Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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80 of 86 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
No Remote Control, October 23, 2003
Like alot of folks, I'm wary of the reissue game. Tempting as bonus tracks are, I often find they ruin the integrity of the original release. That being said, this sounds a 1000x's better than the previous cd incarnation. And it' s nice to hear their long out of print 1st single, "Little Johnny Jewel" in it's entirety.
Though long associated with the CBGB Punk scene, they were far more ambitious than The Ramones ever were. I mean what is this stuff? Psychedelic Jazz Punk? Whatever it is, it's original. Verlaine croons like he's choking on a 25-cent hot dog at Gray's Papaya off 8th Avenue. And though his poetical leanings can often be obtuse, they're offset by a no nonsense, tough as nails rhythm section.
In terms of guitar playing, this band is armed with 2 guys who don't quite see eye to eye. Richard Lloyd's playing is as precise & solid as Verlaine is moody & improvisational. In other words, they are perfect foils. There's nothing quite like the epic title track. The lyrics seem ripped out of some lost notebook by Rimbaud. Musically, it's a dark, surreal sprial staircase---leading you back to from whence you came. The sonic equivalent of Carol Reed's the 3rd MAN.
In terms of barbed wit & killer hooks, how can you top the likes of "See No Evil", "Friction", "Elevation, & my personal favorite, "Proof It"? All of which makes the balladry of "Guiding Light" seem all the more delicate & fragile.
By far the darkest track is the closer,"Torn Curtain". In anyone else's hands it would come off as pure pretention. But they pull it off. Guess it even proved to be oddly prophetic. After this album, the band pretty much fell apart despite the flawed farewell of their follow up, ADVENTURE.
In terms of today's bands, Television's influence is undeniable. Radiohead. The Strokes. Artic Monkeys. Tape-n-Tapes. As competent as they are, after hearing this, they won't hold a candle. MARQUEE MOON is up ther with VU's "banana album" as one of the greatest albums a NYC based band has ever produced.
This is the sound of a station that's not on your regular dial. Music before the days of remote control & MTV banality. It's the TV you always wanted to see, only you have to close your eyes first. Shut them tight & tune in.
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
5 stars for the album itself but packaging is less desirable, November 17, 2003
'Marquee Moon' is one of those albums that not many people have heard of, but everybody with a credible music collection should own. (I also stated in my review of the original cd pressing that it should be an Amazon Essential Recording, but I guess they don't agree). Out of their CBGB contemporaries, Television stuck out like a sore thumb, even compared to the Talking Heads. While other groups were busy playing short, to-the-point punk rock, Television was mixing the immediacy of punk with the technical skills of progressive and jazz groups. The title track, 'Marquee Moon' is a ten and a half minute ascension to musical nirvana. Only the opening track 'See No Evil' has the jump-start effect of punk rock. Television were more about experimentation than punk rock. 'Marquee Moon' is one of the finest releases of the late 1970s, and among the top albums of the "New York scene."The reissue, on the other hand, has some good parts, some great parts, and some really terrible parts. It's good to have the lyrics now, now I can understand what Tom Verlaine is singing. It's great to have the story in the booklet about the recording, and the pictures inside are great too. The remastering is eye-opening compared to the original 1990 cd pressing, as well. Very clear, well-mixed and separated. Unlike the reviewer who was against the bonus tracks, I think that having 'Little Johnny Jewel' is definitely a plus. There's no reason to complain about having tracks that have been deleted for 25 years and never released ever on cd. The alternate takes aren't all that different from the originals except for a few things, some substantial (the guitar solo in 'Marquee Moon' is very different, also the vocals during the chorus of the song are given a huge boost), and some subtle (the ending of 'See No Evil' is extended, which is pretty cool). The packaging itself looks pretty cool, and seems to be designed to replicate a vinyl sleeve, but it's very flimsy and easy to scratch up. The cardboard sleeve that holds the cd also scratched the hell out of the surface of the disc, but luckily it still plays fine. I've had this for a couple of weeks and it already looks like it's ten years old. Rhino did an excellent job with the handling of this reissue, from the remastering, to the liner notes and addition of lyrics and pictures, and the addition of rare bonus tracks. The packaging on the other hand seems cheap, flimsy, and can possibly be damaging to the disc itself. I keep the disc in a hard plastic jewel case to avoid anymore damage. My advice would be to put the disc in a separate case after opening it, or to burn a copy of the disc to listen to after you buy it to avoid any damage to the disc that packaging may cause.
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56 of 66 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH, December 12, 2003
Marquee Moon is simply one of the 10 best hipster
records ever made. Mike, the owner of Subterranean
records in NYC, puts it squarely at #1. Every single song
on this record is stellar. It is Passionate, explorative,
and firmly on its own unique course. It is rich in
flavor, and defys deconstruction. Due to its quirky
uniqueness, this album is an acquired taste. Like a
sushi orgasm, or LSD. Several people that I have turned
on to this record, were unimpressed at first, only to
fall in love with it later. If you like the same old common,
derivative, unimaginative, over-produced, superstar crap,
then this record is not for you. The cadence of the guitar
lines in Venus De Milo are so beautiful, they will give you
chills. In the crescendo of the title track, Verlaine makes
his guitar sound like sea gulls. Elevation is taught, edgy,
and dripping with as much mood as a song can possibly be made
to hold. Some people do not respond to the herky-jerkiness
of Verlaines vocals, but they are well suited to the material.
The album has a bit of european flavor. Actually, one has to
describe this album in broad strokes, because there is no
artist that make sense to compare them to. Television blaze
their own trail. Marquee Moon is honestly and truly a classic
masterpiece, Television's jewel. The albums Adventure (2nd
release), Television (3rd release), and several Verlaine solo
albums, all have their moments, with an occasional great song,
but they all seriously pale to Marquee Moon. It deserves a place
in any desert island list. The true test, is that this record
is as relevant and effecting today, as it was in 77. One of
my fondest memories is having seen Television and Talking Heads
on the same bill at CBGB'S, a storm of epic proportions. Helpful
note: On first listen, do not play this record as background
music. Open your mind, relax, square off with your stereo, and
enjoy the swirls of passion, subtlety, vivid color, andotherwise, ENJOY THE RIDE!
All Good Things,
Greg
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