Somehow, Television seems to have been largely forgotten (if anyone reading this even knew about them in the first place). That’s a bit of a crime because Television’s two albums (Marquee Moon and Adventure) are two of the most influential albums ever made.
Marquee Moon is complex yet instantly catchy. Each song has multiple layers that reveal themselves and reward listeners who pay attention during repeated listens. Television mixed punk with jazz, psychedelia, and prog rock to create a nearly flawless debut. The album’s second song, Venus, is nearly perfect.
The centerpiece of the album though, literally and figuratively, is the title track. Pitchfork describes it here:
Looming at Marquee Moon‘s direct center is the album’s title track… The interlocking puzzle pieces of the song are roughly in place already: the opening guitar’s unmistakable morse code stutter, a thudding bass pulse (played here by Richard Hell); and guitarist Richard Lloyd’s nagging riff (a subliminal nod to the horns on James Brown’s “I Feel Good”). As with most of the band’s Hell-era recordings (he left the group in early 1975), it’s a ramshackle thing, with helter-skelter rhythms and barely in-tune instruments. But the abbreviated end, with all involved racing towards the finish line behind Verlaine’s shivering solo, hints at the heights they’d reach in the coming years.
Tyler wilcox, Pitchfork
You should know about the band Television. You should know about the album Marquee Moon. And you should definitely know about the song Marquee Moon.
Recommended Reading
Television’s Punk Epic “Marquee Moon,” 40 Years Later
The Genius Of… Marquee Moon By Television
The Story of Television ‘Marquee Moon’