The days of cable TV are slowly coming to an end, and with the new fleet of streaming services providing us with content whenever we can fit it in, the adolescent tradition of staying up late to watch TV is also fading. Anything missed on Fallon or Kimmel is caught the following morning as you delay the workday. Though convenient, there was something unique and intimate about sitting in my parent’s basement eager to hear David Letterman’s hit-and-miss top 10 starting at 11:30pm. Canadians are often to quick to point out when someone important is from the motherland, so of course I felt like Paul Schaffer and I were also best buds. If he could make it in New York, so could a kid from Cobourg Ontario.
Even though it’s been a while since Letterman retreated from the concrete jungle, and without having thought too much on it, what dawned on me was that David Letterman exposed me to an array of unknown musical talent. While the new kids on the block (Fallon, Kimmel) provide audiences with performances on a nightly basis, their guests are typically established acts simply there to plug their latest venture.
Letterman was different. You might never have heard of the musical guest before, but variety was his game, and I bought in. Aside from his visits to Rupert’s Deli – and many a notable interview (Joaquin Phoenix you enigma you…) – my bittersweet farewell to the late night icon stemmed from his influence and exposure during my formative teenage years.
Thanks Dave. Or perhaps I should be thanking your musical director… a lot of great acts crossed that stage, here are a few that may have flown under the radar but stand out in my memory.
What are yours?
Raul Midon – State Of Mind
Mute Math – Typical
The Barr Brothers – Even The Darkness Has Arms