<P> Paul Shaffer and the World 's Most Dangerous Band is an American big band led by Paul Shaffer . It is best known for being David Letterman 's house band for 33 years . The band formed in 1982 to serve as house band for NBC 's Late Night with David Letterman . When Letterman moved to CBS and began hosting the Late Show with David Letterman in 1993 , the band added a horn section and second guitarist , renaming itself ( due to an intellectual property dispute with NBC ) the CBS Orchestra , a name that lasted until Letterman left the Late Show in 2015 . After a two - year hiatus , in 2017 , the band was revived by Shaffer using its original name and released an album titled Paul Shaffer & The World 's Most Dangerous Band , followed by a tour . </P>
rock and roll hall of fame house band
Paul Shaffer and the World 's Most Dangerous Band