Reviews

Where Are They Now - The Late Show

The first incarnation of the Late Show began in 1972, when four North Central High School students formed a band. Mark Cutsinger, Kevin Kimberlin, Don Main and Mark Moran performed under the band name Clayburn. They played originals and music from the 1960s.

The musicians moved to New York City in late 1974 and officially became the Late Show. Kimberlin left the band a year later, but stayed in NYC, where he still lives. The band continued to play with the other three core members.

By 1979, the Late Show was back in Indianapolis, Rick Clayton and Scott Fletcher played with them, and Chris Pyle replaced Cutsinger as the drummer.

A popular Indianapolis and regional band, the Late Show often performed at the Patio and the Vogue. Pyle remembers a favorite show in 1982. “We got a last minute gig opening for the Pretenders on their first U.S. tour, in Columbus, Ohio. We took the slot for the exposure and did not know what to expect,” he says. “The place was packed, and no one had any idea who we were. People were going crazy over us. We had to quit playing encores so the Pretenders could take the stage.”

The band underwent a few name changes (Recordio and Rock House) and stopped playing in 1991.

Moran is still playing music. He brought the Late Show back in 2006 (he is the only original member), and the band performs nearly every weekend. Cutsinger is still working full-time as a drummer; he toured and recorded in Europe last autumn. Main owns and manages Puccini’s Smiling Teeth Pizza. Pyle is a session drummer, plays with several bands and is a nationally acclaimed illustrator.

Nora Spitznogle
Nuvo Magazine
March 28, 2007

Resurrecting The Late Show

Who would guess that a classy little martini bar sits nestled in the autumn-bare fields on the northern outskirts of Noblesville? Stranger still is the idea that The Late Show, a solid rock band that won local fame and national recognition in the 1970s, would choose this venue to stage the debut concert of its 2006 resurrection.

The Late Show’s re-emergence on the music scene went off something like a dormant volcano erupting in the middle of semi-rural Indiana. The band’s magnetic energy could be felt from the bar entrance, and the members’ mastery of instrumentation and group cohesion allowed them to have some serious fun on stage.

The original Late Show included four members who performed original music as well as cover tunes from the 1960s. Local guitar icon Mark Moran is the only remaining member from that lineup, but all five musicians in the current incarnation have made names for themselves in the Indianapolis music scene. Joining Moran are Chopper (guitars), Monte Stultz (keyboard/guitar), Sherman Crouch (bass) and Stephen Bunny (drums). The band has added selections from the ’70s and ’80s to their repertoire, which calls for a wide range of vocal styles, but the challenge does not present a problem for the group, because everyone in the band sings. They seamlessly trade off lead, backing vocals and impressive four-part harmonies.

“We all love this music,” Monte says. “Our energy on stage comes from that feeling.” The band’s passion proved infectious Friday night. Vintage Late Show fans clinked martini glasses with 20-somethings, toasting old and new song favorites. It made no difference whether the listener holding the glass would classify the music as a “memory-jogging classic” or “cool retro.”

Laurel Gilchrist
Nuvo Magazine
November 29, 2006