-Thank you so much for coming on.
-Are you kidding? This is your --
You've been on "The Tonight" --
You have been the star of "The Tonight Show"
for five years. -That's right.
Thank you very much. [ Cheers and applause ]
-You are -- You know what?
The piano... -Ah.
-...it's perfect for -- you know what I'm doing now?
This is called "noodling." -It's like lounge --
-Do you know what I mean by noodling?
-It's fun, yeah. -Where you just kind of, yeah...
-We have a conversation. -As we speak. Yeah, we --
-It's like a "Playboy After Dark" type of...
-A kind of -- exactly. Very cool. Yeah, very cool.
-Yeah. -Yeah.
-When did you first -- -Come on in, Barbi.
Barbi Benton. [ Light laughter ]
-Look who's here. Look who's here.
-Right. -Oh my goodness.
-Yeah, so I'll be noodling while -- Do you mind?
I'm just gonna noodle as you interview her.
-No, you noodle, and I'll... -Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
-I'll just kind of lay like... -What are you drinking?
[ Light laughter ] Like a Scotch?
-I'm just having a -- Well, I'll have a --
-Get this man a Scotch. -Scotch on the rocks.
Thank you very much. -Rocks, yes.
-Thank you. Of course.
When did -- When did you first start playing piano?
Do you remember as a -- as a kid?
Like, do you remember going like,
"Oh, this could be my thing"? -My -- Yes.
My mother said to her neighbors and friends,
"That kid is gonna take piano lessons or --
over my dead body!" -[ Laughs ] Really?
-That's the kind of mother I had.
-Is that right? -And I thank her to this day
because I studied classical piano
from the age of 6 all through high school.
-Really? -And, yeah,
I gave it up once I went to college,
but, yes, I studied classical.
-What made you get out in college?
You just feel like, "It's not..."
-Oh, I don't know. I thought there would be
too much to do in college, you know?
You have to buckle down and get to work.
And so I gave up.
You know, I no longer had a rock band.
I played in a high school --
all through high school with a rock band.
Gave it all up.
Tried to settle down and become an academic of some sort.
I got so sad and depressed,
and then I started playing a little bit in the --
after first year.
Cheered up right away! -A little -- Yeah, exactly.
A little rock and roll, yeah. -And I said,
"Yeah, I got to do music.
I got to -- I think I got to at least try."
-'Cause I think I -- I think... -Yeah.
-...the first time I know you from is "Saturday Night Live."
-That's right. -You were --
-I did the first five years of "Saturday Night Live."
I was the band -- [ Cheers and applause ]
Thank -- Yes, indeed. -That's yours.
-Now, I'm talking about the original cast
of Chevy Chase, Gilda Radner. -Yes!
-All the greats. -Belushi.
-Garrett Morris, Belushi, Dan Aykroyd.
Oh, indeed. -Oh!
-The classic people -- Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman.
-Do you have any favorite moments from that?
I know everyone probably asks you.
-Well, you know, I used to --
I became a writer of special musical material.
I used to write musical stuff for the cast.
And you remember when Billy Murray
used to do his lounge?
-Nick the Lounge Singer. -Nick the Lounge Singer, yeah.
-Dude, I remember you from that. Yeah, absolutely.
-So I would -- yeah, I would not only appear in it
as -- as the pianist, but I used to be a part of --
-It was like... ♪ "Star Wars" ♪
-Exactly. -♪ Talking about "Star Wars" ♪
♪ Talkin' 'bout ♪ That crazy...
-♪ "Star Wars" ♪
♪ Don't let them in ♪ -[ Laughs ]
-And I wrote these.
These are my lyrics for the bridge.
♪ And, hey ♪
♪ How about that nutty "Star Wars" bar? ♪
[ Laughter ] -Now, thank you.
Thank you very much. [ Cheers and applause ]
I wrote that. -That's right. Yeah.
-♪ Who can believe those creatures in there? ♪
I think I wrote that, too.
