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Quiz about The Bands of Late Night
Quiz about The Bands of Late Night

The Bands of Late Night Trivia Quiz


The American late-night talk show format is familiar--a host, a topical comedy monologue, a parade of gabby celebrities and of course, a house band. See if you can guess which band goes with which show.

A multiple-choice quiz by Mbovary. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
Mbovary
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
379,359
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
6 / 10
Plays
238
Last 3 plays: matthewpokemon (8/10), Guest 175 (2/10), Guest 68 (8/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. Originating as the house band on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" and later graduating to "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon," this group is one of the most popular bands of late night. Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. On "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," this man led the NBC Orchestra (AKA The Tonight Show Band) from 1967 until 1992. Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. When "Late Night with Seth Meyers" premiered February of 2014, who was the leader of the 8G Band? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Airing on NBC from 1993 to 2009, "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" featured this house band. Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. David Letterman's band, led by Paul Shaffer, was renamed The CBS Orchestra when Letterman made the switch from NBC to CBS. What was the band's original name? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Which short-lived talk show's house band was The Party Boys and the Tramp led by Mark Hudson? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. The frontman for the "Jimmy Kimmel Live" house band used to be Kimmel's neighbor when they were kids. Which band is it? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Which late-night talk show featured a robot sidekick named Geoff Peterson, as well as the infrequently appearing semi-house band called Bone Patrol? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Kevin Eubanks was the leader of The Tonight Show Band from 1995 to 2010. Who preceded him? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Which of these late-night talk shows did NOT have an in-house band? Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Mar 12 2024 : matthewpokemon: 8/10
Feb 01 2024 : Guest 175: 2/10
Jan 30 2024 : Guest 68: 8/10
Jan 29 2024 : Guest 174: 6/10

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Originating as the house band on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" and later graduating to "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon," this group is one of the most popular bands of late night.

Answer: The Roots

Headed by Questlove, The Roots are a grammy-award winning neo-soul/hip-hop group that formed in 1987. They met Jimmy Fallon in 2008 and were instantly attracted by his disarming personality and nerdy silliness.

Michael Bearden and the Ese Vato's were George Lopez's house band on the TBS late-night show "Lopez Tonight" (2009-2011).

As of September of 2015, Jon Batiste and his band Stay Human have been the house band for "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert."
2. On "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," this man led the NBC Orchestra (AKA The Tonight Show Band) from 1967 until 1992.

Answer: Doc Severinsen

Doc began his "Tonight Show" tenure during the Steve Allen days (1954-1957) as a trumpeter under band leader Skitch Henderson. Throughout his career, he released over thirty albums and even won a Grammy for Best Jazz instrumental Performance - Big Band. .
3. When "Late Night with Seth Meyers" premiered February of 2014, who was the leader of the 8G Band?

Answer: Fred Armisen

Hastily thrown together by Fred Armisen mere weeks before their first test show, The 8G Band is named for the studio in which the show is filmed. What makes this band unique is its frequent use of guest musicians, often filling the place of Armisen, who is off working on his TV series, "Portlandia."
4. Airing on NBC from 1993 to 2009, "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" featured this house band.

Answer: The Max Weinberg 7

Up until this point, Max Weinberg had been famous for being the drummer in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. On "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," he evolved into a comic foil for O'Brien, and the pair became known for their steely-faced stare downs. After the drama with O'Brien getting and subsequently losing "The Tonight Show," Max Weinberg left in 2010.

When O'Brien began "Conan" on TBS, guitarist Jimmy Vivino became the leader of the newly-named Jimmy Vivino and The Basic Cable Band.
5. David Letterman's band, led by Paul Shaffer, was renamed The CBS Orchestra when Letterman made the switch from NBC to CBS. What was the band's original name?

Answer: The World's Most Dangerous Band

In 1982, Paul Shaffer assembled The World's Most Dangerous Band. With Will Lee on the bass, Hiram Bullock on guitar, Steve Jordon on the drums and Paul himself at the keyboards, late-night history was born. When they moved to CBS, the band expanded, adding horns and eventually a vocalist.
6. Which short-lived talk show's house band was The Party Boys and the Tramp led by Mark Hudson?

Answer: The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers

Mark Hudson, of the 1970s pop group The Hudson Brothers, left late-night behind and went on to have a prolific career as a record producer and songwriter. He's worked with Cher, Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne and Ringo Starr. He's also the uncle of Goldie Hawn's two kids, Kate and Oliver Hudson.
7. The frontman for the "Jimmy Kimmel Live" house band used to be Kimmel's neighbor when they were kids. Which band is it?

Answer: Cleto and the Cletones

Cleto Escobedo's family considers Jimmy Kimmel like another son because he lived next door and played with young Cleto starting when the boys were nine year olds. So it's only natural that when Jimmy needed a band leader he could trust, he turned to old friend and talented musician, Cleto Escobedo, III.

Chevy Chase's short-lived talk show featured what he called the best band in the world: The MBC Orchestra (which would later be called The Hollywood Express) led by Tom Scott.

Karen, led by Reggie Watts, is the house band of "The Late Late Show with James Corden."

Posse 2.0 was Arsenio Hall's house band in his 2013 talk show comeback.
8. Which late-night talk show featured a robot sidekick named Geoff Peterson, as well as the infrequently appearing semi-house band called Bone Patrol?

Answer: The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson

Ferguson was known as the punk rocker of late night because of his unconventional approach to the genre (not to mention his actual background playing in punk bands.) On his last show, Ferguson showed a celebrity-packed video montage over Dead Man Fall's rendition of "Bang Your Drum." The montage ended with Ferguson in his studio singing along with the dual drumming of Bone Patrol.

It was an emotional send off.
9. Kevin Eubanks was the leader of The Tonight Show Band from 1995 to 2010. Who preceded him?

Answer: Branford Marsalis

When Jay Leno took over "The Tonight Show" from Johnny Carson in 1992, he asked Branford Marsalis to be his band leader. Initially the saxophonist refused, but he reconsidered because his band felt the opportunity was too good to pass up. He held the position until 1995, when Eubanks, his lead guitarist, took over.

Rickey Minor took over for Eubanks in 2010 and left when Jay Leno stepped down as host in 2014.
10. Which of these late-night talk shows did NOT have an in-house band?

Answer: Last Call with Carson Daly

"Chelsea Lately" and "The Late Late Show With Craig Kilborn" are two other examples of late-night talk shows that did not have a house band.

Tom Canning, pianist, producer, and Grammy-nominated arranger, was the musical director and led the house band on "Thicke of the Night." The band had no name.

During the original incarnation of "The Arsenio Hall Show," the host dubbed his house band, The Posse.

Lyle "Skitch" Henderson was the original band leader of The Tonight Show Band. After leaving the show 1966, he eventually went on to found The New York Pops orchestra in 1983.
Source: Author Mbovary

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Gamemaster1967 before going online.
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