He's been on our late night tv riffing with the creme of the celebrity crop for just on 30 years. It works out to be something like 3300 episodes. So you can imagine that trying to compile a list of your fav Letterman musical performance ain't no walk in Central Park (it also doesn't help that most of the time we watch Letterman we're either tired, stoned or drunk). The dude's had just about every massive act imaginable strut their stuff on the Ed Sullivan Theatre stage, with some more memorable than others.
So, as in true Letterman fashion we've done our own top ten list.
1.
Chromeo - We love Chromeo. Their music is ridiculously catchy and their live shows are awesome, as proven back in 2010.
2.
Beastie Boys - Not much needs to be said about these legends, except that they broke the mould and STARTED THE GIG IN THE STREETS!!! RIP Adam Yauch :(
3.
The Vines - So this one's a fav not because it's good (it's reeeeeeally shit) but because Craig Nicholls has an epic meltdown and knocks over some drums and generally behaves like a dick.
4.
Blues Traveller - A band you may not have ever heard of unless you live in the US or remember their song 'Hook', but they're a pretty successful bluesy southern rock outfit whose frontman, John Popper, plays a seriously mean blues harp. In this performance, Popper let's rip with one of the most ridiculous harp solos you've ever heard.
5.
Van Halen - This is awesome. Van Halen are without question one of the greatest rock bands ever. EVER. Eddie plays emotive '90s piano as well ripping the shit out of a guitar solo later on. The '90s rule.
6.
Adele - We heard this song for the first time on Letterman, before it was thrashed to hell, and it's still one of our favs.
7.
Gorillaz - Damon Albarn is a fair genius. Gorillaz is proof. And their concert on Letterman was dope. This one kinda doesn't count but we don't care. DE LA SOUL.
8.
A$AP Rocky - This is fresh. Like the most recent performance fresh. Enlisting the help of A-Trak, araabMUZIK and DJ Clark, A$AP busts out a spesh edition of 'Wild For The Night'. Wow.
9. Steve Martin - Steve Martin and a banjo. That is all.
10. A Tribe Called Quest - One of our all time fav hip hop groups at the top of their game. Unbeatable.