Richard Lloyd, Television Guitarist, Dies at 75

The guitarist who helped define the New York punk sound with Television died at his Chattanooga home.

Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Rock

Richard Lloyd, Television Guitarist, Dies at 75

Richard Lloyd, guitarist of the band Television, died on Saturday at his home in Chattanooga, Tennessee, at age 75. A statement from his family said he died of cholangiocarcinoma, a bile duct cancer he was diagnosed with in March.

Why it matters

Lloyd co-wrote and played on Television's Marquee Moon and Adventure, albums central to the late-1970s New York punk and post-punk scene. His death marks the loss of one of the era's key guitar voices.

Television's Marquee Moon, released in 1977, was ranked No. 107 on Rolling Stone's 2023 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, though neither it nor the 1978 follow-up Adventure charted on the Billboard 200. The family statement confirmed the cause of death but did not detail funeral or memorial plans.

The players

Richard Lloyd

Guitarist and co-founder of the band Television, whose interlocking guitar work with Tom Verlaine defined the group's sound.

Television

New York punk and post-punk band formed in 1973 that rose from the CBGB scene and recorded the albums Marquee Moon and Adventure.

The details

Lloyd died at his home in Chattanooga, Tennessee, from cholangiocarcinoma, a bile duct cancer diagnosed in March. Television, formed in New York in 1973, rose through the CBGB club scene before releasing its two studio albums in the late 1970s.

1973: Television is formed in New York.
1977: Television releases Marquee Moon.
1978: Television releases Adventure.
March: Lloyd is diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma.
Saturday: Lloyd dies at home in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Legacy Context

Television was a central act of the CBGB scene in New York's Bowery, which helped launch the American punk movement alongside Patti Smith and the Ramones. Marquee Moon remains a reference point for later guitar-driven bands even though it never reached the Billboard 200.

Fans can revisit Television's catalog, including Marquee Moon and Adventure, through standard streaming and physical-media channels. The extraction does not specify any reissues, tribute events, or new releases tied to Lloyd's death.

The takeaway

Lloyd's death is a reminder that the guitar interplay on Marquee Moon was a defining element of late-1970s New York rock, and revisiting those records is the most direct way to hear his contribution.