While live concerts remain on indefinite hiatus, Widespread Panic has kept their fans happy by continuing to release a non-stop carousel of archive live content to the band’s YouTube. Tuesday saw the jam stalwarts unearth footage from vintage appearances on CNN as well as NBC‘s Late Night with Conan O’Brien.
These latest videos come in a continuing series of archive content that so far has included footage from the 2002 documentary The Earth Will Swallow You, along with the 2003 concert film Live from the Backyard, a video from Widespread Panic’s 10/5/13 show in Charleston, and much more.
The first clip, chronologically speaking, comes from Panic’s April 6th, 1995 appearance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. O’Brien himself had only been on the air for less than two years at that point in his career, meanwhile, the band was hitting its stride after eight years of relentless touring. Appearing on the comedian’s show to promote 1994’s Ain’t Life Grand, the Athens, GA blues bulldogs tear into “Can’t Get High”. While none of these television spots feature the kind of live improvisation that has made WSP a tour de force of the jam world, it displays the band’s ability to play to any audience on a national stage.
A little over two years later on June 19th, 1997, Panic returned to Late Night for a performance of Vic Chesnutt‘s “Aunt Avis”. The band came back to NBC to help promote 1997’s Bombs & Butterflies, and this performance finds the bind firing on all cylinders as guitarist Michael Houser is able to fit more exploration into the truncated appearance. Finally, the band returned on August 4th, 1998 for the third and final time to perform J.J. Cale‘s  “Travelin’ Light” following the release of Light Fuse Get Away.
The day prior to that final Late Night appearance, Panic could be found on the rooftop of CNN where the band performed a medley of songs for fans passing by. For nearly six minutes throughout the broadcast, CNN cut in and out of Panic’s set from the roof as they ran through fan favorites like “Disco”, “Chilly Water”, “Hope In A Hopeless World”, and “Wondering”. Between songs, frontman John Bell laid on his Southern charm as he explained the band’s commitment to its fans because, after all, “Fans are really the ones who gave us our first job.”
Watch vintage footage of Widespread Panic on Late Night with Conan O’Brien and CNN.
Widespread Panic – “Can’t Get High” – Late Night with Conan O’Brien – 4/6/95
[Video: Widespread Panic]
Widespread Panic – “Aunt Avis” (Vic Chesnutt) – Late Night with Conan O’Brien – 6/19/97
[Video: Widespread Panic]
Widespread Panic – “Travelin’ Light” (J.J. Cale) – Late Night with Conan O’Brien – 8/4/98
[Video: Widespread Panic]
Widespread Panic – CNN Rooftop – Atlanta, GA – 8/3/98
[Video: Widespread Panic]