SNL50 Celebrations Have Late-Night Bands Playing Musical Chairs

Paul Shaffer and The World’s Most Dangerous Band are returning to NBC late night. Shaffer and his band are set to fill in for The Roots on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon next week. 

The move will allow Jimmy Fallon’s regular house band to rehearse for next Friday’s SNL50: The Homecoming Concert. Announced just last week as one of the performing acts at the concert, it’s a safe bet that The Roots will be providing backup throughout much of the live, three-hour concert set to go down at Radio City Music Hall.

“I’ll be reuniting The World’s Most Dangerous Band for four super-fun shows with Jimmy. We hope to finally get right all the mistakes we made with Dave,” Shaffer told Billboard, which scooped the story Wednesday

The performance will mark Shaffer and The World’s Most Dangerous Band’s second proper homecoming to NBC since departing the network in 1993. The group previously served as The Tonight Show’s fill-in band for one night in February 2023, when The Roots were in Los Angeles attending the Grammy Awards.

From 1982 to 1993, the group worked across the hall from Fallon’s studio, serving as the house band for Late Night with David Letterman. Shaffer and the group followed David Letterman when he defected to CBS for Late Show with David Letterman in 1993, renaming the group The CBS Orchestra for Late Show’s run.

Shaffer also returned to The Tonight Show in December to accompany Darlene Love’s holiday appearance, performing “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” with the singer in a nod to a longstanding Late Show tradition.

Prior to becoming Letterman’s musical director, Shaffer was a member of the Saturday Night Live Band for most of its first five years—making this game of musical chairs something of a family affair for NBC. Shaffer also recently appeared in Ladies & Gentlemen… 50 Years of SNL Music, the NBC documentary directed by The Roots co-founder Questlove.

Paul Shaffer and The World’s Most Dangerous Band will play Fallon’s Tonight Show Monday, February 10th through Thursday, February 13th.

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