I'm Not a Musician - But I Play One on TV!

What happens when you mix a Bachelor, a few Heroes, a guy who's Lost, a Desperate Housewife and a plumber, plus Chuck, a doctor, and his intern in the House?


Why, you get Band from TV, which is what it sounds like: a cover band composed of TV actors who play for nonprofit causes in their spare time.

Netflix sponsored their latest show a couple of weeks ago, and when I got the invite from Netflix, there was no way I wasn't going!!! TV? Music? Classic television episodes afterward? All in the lawn of the Gene Autry National Center, a hop-skip-and-jump away from my childhood stomping grounds? What's not to love?!

My friend Laura and I made record time driving to L.A. and snagged some pretty good seats on the lawn about an hour before the show got started.


Taking to the stage that evening were Band from TV regulars James Denton (Desperate Housewives), Jesse Spencer (House), Greg Grunberg (Heroes, Alias), Bob Guiney (The Bachelor, TLC's Date My House), Teri Hatcher (Desperate Housewives, Lois and Clark), and accomplished musicians Chris Kelley, Barry Sarna, Jon Sarna, Chris Mostert and child-star turned bass player Brad Savage (The Apple Dumpling Gang). The usual band was joined for the evening by Hugh Laurie (House), Hayden Panettiere (Heroes), Zach Levi (Chuck), Adrian Pasdar (Heroes) and Jorge Garcia (Lost).

Here they are, pre-show - can you spot Greg Grunberg in a black tee in the middle?

Oh, and in the crowd? Hayden's boyfriend/costar, Milo Ventimiglia, snapping pictures like the best of the paparazzi. Not gonna lie - I was totally starstruck, watching him and Hayden - my favorite Heroes - as they chatted to the side of the stage. They were too cute!

I have to say, I was pretty impressed with Band from TV, too - they were actually great! Lucky for you, some fellow audience members uploaded footage to YouTube. Now you can check out the Band from TV goodness from the concert. Let's start with the official footage of the opening number:



Oh, and here's my pic from that number - yep, I ran up and was that close!

Man, they rocked! Jesse Spencer can play the fiddle like none other. His rendition of "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" was spectacular - listen for yourself!




Did you see the blurry white line to the right of the big screen behind the band? They hung a little Hollywood sign that would look natural on camera as Netflix filmed. I had to laugh - the real deal is on the other side of the mountain, and anyone who knows L.A. would know you can't see it from this side of Griffith Park!

At one point, James Denton slipped out of his white oxford and busted out "Papa Loves Mama," showing off his bulging biceps in a grey tank. Yah. Hot.

Here's a "The Letter" with Bob Guiney and Zach Levi, who both have impressively great voices - and can you spot Adrian Pasdar playing bass on the left?



Wow, and can Hugh Laurie ever play piano?! Here he is on "Such a Night":



The only star who was a bit of a low note was Teri. Props to her for making the time to be part of the band - but, besides wearing a scandalously short dress... well... let me put it this way: when Bob Guiney, who did most of the emceeing, remarked "What can't that woman do?" - Laura and I, in unison, responded "Sing?" Yeah. Judge for yourself:



She wasn't too bad on fast songs like "Before He Cheats," but oh - no more ballads for Teri. Don't quit your day job, hon.

After the show, Netflix aired several classic TV episodes on a huge inflatable screen - School House Rocks election bits played between episodes of The Cosby Show, Mary Tyler Moore and a few other shows. It was such a fun night!!!

Many thanks to Laura, who came along for the fun on a perfect summer night (and provided cameras, since mine's battery was dead). Seriously, it's great happenings like that (and the weather, too) that make me so, so glad I live in SoCal!