News

R.I.P. Hiram Bullock

3:05 p.m. · July 28, 2008 · by Jim Allen

Hiram Bullock, best known as the original guitarist in the Paul Shaffer-led David Letterman band, passed away on July 25 at the age of 52, after a long bout with throat cancer. Today, it's common to see a rocking house band pumping things up on a TV show, but in the early '80s, when Bullock and the boys started backing up Letterman, it was a mini-revelation. Before that, it was strictly Doc Severinsen city in the Johnny Carson era.

But before, during, and after his Letterman tenure, Bullock was always more than just Shaffer's musical sparring partner. He had been an in-demand session guitarist since the early '70s, playing on albums by (deep breath)...Paul Simon, Steely Dan, Billy Joel, Chaka Khan, Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway, the Blues Brothers, Carla Bley, Gil Evans, Jaco Pastorius, Sting, Taj Mahal, and dozens more.