In the early summer of 1978 I received a phone call from Tom Verlaine. That in itself was unusual because we met at rehearsals or at shows, but didn’t share a social life outside the band. We were together 24 hours a day on tour, and principally we all got along, eating together, staying in the same hotels and performing together. So it was a bit odd to get a call from Tom. He said, “I have some bad news to tell you—I’m leaving the band.” This was a bit of a shock but I also felt relieved. I told Tom that I had been thinking of leaving myself but didn’t want to leave the rest of the guys, himself included, in the lurch. I told Tom that instead of him leaving the band we should simply dissolve the band.
We decided that we would play the shows which we were obligated to play and then go our separate ways. We decided not to tell anyone at all except Billy and Fred, so it was kept among the band members.
The last three Television shows were at the Bottom Line. We knew these were the last shows but our audience did not. They were very good shows, all sold out, with enormous audience involvement. Many of our friends and longtime fans were there. We got together for lunch in Chinatown at one of our favorite restaurants the day after our last show. The food was cheap and plentiful, and we bid our farewells to each other. I felt rather odd leaving the restaurant both sad and exhilarated for myself—for some time I had been writing songs that did not fit with Television’s image. Chris Stamey asked if he could use one of my songs for his first single with the dB’s—of course I said yes. I was going to sing it but Elektra had me under contract and wouldn’t let me. Chris sang it from my guide vocal and the dB’s performed it live. I had also been writing songs that would end up on my first solo record, Alchemy.
As Television went our separate ways I believe everyone suspected we would eventually get back together, which we did in 1992.