Letterman Music Files | Steve Winwood Through The Years

On May 20 David Letterman will host the Late Show for the last time. Letterman Music Files presents musical performances from Dave’s run as host of both the Late Show With David Letterman and Late Night With David Letterman by some of our favorite artists.

Steve Winwood has been a regular visitor to Dave’s programs over the years. Not only has Winwood appeared on both the Late Show and Late Night as a solo performer, he also chose the Late Show to host Traffic’s first public performance in 20 years back in 1994.

In 1986 Winwood was riding high thanks the release of Back In The High Life, a solo album that went on to sell over five million copies and included the chart-topping hit “Higher Love.” Steve and members of his solo ensemble teamed up with Letterman house band the “World’s Most Dangerous Band” to perform stand out renditions of “Higher Love” and “Gimme Some Lovin’.” Watch how it went down (“Higher Love” starts at 23:40, “Gimme Some Lovin'” begins at 39:30):

Steve Winwood enlisted the help of Letterman’s house band again in 2010 for another take on “Gimme Some Lovin'”:

As mentioned, Winwood brought the final version of Traffic to the Late Show in 1994 just before the group began a reunion tour. The episode also featured Johnny Carson in what would be his last public appearance. Watch Traffic perform “Here Comes A Man”:

Finally, check out Steve Winwood’s performance of “Spy In The House Of Love” from 2008: