Tonight's Musical Guest, Today
by 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.
Episodes
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Stone Temple Pilots
The critics hated them. The radio loved them. Armed with an ace brother songwriting duo and a ridiculously talented but troubled lead singer, this band managed to dominate the 90s rock landscape. It's STONE TEMPLE PILOTS week! Clip 1 brings the show to MTV Headbangers Ball for the first time for...
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KISS
More business than band. More superhero than human. This group somehow found a way to win the 1970s and recreate what it meant to be an American rock n' roll band. It's KISS week! Alex and Jon set the stage this week by posing a question that seems almost unanswerable: how the hell did this all...
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My Chemical Romance
Fingerless gloves. Intense eyeliner. Swoopy haircuts. Their look defined the height of the mid 2000s emo movement. But the music? That was something different it turns out. It's MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE week! Jon and Alex reflect on why they outright dismissed MCR at the height of their fame and…
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Radiohead
It's a career arc that spanned genres, oceans, and mainstream musical movements that came and went. And at the center of it, an enigmatic frontman that refused to make anything easy. It's RADIOHEAD week! The guys give a quick upcoming concert report before Jon reveals a shocking secret about his...
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The Clash
The only podcast that matters. The only band that matters. Coming together finally. We return from our hiatus the only way we could. It's THE CLASH week! Alex and Jon welcome you back to the podcast that discusses the cultural memory and career arc of bands and artists through their late night tv...
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Grab Bag: SKA-tacular with Kenny
After 2.5 years of discussing the cultural memory and career arc of bands and artists through their late night tv show performances, we're taking our first hiatus. And there was only one thing we could do to celebrate: talk about ska for over 3 hours. It's our GRAB BAG: SKA-TACULAR! And there was...
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Taking Back Sunday
This is a band that defined early 2000s emo for so many (including us). And it turns out the band drama was even messier than their lyrics. It's TAKING BACK SUNDAY week! The guys have an important show announcement up top before reexamining their short-lived intense fandom with these Long Island...
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System of a Down
Wake up! This LA by way of Armenia heavy metal/death metal/middle eastern/jazz fusion four-piece stunned mainstream culture at every turn. It's SYSTEM OF A DOWN week! We recap the rich and tragic familial history and musical origins of Serj Tankian and co. before jumping into 3 tv performances...
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Elliott Smith with Rory Phillips
While coming up in the Portland post-punk scene, this singer/songwriter recorded a batch of lo-fi acoustic demos on a whim. What followed was a once-in-a-generation rise and fall fueled by some of the most beautiful songwriting of the past 30 years. It's ELLIOTT SMITH week! Returning to the show…
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Alanis Morissette with Courtney Denison & Sean Farrell
Do we stress you out? Our sweaters are on backwards and inside out this week to talk about an artist that took over the world in 1995. But what about before and after? It's ALANIS MORISSETTE week! Joining the show is past guest Courtney Denison and her husband/musical partner Sean Farrell of…
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Soundgarden
Founders of Seattle grunge, this sludgy hard rock outfit combined crazy technical prowess with hair-raising vocals. Led by a one-of-kind lead singer, they defined a movement that persists to this day. It's SOUNDGARDEN week! Jon and Alex deal with the fallout of being cancelled by the anti-Dave...
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Mary J. Blige with Craig Seymour
This artist melded 70s southern soul with 80s hip hop and earned a royal title for it in the process. Equal parts tough and diva, she took over the R&B world in 1992 and never left. It's MARY J. BLIGE week! Joining the show is journalist, author, and Mary superfan Craig Seymour! Luckily, Craig is...
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The B-52s
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...
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Björk
She emerged from the caves of Iceland with a singular voice and singular vision. As the ultimate blank check artist, she combined international textures with innovative electronic landscapes to both astound and baffle listeners. It's BJÖRK week! Björk leans into her Sugarcubes and London club...
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The Pogues with Kevin Bogart
Mix 1 part traditional irish folk, 2 parts punk, and 3 parts irish whiskey (just not the protestant kind): stir and drink well. Grab a Guinness and sing along: it's THE POGUES week! Joining the show is a long-time friend who played many a sweaty Boston punk show with Alex and Jon over the years,...
