EPISODE · May 18, 2025 · 2H 22M
The B-52s
from Tonight's Musical Guest, Today · host Tonight's Musical Guest, Today
In the mid 70s, some arty weird kids in Athens, GA shared a volcano cocktail at a Chinese restaurant. That party took them to many others, armed with hugely influential guitar licks, beehive hairdo wigs, and dancing from another world. It's THE B-52s week!It's episode number 50 of TMGT, and the show kicks off with a performance on SNL that changed Dave Grohl's life. Jon insists on covering a clip of the band at the 1982 US Festival despite it having no place within the dumb format of this podcast. The "Whammy" era is captured on UK TV, and uh, it's not great! The guys discuss the lasting influence of the late great Ricky Wilson, and his absence is sorely felt on a 1987 clip from a UK children's show. And a comeback performance of "Love Shack" on Letterman almost makes Jon cry.Want to watch along with us? Check out the links below for the performances discussed this week!Rock Lobster/Dance This Mess Around, 1/26/1980 on Saturday Night LiveGive Me Back My Man, 9/3/1982 at The US FestivalSong for a Future Generation/Whammy Kiss/Butterbean, 1983 on SwitchWig/Planet Claire, 7/11/1987 on Get FreshLove Shack, 6/20/1989 on Late Night with David LettermanCosmic Thing/Channel Z, 4/21/1990 on Saturday Night LiveIs That You Mo-Dean?, 8/31/1992 on Hangin' with MTV
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The B-52s
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