Nowadays, nothing seems to matter less than whatever happens on late-night television. I can’t imagine slogging through an hour of bad Trump jokes or a drunk, cackling Jimmy Fallon. And that’s coming from someone with more sympathy for the form than most: I grew up on Conan and Letterman, so I grew up on the kind of absurdist meta-showbiz that was predicated on references to a lineage of TV that is now mostly forgotten. Those shows felt low-stakes and lightly subversive. On occasion, they had a good musical guest.
I have alright memories of watching music on late-night television; at this point, though, I have just as many memories of watching musical performances on late-night television through the archival lens of YouTube. There is something nice about watching a “cool” band or rapper play on a clinical soundstage. It pulls them out of whatever bubble they might be in. It’s fun to pretend that I am a normal person, a person whose life doesn’t revolve around subculture, witnessing something new and maybe confusing. It injects an energy into the music.
I’m far from the first person to make a list like this. But I’m likely the only person to include both a Wolf Eyes performance on a local Southern California television station and a Wu-Tang song on Showtime at the Apollo. Or, I don’t know, maybe not.
Jay-Z and Pharrell “Change Clothes (Late Show with David Letterman 11/2003)”
I always thought that this Thanksgiving-timed version of “Change Clothes” with the CBS Orchestra was cozy excellence, but it seems as if the only place I can currently find it on the internet is a crispy, partial rip on Facebook. Pharrell and Jay are sitting on stools, and the band is really jamming—just check the bounce on that bass player starting at the 11-second mark. 20 years ago…
Ty Segall “You’re The Doctor (Late Show with David Letterman 11/5/2012)”
Let’s stay with Letterman for a second. I’ve never been a deep Ty Segall head, but I remember being impressed by the ferocity of his Late Show performance. When it comes to TV, it helps to play a fast song. Here, he is in full rave-up territory. The lights go blinky-blinky and there is a lot of feedback and then it’s over. In the wake, Segall tells the crowd to go vote—it was November 2012, a different time—and Letterman hits ‘em with a one-liner: "Remember, kids, don’t neglect your studies.”
Le Tigre “Deceptacon (Live on Last Call with Carson Daily 11/13/2003)”
Last Call with Carson Daily: The most confusing late-night show in television history? Though it ran for 18 seasons, it continuously had its budget slashed to the point where, by 2009, there was no more live audience—everything was pre-taped segments, with Daily often hosting from an Irish pub in West Hollywood, or some shit. That “freedom” led to good moments: Last Call is the home of the solitary Lightning Bolt late-night appearance, which might be wiped from the internet. Le Tigre’s performance of their classic “Deceptacon” comes four odd years after the release of the song; by 2K3, the band was already an album cycle plus ahead, but I guess when Carson calls, you play the hit.
Wolf Eyes “Dead Hills (Fox Rox 10/27/05)”
Fox Rox was a local San Diego show that ran for many seasons and amassed a pretty insane list of guests: everyone from Maroon 5 to Cattle Decapitation to, right here, Mike Connelly-era Wolf Eyes. Watching this video, it’s easy to understand why Anthony Braxton originally thought that these dudes were from Germany. Olson pairs leather with shades and a thin mohawk. There are a lot of metal objects being scraped. The cameras, which have a definition that is less cable access and more local news, capture the action, which feels both antiseptic and nervy. I have no idea what time Fox Rox aired, but I would like to imagine that it was late on a Sunday night and that at least one kid stayed up and had their life changed.
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion “2 Kindsa Love/Flavor (Recovery 9/6/1997)”
The “destructive punk rock” TV performance is a well-worn archetype. To exemplify, I could’ve shared Fear on SNL or Odd Future on Fallon, but I would rather talk about The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion performing on an Australian television show. You know the drill, or you don’t. Jon Spencer plays the theremin. Jon Spencer climbs into the stands. Jon Spencer babbles about how “the blues” is “number one.” Jon Spencer fucks with a cameraperson. Jon Spencer tears down his band’s backdrop. Deranged!
Trina “Nann/Da Baddest Chick (Live From LA 2000)”
Live From LA was a short-lived BET show from the early aughts that I could find very little information about. Trina’s performance starts with her verse from the eternal Trick Daddy collaboration "Nann" and then moves into a TV-friendly version of “Da Baddest Bitch.” The interview segment with hosts Michael Conyer and Rachel Stuart is just as impactful. Trina name-checks MC Lyte and Luke, and she lets a lot of great quotes fly. Here is one: “The B word is the definition of a strong woman.” It’s interesting that, despite referencing it up top, I’m not sharing any SNL performances. It’s unclear why I made that call.
Wu-Tang Clan “Triumph/Dog S*t (Showtime at the Apollo 11/15/1997)”
Another thing that I caught on TV the night it aired. It’s just as rock and roll as Jon Spencer. Talk about a 1997 statement: Comparing Jon Spencer and Wu-Tang and talking about Wu-Tang through the lens of “rock and roll.” Back then, the performance’s unhinged chaos made a major dent in my dome; even at that young age, it was clear to me that I was watching a unique configuration of geniuses come together in service of a greater artistic transmission—Wu-Tang felt like its own island. Inspectah Deck climbing into one of the Apollo’s opera boxes is an image that has stuck with me throughout the years.
Sonic Youth “Sacred Trickster (Late Show with David Letterman 6/10/2009)”
There are a lot of Sonic Youth Letterman performances that I could’ve chosen. Most would pick their 1992 debut on the show, in which they do battle with The World’s Most Dangerous Band and end with a feedback freakout on the floor, but I like this one from 2009 because it shows that SY was good all the way until the end. On “Sacred Trickster,” which is a late-game classic, Kim Gordon has a bar about the Western Mass legend Noise Nomads. I saw that guy play when I was 17, and he blew my mind just as much as Wu-Tang did when I was 11.
Beck “Full Set (Sessions at West 54th 9/5/1997)”
Another late-’90s Saturday night treat was the PBS show Sessions at West 54th. It wasn’t as cool as Apollo, but it was better than Austin City Limits. Babyface Beck is in top form, throwing down a performance that is only eclipsed by a Midnite Vultures-era blowout at Budokan. It’s an artist and a band that has been touring nonstop, finishing the run with a taping, not unlike a standup comedian. The bits have been worked out. They play an early version of “Debra.” Is Beck’s reference to “technology” during an extended “Where It’s At” a wink towards scientology? How much of his Odelay-era swag was copped from Jon Spencer?
LL Cool J (Feat. Method Man, Redman and DMX) “4, 3, 2, 1 (Showtime At The Apollo 2/21/1998)”
Earlier in the year, LL Cool J admitted that his beef with Canibus was “more my fault.” He really freaked out about that whole microphone tattoo thing. I watched this performance, too, when it aired. Not unlike that Wu-Tang set—Method Man is the throughline—the show’s intensity was notable to me at the time. Most Apollo spots didn’t reach that kind of a frenzy. Like many in the video’s YouTube comments section, I get goosebumps when DMX’s verse comes in. The crowd’s reaction is electric, especially considering X’s debut record wouldn’t drop for another three months. Canibus, of course, does not make an appearance.