"Having Letterman posthumously induct Zevon was an apt choice, as the pair's connection goes back decades. Letterman first had Zevon on NBC's Late Night With David Letterman during the show's first season in 1982. The two became close, with the rocker making regular appearances, even as Letterman moved over to CBS for Late Show With David Letterman. Zevon would also sit as the show's bandleader on multiple occasions when Paul Shaffer was absent. "Being right there in the studio was my own version of being 20 feet from stardom - it was delightful," Letterman said during his induction speech about working with Zevon."
"Letterman said he asked Zevon's son, Jordan, if there was anything he wanted to make sure got mentioned during the ceremony. Jordan gave him three things: "'I want you to mention that when Warren was a kid, he studied with Igor Stravinsky.' I said, 'Okay, Igor Stravinsky... by the way, when I was a kid, I had a paper route,'" joked Letterman."
"On a more serious note, Letterman praised Zevon for his poetry and his breadth of songwriting. "Ask any of Warren's peers - Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, hell, ask Igor Stravinsky - Warren Zevon is in my Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Actually, his own wing." He went on to break down Zevon's music into three categories: Global and Personal Strife ("Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner," "Excitable Boy," "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead"), love songs ("Mutineer," "Reconsider Me," "Searching for a Heart"), and finally songs about"
David Letterman inducted Warren Zevon into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with an impassioned speech celebrating their decades-long friendship and professional bond. Letterman first booked Zevon on Late Night in 1982 and hosted him regularly through the Late Show era. Zevon occasionally filled in as bandleader when Paul Shaffer was absent. Letterman relayed Jordan Zevon's requested mentions, joking about Igor Stravinsky, Stumpy the Gangster, and Bev the Mormon. Letterman praised Zevon's poetry and songwriting breadth, invoking peers such as Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, and Igor Stravinsky. Letterman categorized Zevon's songs and cited specific examples across those categories.
Read at Consequence
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]