Admiral Television?

Lowrider - that didn't occur to me. It's possible that all the flashy stuff is Rundgren and Cerniglia (unfamiliar to me) and that the Admiral Television was a reference to guitar effects.

It's also possible that Verlaine (or possibly Richard Lloyd) of Television is the answer. Rick Derringer's another one that never occurred to me.

Sounds like we got a puzzle here with some interesting logic supporting possible solutions.

Thanks for the ideas.

Marty

Martykl ...sounds like your not giving up on this.

I don't know for a fact, but I'm pretty sure the leads are all Todd R.

I'll write more later when I've got a real keyboard in front of me, but let me just note that "Marquee Moon," Television's first record, post-dates "War Babies" by some three years. The band Television may not have even existed when Admiral Television was playing with Hall and Oates.

I love this question. Thus, my third post (though one has yet to appear). When I suggested last night that it might have been Rick Derringer, I based that on two things: thoughts about who was moving in what circles back in the day, who would actually have had occasion to know someone involved in the making of "War Babies," and also, as I wrote, why someone would employ a pseudonym. (For legal, contractual reasons, most likely.)
Since then, I've listened to "War Babies" -- perhaps not Hall and Oates' greatest album, but better than I'd remembered -- and just now played "Show Biz Kids," a Steely Dan tune that features Rick Derringer on slide guitar.
I'm now beginning to think that my oddball theory may have had some merit. For those who own both records, give it a try and see what I mean.
Thanks for the question.
-- Howard