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Dinosaur Jr. with Evan Minsker
This western Massachusetts trio combined elements of hardcore, folk, and guitar virtuosity to become unlikely godfathers of grunge. But in between classic 80s indie releases and 2000s reunion albums, lots of other stuff happened too. We discuss. It's DINOSAUR JR. week! Joining the show is the...
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Grab Bag: Nepo Babies
Good genes. Industry access. A lack of initial meritocracy. These artists reaped the benefits and pitfalls of simply being the children of some of the most famous musicians of all time. It's NEPO BABIES week, grab bag style! We start off nepo week in style with Nancy Sinatra performing a…
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Ween
In the early 90s, two guys pretending to be brothers from New Hope, PA somehow snuck into the major label system making aggressively hard to listen to 4-track jams. And then went on to be one of the greatest cult acts of all time. It's WEEN week! We begin the show with a quick but illuminating…
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The Rolling Stones with Jon Wurster
Dubbed the World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band, they invaded America, its TV screens, and changed it all. It's an episode that would maybe even make Ed Sullivan proud. It's THE ROLLING STONES week! Joining the show is iconic drummer and the King of rock and roll weirdness, Jon Wurster...
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311
CHILL! This rap-rock-metal-funk-reggae outfit was dominating the modern rock charts before the term nu-metal was coined. Armed with positivity, a turntable, and marijuana enthusiasm, they carried a mid 90s nation mourning the end of grunge. It's 311 week! We come clean up top about our varying...
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Elvis Costello with Connor Ratliff
His live TV debut on SNL has gone down as maybe the most famous moment in late night music history. But the decades that followed were just as surprising, rebellious, and at times baffling. It's ELVIS COSTELLO week! Joining the show is comedian, actor, and Elvis Costello historian Connor Ratliff...
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Red Hot Chili Peppers
We're following up Christmas day with the second most famous resurrection story of all time. Except this California band rose not just once, but twice from the ashes. It's RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS week! The clips this week surprisingly begin all the way back in 1984, with the first iteration of the...
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Queens of the Stone Age
Pounding robotic trance desert stoner rock. Is that enough adjectives to describe what is maybe the last great mainstream hard rock band of the 21st century? We find more to use. It's QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE week! For a band often described as "The Josh Homme Project", we find ways to discuss the...
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The Carpenters
Remembered as schmaltzy elevator music, this sister-brother duo dominated the charts for much of the 1970s. Driven by the one-of-a-kind voice of Karen Carpenter and the orchestration of brother Dick, they epitomize the former power of television monoculture and the murky arc of cultural memory....
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Yeah Yeah Yeahs with Matt Ozelius
Garage Rock. Indie Sleaze. Electronic Dance Pop. This Brooklyn trio has done it all across a surprisingly long career, out lasting almost all of their early 2000s NYC contemporaries. It's YEAH YEAH YEAHS week! Joining the show this week is Boston-based musician Matt Ozelius! As drummers for him…
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Pearl Jam with Ryan Agate
Inarguably the biggest and most successful band of the grunge era, they persisted while others could not. They fought the man at every turn, did it their way, and are an undeniable live juggernaut. It's PEARL JAM week! Joining the show as our second-ever returning guest is show promoter and...
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The Cranberries
They're quietly one of the most successful bands of the 90s, selling over 50 million records over the course of their career. Dominating the softer side of alt-rock radio, they took over America out of nowhere as the biggest Irish band since U2. It's THE CRANBERRIES week! We begin this week with...
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The Strokes
They were cool looking boys from the large apple. Leaders of a NYC and retro guitar rock revival, they wrote two of the catchiest and most memorable records of the early 2000s. Was that it? It's THE STROKES week! The Strokes make their network TV debut on Conan with a perfect sounding rendition…
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Slipknot
They came from the heartland to destroy us all. More brutal death metal than nu, maggots from every corner of America rejoiced at their one-of-a-kind stage show, technical precision, and devil-fueled aggression. It's SLIPKNOT week! The guys explore the incredible backstory, lore, and turmoil of…
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Supergrass with Travis Shettel
They exploded onto the 90s Britpop scene with fresh faces and clean teeth. Steven Spielberg wanted to turn them into the next Monkees. Instead, this UK phenomenon eschewed America and just did it their way. It's SUPERGRASS week! Joining the show is a long-time musical hero of Alex and Jon: lead...
