Tom Verlaine, a well-known punk guitarist, died at the age of 73, as reported by his ex-wife Patti Smith’s daughter. He first became famous with the band TV, and since then he has become a musical legend.
Confirming His Death
Jesse Paris Smith told the public about his sudden death after a short illness on Saturday in an emotional post on her Instagram page.
Dearest Tom. The love is immense and forever. My heart is too intensely full to share everything now, and finding the words is too deep of a struggle….I will be grateful to the end of my life, and we will see you again beyond that, meeting you there wherever you’ve gone…
Tom Verlaine
The great guitarist was born on December 13, 1949, in Denville, New Jersey. Tom Miller was his real name. His stage name was Tom Verlaine.
A Peaceful Death
Verlaine died in New York City, where he was surrounded by friends and family.
A Master Influencer
The icon was a co-founder of the seminal proto-punk band Television. During the rock era of the 1970s, he played with the Ramones, Patti Smith, and Talking Heads at the cool downtown New York music venue CBGB, which influenced many bands.
Television’s Debut Album
Many people think that the band’s first album, Marquee Moon, is a musical masterpiece and their most important contribution to pop culture. The album came out in 1977, and the 11-minute track “Elevation” was on it. After a year, the album Adventure came out.
An Influential Project
Marquee Moon has always been important, and a lot of younger artists, like Pavement, Sonic Youth, the Strokes, and Jeff Buckley, have been influenced by him.
Disbanding The Group
Soon, Verlaine and Richard Lloyd, who was also in the band, had problems with each other. This caused the band to break up after its second album, Adventure.
One Of The Greats
Verlaine was thought to be one of the best guitarists of the 20th century, along with stars like Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Eddie Van Halen, and others.
Reuniting For A Cause
But in 1992, the group got back together to make an album called “Self-Titled” for Capitol Records and do a few live shows.
We wanted to strip everything down further, away from the showbiz theatricality of the glitter bands, and away from blues-iness and boogie,
Television co-founder Richard Hell wrote in his autobiography, I Dreamed I Was a Very Clean Tramp.
Verlaine’s Solo Albums
Verlaine made eight solo albums before he died. His second album, Dreamtime, came out in 1981 and debuted at number 177 on the Billboard album chart.
Tributes From Susanna Hoffs And Billy Idol
Hoffs and Idol both said nice things about Verlaine and agreed that his music had an impact on the US and UK punk scenes.
Peace and love, Tom Verlaine. 💔 pic.twitter.com/zewZz0sJQn
— Susanna Hoffs (@SusannaHoffs) January 28, 2023
Patti Smith
After hearing about his death, his ex-girlfriend Patti Smith posted a picture of them together on Instagram and wrote,
Farewell Tom, aloft the Omega.
Tom And Richard ‘Hell’ Meyers
After meeting in prep school in Delaware, the two dropped out and moved to the East Village, where they worked in bookstores and wrote poetry together.
A Sly Wit
His publicist called the late act “a sly wit,” who was known for his angular lyricism and pointed lyrical asides. He could shake each string until it showed how it really felt.
His vision and his imagination will be missed.
