.jpg)
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
Tom Waits with Ben Hosley
Drunk troubador. Carnival barker. Scum bum extraordinaire. Character actor. He's lived as many lives as he sung about. It's TOM WAITS week!
Joining the show as a renowned scum bum expert in his own right is Ben Hosley (Blank Check with Griffin and David)! Ben and the guys explore the wild persona and musical shifts of Tom over 38 years and 7 clips. 70s Tom is on full display with performances on Fernwood 2 Night and a remote piece that takes us inside the infamous Tropicana Motel. We watch Tom on Letterman four times across 32 years, including a final goodbye song written just for Dave. And we make sure to ask Ben about bones, living in squalor, and the shock of him being a normal human being.
Want to watch along with us? Check out the links below for the performances discussed this week!
The Piano has been Drinking, 8/1/1977 on Fernwood 2 Night
Annie's Back in Town/Burma Shave, 4/6/1978 on 90 Minutes Live
Frank's Wild Years/On the Nickel, 12/21/1983 on Late Night with David Letterman
More Than Rain, 10/10/1987 on Late Night with David Letterman
Goin' Out West, 10/9/1992 on The Arsenio Hall Show
Chocolate Jesus, 9/27/1999 on The Late Show with David Letterman
Take One Last Look, 5/14/2015 on The Late Show with David Letterman
