Rock legend Richard Lloyd dead at 75: Lead guitarist of Television was an icon of NYC's gritty 1970s punk scene

Richard Lloyd, who was co-founder and lead guitarist of the 1970s New York City art-punk band Television, has died. He was 75.

Lloyd's family announced his death in a statement, saying he passed away on Saturday at his home in Chattanooga, Tennessee, after being diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma (bile duct cancer) in March, per People.

He was best known for his fiery and intricate dual-guitar playing and for his role in pioneering the New York City punk and art-rock scene with Television.

Lloyd co-founded Television with lead singer Tom Verlaine, drummer Billy Ficca and bassist Richard Hell, who left the band in 1975 and was replaced on bass by Fred Smith, formerly of Blondie.

While frontman Verlaine grabbed the spotlight as the band's lead vocalist and songwriter, Lloyd provided the passion and potency with his solo and improvisational work.

Television was a fixture and early act at CBGB in New York City, a scene populated by Patti Smith, David Bowie, members of The Ramones, Talking Heads and Blondie.

Lloyd's signature playing on the band's 1977 debut album Marquee Moon, which featured tracks Marquee Moon and Venus, helped to define the sound of art-punk and post-punk.

Marquee Moon influenced the rise of alternative rock bands like R.E.M., U2, Sonic Youth, Wilco, Pavement and Yo La Tengo.

The band's second studio album, 1978's Adventure, which included songs Foxhole and Glory, reached the Top Ten list in the UK, but found a disappointing reception in the US.

Television broke up in 1978 due to creative friction in the band and tension between Verlaine and Lloyd as well, and the members all went their separate ways in the musical world.

Lloyd launched a solo career and worked as a prominent session and touring guitarist.

He rejoined Television when the band reunited in 1992 to release their self-titled comeback album and tour, before permanently exiting the group in 2007.

Lloyd was born in Pittsburgh in 1951 and spent his youth in New York City following his parents' divorce.

He published a memoir, Everything is Combustible, in 2017, and reflected on his rebellious adolescence and early mental health struggles including several stays in psychiatric facilities along with substance abuse during his youth.

In December 2025, Lloyd spoke about Television and his dynamic with Verlaine to Guitar World in what would be his final interview.

'We were like the glamor of poverty. We looked like runaways playing rock 'n roll,' he told the outlet.

'Dynamic tension existed, and that was responsible for a great deal of the creativity,' the guitarist said of Verlaine, who died in 2023 at age 73.

'There’s no denying that Tom was a genius. He was a poet. I'm not poetic. His double- and triple-entendre was better than mine. But in the realm of our magic, my guitar playing was on another level, though he could play and sing. It satisfied me.'

In August, Sean Seymour, a friend and bandmate in the Richard Lloyd Group, confirmed Lloyd's cancer diagnosis and created a GoFundMe for the guitarist.

'He has tumors in his liver, including one located dangerously close to a major blood vessel. Because of its location, doctors cannot safely operate to remove it at this time,' Seymour shared on the GoFundMe page.

‘He has been in the ICU seven times, dealing with serious complications including sepsis twice, as well as complications involving his liver and kidneys. And through all of this, he's fighting,' Seymour wrote.

Lloyd also shared a message on the GoFundMe page, writing: 'I am usually a pretty upbeat person and I am taking this in stride, but it has become very difficult on our own and financially we are strapped. That's why I'm asking for your help. If you can see your way clear to make a donation please do that. Otherwise, please pass it around to your friends that might help and people that know me.'

Lloyd is survived by his wife, Sheila O'Keefe Lloyd; son Dylan and a brother, Eric Lloyd.