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Janet Jackson with Robby Seabrook III
She holds eye-popping album sale records, ushered a whole new style of pop music into the mainstream, and did it all as a socially conscious black woman in conservative white America. But one TV performance clouded all of it. It's JANET JACKSON week! Joining the show this week to help uncloud…
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Grab Bag: Supergroups
Ill-conceived. Unnecessary. Over the top. No, not this podcast, but rather the topic at hand for our third-ever Grab Bag episode: SUPERGROUPS! Mr. Big brings together middling hair metal pros to create the "cordless-electric-hand-drill genre of rock guitar". The Backbeat Band featuring Greg…
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Devo with Kenny
One-hit wonder? Yes. Decade-spanning mythology rooted in the ethos of societal and human genome collapse? Also yes. Fortune-tellers, DIY punk legends, new wave heroes? Yes, yes, and yes. It's DEVO week! Joining the show as the first entrant into the two-timers guest club is TMGT theme song…
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Jimi Hendrix
In just 4 year's time, he created the modern version of American rock music and reinvented the guitar. And broke the brains of whoever saw him do it. It's JIMI HENDRIX week! Jimi breaks through on the southern Chitlin' circuit with his first ever TV appearance backing up Buddy & Stacey on...
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Arctic Monkeys
They went from snotty, Brit teen punk phenomenons to Olympic game-playing elder statesmen in six year's time. From angular pop punk to R&B blues rock to crooning ballads about casinos on the moon, it's a career arc equal parts successful and baffling. It's ARCTIC MONKEYS week! Alex Turner and co....
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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...
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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...
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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...
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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…
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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...
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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!...
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Primus
The craziest bass playing you've ever seen. Atonal metal breakdowns. Songs about meth heads burying bodies. And multiple top-ten records. How? It's PRIMUS week! It's a guestless, Alex-pick episode: buckle up. Primus breaks on to the national TV scene on the Dennis Miller Show. "My Name is Mud" is…
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Tyler, the Creator with J'na Jefferson
He's gone from causing a national panic to winning Grammys and selling high-end perfumes, all while putting on some of the most innovative stage performances of the 21st century. It's TYLER, THE CREATOR week! Joining the show to school us elder millennials on our most modern artist to date is…
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Amy Winehouse
Her voice: timeless. Her TV performances: iconic. We're headed across the pond and googling gobby. It's AMY WINEHOUSE week! Clips on Later...with Jools Holland and Friday Night with Jonathan Ross show Amy at her jazziest. Jools Holland's 2006 Annual Hootenanny gives her the big band treatment…
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Beastie Boys with Sean O'Neal
So what-cha want? An episode on the prolific decades-spanning run of Ad Rock, Mike D, and MCA? No problem. It's BEASTIE BOYS week! Joining the show to break down the iconic rhymes, beats, and general coolness of the B-Boys is Texas Monthly writer and former AV Club Editor in Chief Sean O'Neal!…
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Grab Bag: New Year's Eve Performances
It's a night of celebration and watching musicians and celebrities awkwardly count down numbers together. We're ringing in 2024 with our second-ever GRAB BAG episode on New Year's Eve performances! The guys watch Tina Turner preview her huge comeback moment on Johnny Carson. Vanilla Ice...
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Green Day with Ryan Agate
From Gilman to the Grammys, they are arguably the biggest American punk band of all time. It's GREEN DAY week! Joining the show is long-time and legendary (as proclaimed by us) Boston music venue booker Ryan Agate AKA Ryan the Terrible! The guys and Ryan talk about their shared music scene...
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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...
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No Doubt
They sparked a national obsession with ska horns and new wave keyboard while being led by one of the most famous frontwomen of the 1990s. It's NO DOUBT week! The clip journey this week takes the show from local SoCal cable access in 1990 to Super Bowl 37 in 2003. In between, the guys discuss the...
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Aretha Franklin
T-M-G-T-P-O-D! Find out what it means this week! We're going way back into the era of bright light variety specials to talk the Queen of Soul. It's ARETHA FRANKLIN week! The guys discuss Aretha’s intense upbringing amid the civil rights movement and on the black gospel circuit before watching a...
About this show
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.
Hosted by
Tonight's Musical Guest, Today
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