verlaine and Richard Lloyd skip punk's power chords for interlocking melodic lines that owe as much to jazz as to rock and roll, with Fred Smith's bass and Billy Ficca's drums keeping everything nimble. "See No Evil" and "Friction" snap along, "Venus" shimmers, "Elevation" and "Prove It" glide, and the title track spirals into one of the great guitar duels on record.

Critics hailed it as something new, it sold strongly in the UK, and its guitar interplay shaped post-punk, new wave and indie rock for decades. Verlaine thought Eno's recordings sounded cold and brittle; we've played this one in a draughty shop all winter and can report it holds the heat.

Also at Kops: more Television on vinyl · browse Alternative

Tracklist

Listen

On Elektra / Rhino (cat# R1 1098), a reissue of the 1977 album.