Tonight's Musical Guest, Today
The Beatles on Ed Sullivan. Nirvana on Saturday Night Live. Warren Zevon on David Letterman. Sometimes, late-night TV musical performances live on forever. Most don’t. But we still want to talk about them.
Each week on “Tonight’s Musical Guest, Today”, long-time friends Alex Beaton and Jon Hillman dive in on the music and cultural memory of a band through the arc of their late-night TV performances. Watch along with Alex and Jon as they examine and react to these musical history moments preserved in the amber of time alongside two celebrity guests and a talk show host.
From Conan to Colbert, Letterman to Leno, or SNL to MadTV, there is no shortage of iconic late-night musical moments. And no end to the ones you don’t remember.
Tonight's Musical Guest, Today
Coldplay with Josh Terry
Maybe you love to hate 'em. Maybe they're a guilty pleasure. Or maybe like most humans on earth you casually enjoy 'em. Either way, It's COLDPLAY week!
Joining the show is music critic and writer of the Chicago-based culture blog No Expectations Josh Terry! The guys and Josh take a cue from Chris Martin and lean into sincerity as they discuss why Coldplay became arguably the most popular band of the 21st century. Early clips from Letterman and Kimmel show the band in their rawest and most palatable form. The show returns to the Super Bowl again, with better results than last episode. And Alex's take on a 2019 SNL performance rattles Jon to his core.
Want to watch along with us? Check out the links below for the performances discussed this week!
Trouble, 6/27/01 on The Late Show with David Letterman
Clocks/Yellow, 1/26/03 on Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Talk/Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, 12/7/05 on Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Paradise, 9/26/11 on The Late Show with David Letterman
Yellow/Viva La Vida/Paradise/Adventure of a Lifetime/ Clocks/Fix You/Up and Up, 2/7/16 on Super Bowl 50
Orphans, 11/2/19 on Saturday Night Live