We'll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives: A Swingin' Show-Biz Saga

Paul Shaffer grew up in Thunder Bay, Ontario, and ended up leading the house band for the most influential late-night television program in American history. Between those two points: Toronto strip joints, an early cast of Saturday Night Live that included Gilda Radner and John Belushi, the formation of the Blues Brothers, and decades of playing alongside the greatest musicians of his era. Shaffer's memoir is a warm, funny, star-saturated account of someone who spent his life surrounded by legends while somehow remaining himself.

Shaffer narrates his own book with the dry comedic timing that millions of television viewers know, making the showbiz anecdotes feel like stories told over dinner rather than polished performances. His musical knowledge informs every passage about the artists he encountered, and his genuine affection for the people and the work comes through without sentimentality. At just under nine hours, this is an unusually entertaining celebrity memoir.