-♪ How about that nutty 'Star Wars' bar? ♪
-That was -- Thank you very much.
-I love it.
-'Cause everybody in town was talking about it.
Oh, did you see the "Star Wars" bar?
That's what everybody used to talk about.
-Yeah! -Where they're...
[ Up-tempo music plays ]
Oh, of course.
-You know, that music would play.
[ Cheers and applause ] Yeah, well, that was --
I'm just getting warmed up. -But then, you went from there,
and then -- so...
But you went on to "SNL," but then I realize that
you were friends with Marty Short and Gilda from --
was it "Godspell"? -This is crazy.
Yeah, well, we all met in Toronto in 1972.
We were all about 22 years old.
And there was a Canadian version
of the New York show called "Godspell"
casting in Toronto.
And Steve Schwartz, the composer --
he's the guy who wrote "Wicked" --
it's running on Broadway now forever.
-Yeah, of course. -He was up in Toronto casting,
and he cast all the funniest people in town.
He cast Martin Short. He cast Eugene Levy.
He cast Andrea Martin, Gilda Radner.
-Can you imagine that?
-Victor Garber from "Alias." -Yeah.
-Dave Thomas from "SCTV." -"SCTV."
-This was our company. And then, in the intro--
in the auditions, I was playing for
a couple of girlfriends of mine who were auditioning for him.
And Stephen Schwartz said,
"I want to talk to that piano player."
And he said, "Can you play the rest of the auditions?
'Cause you seem to know a lot of songs."
And at the end of the day, he said,
"Do you think you could get a band together
and conduct the show?"
And I was in show business. And that's how it happened.
-Yeah. -And I'm still --
[ Cheers and applause ] Yes, indeed.
Thank you. -I think you're -- you --
you -- you ride that great line that not many people --
of comedy and music.
And you're an idol to me and a lot of people.
But I -- 'Cause I love both, and you're just --
I mean, you were in "Spinal Tap."
You're Artie Fufkin.
-I got to be Artie Fufkin in "Spinal Tap."
-Yes! [ Cheers and applause ]
-Yes, thank you. One of my -- One of my hits.
Thank you for remembering. -Your hit? Oh, please.
-One of my hits. -But then you went on
to -- to -- to be a sidekick and bandleader
for David Letterman. -Well, that was just --
And you know David -- when -- when he --
[ Cheers and applause ] Thank you for remembering.
When David -- When I went in for my first meeting with him,
he said, "You know, I used to see you on 'SNL'
doing those Bill Murray lounge sketches."
-Yeah. -He -- That's where he knows me.
I think that may have been what got me the job
was just, you know, my work with Billy in those things.
-And do you remember being in this studio,
and in this building?
-"Star Wars" -- absolutely, coming in here.
I remember how -- how we come in in the basement now.
-Yeah. Exactly, yeah. -We come --
It reminded me of the day that we had
the big Sonny & Cher reunion on "Letterman."
Do you remember that? -Of course.
-They hadn't been together, and they sang "I Got You Babe"
for the first time. -Yes.
-And afterwards, I'm down in the basement,
and there was no limousine for me or my band.
We're trying to get out to California
for a rehearsal the next morning.
I know Questlove knows what I'm talking about.
-You're on tour, yeah.
-Because you're always on a flight.
And the limo company just flaked, and there was no car.
And Sonny comes out.
Sonny Bono says, "Paul, what's the matter?"
I said, "I don't know how we're gonna get to the airport.
There's no car."
He says, "Take my car. I'll go with Cher."
-No! -I said, "What?"
Yeah, Cher has had like 15 hairdressers
and three trainers with her, you know?
-Yeah! -And Chastity is there.
He actually pushed me into the limousine -- "Take my car."
-And saved the day for you. -That was Sonny Bono --
-Hey, that's a great story! -Yeah.
[ Cheers and applause ] -♪ I got you, babe ♪
-That's what Sonny sang.