28 episodes

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 Tonight's Musical Guest, Today

    • Music
    • 5.0 • 16 Ratings

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.

    Tom Waits with Ben Hosley

    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...

    • 2 hr 32 min
    Smashing Pumpkins with Marissa Paternoster

    Smashing Pumpkins with Marissa Paternoster

    We're talking one of the most successful and volatile bands of the 1990s: hair journeys, lineup changes, #1 albums, and too many Billy Corgan quotes. It's SMASHING PUMPKINS week!Joining the show to talk about one of her favorite bands of all time is the great Marissa Paternoster (ex-Screaming Females, Noun)! Marissa lays out the ways her Pumpkins fandom helped her become of the most renowned and unique guitarists of the past 20 years. The guys and her discuss the frustrating and talented enig...

    • 2 hr 30 min
    One-year Anniversary Awards Show

    One-year Anniversary Awards Show

    All the stars are here. It's late-night TV's biggest evening. We even made Kenny make a crooner awards show version of the theme. We're celebrating the best and worst of over 100 performances discussed. It's our One-year Anniversary Awards Show!What was the best interview we saw? Which band's fashion shined? Who gave the vocal performance of the year? Which vest upset Alex the most? And who did we pick for best and worst overall performances? It's a clip show, now more than ever!Want to watch...

    • 1 hr 36 min
    Aerosmith with Perry Eaton

    Aerosmith with Perry Eaton

    The podcast bad boys from Boston are talking about THE Bad Boys from Boston. It's AEROSMITH week!Joining the show with discussion questions in hand is the lead singer and guitarist of another great Boston band Beeef, Perry Eaton! Perry and the guys break down the many eras of Aerosmith and try to make sense of their complicated and epic legacy. The band's first TV performance in 1974 on The Midnight Special is all leather pants and rock god vibes. 13 years later, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry do...

    • 2 hr 38 min
    Fall Out Boy

    Fall Out Boy

    They're pop-punk emo heroes turned anthemic arena radio rock mainstays. Some turned to heavy drug use, while others became tabloid fodder. And hats. Lots of hats. It's FALL OUT BOY week!The career arc is there folks, captured in some ridiculous late night performances. Fall Out Boy explodes into the mainstream with From Under the Cork Tree with a shaky spot on SNL. The anti-vowel movement comes to a head with a pretty great performance of Thnks Fr Th Mmrs on the Tonight Show featuring strings...

    • 1 hr 59 min
    Teenage Fanclub with Mark Neeley

    Teenage Fanclub with Mark Neeley

    In a year that saw Nirvana, R.E.M, and Pearl Jam put out generation-defining albums, Spin Magazine named this band's 1991 album Record of the Year. 33 years later, this cult power-pop outfit remains a weird outlier sandwiched between the eras of grunge and Britpop. It's TEENAGE FANCLUB week!Joining the show is animator, music video director, and self-proclaimed Fannie Mark Neeley (Aquarium Drunkard)! Mark and the guys explore the origins of TFC's rapid ascent from the Scottish indie-rock scen...

    • 2 hr 24 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
16 Ratings

16 Ratings

Craig Cincotta ,

Great listen, great hosts

Come for the late night music talk, stay for the incredible censored Fred Durst lyrics and surprising discovery that you love Sheryl Crow.

sombreromalo ,

hits the spot

i’ve always been fascinated by live performances on late shows and variety shows. growing up, 80s letterman was as much a pipeline for discoverng new music as much as for shaping my sense of humor.

love listening in on a fun, well-researched but casual conversation about music through a novel but insightful lens.

Slightly Biased3377 ,

Important

The Andrew W.K. episode may be the single most important historical document in American history.

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