Paul Shaffer…One Hell of a Ride

Composer, actor, author, musical director, comedic talent, soul-man extraordinaire and ultimate “hipster,” Paul Shaffer, for almost 40-years has been among the most visible people on the planet. A partial list of his accomplishments include: Godspell, Saturday Night Live, The Blues Brothers, The Late Show and Late Night with David Letterman, The Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies, a number one hit, “It’s Raining Men,” and writing the theme for David Letterman’s current Netflix specials, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, plus hosting his own show on SIRIUS XM Radio, Paul Shaffer Plus One. Recently, Elmore writer Bob Girouard caught up with this modern-day Renaissance man for a candid reflection on his remarkable career past, present and future.

EM: You were one of the first utility/journeyman to come to national prominence as a musical director/band leader. What do you feel that David Letterman saw in you that he didn’t in others who auditioned for the gig?

PS: Well, he mentioned he had seen me on Saturday Night Live. I had been in the house band for the first five years and started to edge my way onto some on-camera sketch work as well. Specifically, he recalled some of those lounge singer sketches that Bill Murray would do and I would help out. I think that Dave got a feeling that I was funny. It’s as simple as that.

EM: You’ve mentioned Felix Cavaliere as an influence. Was it a memorable experience playing with Felix Cavalieri and the original Rascals at Robert De Niro’s Tribeca Grill, in 2012, in what was the precursor to their Once Upon A Dream reunion tour?

PS: Yes, it was phenomenal. I got a call from Steven Van Zandt, who told me he was putting the original Rascals together for one night only for charity. He mentioned he wanted me to be a sideman and play various horns and string parts. It was so exciting that Steven went onto develop it into a Broadway show. That night was the genesis of it. It was sort of like dying and going to “soul heaven.” I was in The Rascals for one night and no one can take it away from me!

EM: You mention your love of NYC often. It eventually became your permanent home. Your involvement in the rock opera Godspell created some immediate opportunities. In regards to a good thing that repeats itself, a Blue-Ray Godspell DVD is being released for the first time on March 24. Will you be taking part in any of it?

PS: Wow, that’s the first I’m hearing about it. I’m sure glad to know that it will be coming out. It was my first time in a NYC recording studio, when producer Stephen Schwartz brought me in from Canada to play on the soundtrack. I remember it all clear as day. It has a lot of wonderful memories, and I bet there will be some interesting bonus tracks and things that will be of interest to me, especially.

EM: The Letterman shows had an incredible run….1982-2015. Your comedic persona really developed under his mentorship.

PS: Dave was incredibly generous with his program. Sometime after we got comfortable with each other he said to me: “Feel free to jump in if you have anything that you think is good.” He gave me that kind of confidence and encouragement. I had the ability to improvise with him; a man who was known to be the fastest and funniest guy out there, and still is, for my money. But he made feel so confident that I could do it, and I didn’t have that kind of confidence everywhere. I’d go elsewhere and try to do it but wasn’t able to. Didn’t have the confidence, but in his theater, you know, he really made me feel at home and I’ll always be indebted for that.

EM: The concept behind the Paul Shaffer Plus One show was very cool…who came up with that premise?

PS: My manager Eric Gardner and I were talking about this kind of show for some time. Originally, I thought we would do it like a Hugh Hefner House Party; a very sophisticated Playboy After Dark kind of thing. Within that, we might have a known artist perform as part of the party atmosphere. Eventually, we dropped the satire aspect, as we were trying to do too much.  We revised it to be an interview show with the artist, and I going between music and dialogue then selecting a certain classic or classics they’d perform, accompanied by me. Unfortunately, AXS TV changed hands, so I’m looking for a new video affiliate. However, you can hear the hour-long audio versions on SIRIUS XM Radio. Last week we featured Neil Sedaka. It was fantastic…we had an awful lot of fun singing together.

EM: This past Fall on Fox television, you (as the skeleton) were featured on The Masked Singer show. What was that experience like, and would you do it again?

PS: It was hilarious, and an awful lot of fun. They really do try to keep the identities secret from each other. I didn’t last too long but had a great time and felt much better after I saw Chaka Kahn, Dionne Warwick and Patty LaBelle all get booted off. I didn’t feel as bad after that!

EM: Where are you headed as an artist, and is there anything that remains in your stellar “show biz” career you haven’t conquered?

PS: You know, I’ve had more than my share of fun. I want to keep on doing stuff because it makes me happy. You have to step aside eventually and let others in on some of that fun and that’s all that I’m doing…trying to hang in a little bit myself.

—Bob Girouard

An Elmore contributor since 2010, Bob Girouard is a drummer, musician and writer, authoring  an Elmore 2010 cover story, “Texas’ Seventh Sons,” and a 2019 feature on The Jefferson Airplane’s Jorma Kaukonen, among others. This is his first interview with Paul Shaffer.