Initially a founder member of Television with Tom Verlaine, Hell had fallen out with the eventual leader of the group after petty squabbles over the number of Hell's songs that Verlaine would allow them to play onstage. He left shortly before the band emerged as one of the success stories of the legendary C.B.G.B's club in New York, taking songs such as 'Love Comes In Spurts' with him and joining The Heartbreakers. This new band formed by ex-New York Doll Johnny Thunders was notorious for it's heroin intake, something which would continue to haunt Hell for many years after.
Once again, Hell departed from the band shortly before they found a degree of success, with their invitation to join the ill-fated Anarchy tour alongside the the Clash and the Sex Pistols in the UK.
Undaunted, he formed his own band, Richard Hell and the Voidoids with Bob Quine, Ivan Julian and Marc Bell, and wrote a much misunderstood american punk anthem, 'Blank Generation'. The blank was supposed to be filled in with whatever the listener felt they belonged to, but most assumed the blank generation was similar to the 'no future' generation that the Sex Pistols had described in their song 'God Save the Queen'. Musically they were rooted in garage rock but a slightly more experimental approach hinted at the new wave scene that was soon to follow.
Bell soon left, however, to join the Ramones, and the group disbanded, with only Quine remaining loyal and helping Hell with further solo work. Sporadic releases appeared until the late-80's, including an interesting compilation, 'R.I.P.', which features tracks from many periods and shows a diversity and musical maturity that is often overlooked.
Hell's latter career has been more focussed on acting and writing, with a role in Susan Seidelman's 'Smithereens' movie, and a novel titled 'Go Now' based on the life of a relatively unknown musician struggling with addiction and obscurity. A spoken word album was released featuring Hell reading from the book to a musical backing.
The acknowledgement of New York as the original hub of American punk and new wave activity has ensured that Hell is now recognised as a largely influential, if commercially unsuccessful artist.
IF YOU LIKED THESE, YOU'LL LIKE RICHARD HELL: Television, Johnny Thunders, Velvet Underground, Iggy Pop & the Stooges, The Ramones, Lou Reed, New York Dolls, Talking Heads, Blondie, Sonic Youth, Nectarine No.9 .