Frank Sinatra famously said, “If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere,” about New York City. The world-renowned city has been a hub for countless musicians, actors, and comedians over the years. When Bill Murray, a relative unknown at the time, arrived on the stage of Studio 8C to perform as part of the Saturday Night Live cast, he set out to prove that he could make it anywhere. From SNL to the big screen, he had fans in stitches with the likes of 1979’s Meatballs, 1980’s Caddyshack, and 1993’s Groundhog Day, though Manhattan would once again claim his biggest role when Murray suited up as one of the iconic 1985 film Ghostbusters.
Murray has only continued to become a larger-than-life star. Back in 2002, in a moment of chance, Guitarists Mike Zito and Albert Castiglia were booked to perform at the Caddyshack Golf Tournament. As the name suggests, the tournament was named after Murray’s hit 1980 film, and Murray was in attendance. No stranger to improv, Murray decided to join the band on stage after they had started playing a song by The Rascals, one of his favorite bands.
The band and Murray hit it off so well that they continue to perform over twenty years later. In November of 2025, the band announced a handful of dates, including one in Manhattan’s Webster Hall on January 24, 2026. How fitting it was that Bill Murray would once again be live from New York on a Saturday Night. The temperatures outside were below freezing when the band arrived, ready to warm things up on the Webster Hall Stage.
As fans shuffled in and headed upstairs to the stage area, opening act Jimmy Carpenter Band was ready to take the stage. Grammy Award-winning Blues Artist Jimmy Carpenter (saxophone/vocals) was joined by Chris Tofield (guitar), David Kida (drums), Dave Keyes (keyboard), and guest Scot Sutherland (bass). The five entertained fans with original tracks off their 2024 release Just Got Started. Tracks including “Jimmy Shimmy,” “My Babe,” and “I Only Gamble With My Heart” showed off the band’s bluesy album. Carpenter joked between tracks that the band was selling the album at the merch booth and hoped to sell out so he’d have one less bag to pack before leaving NY. He made sure to pay his bandmates, announcing each one to a warm ovation from the crowd. Carpenter was also doing double duty tonight as he performed with Bill Murray and his Blood Brothers as well, so the act gave insight into what to expect when the headliner hits the stage.
Fashionably late by about 15 minutes, the headlining act came out for the crowd at around 9:45 PM to a huge ovation. In addition to Murray, Zito, Castiglia, and Carpenter, the band includes the likes of Ray Hangen (drums), Matt Johnson (drums), and former Late Night with Conan O’Brien’s Jimmy Vivino (guitar). As fans would find out throughout the night, there’d also be a few special guest appearances up their sleeve.
The band kicked off the night with some originals from Zito and Castiglia with “In My Soul’ and “Tooth and Nail.” As they got into a groove, Murray was already showing his personality despite hanging in the back as he slapped the conga drums, shook a shaker, and gave fans more cowbell. Murray came out from behind the drums and centerstage to take over vocals for a cover of Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves of London”. In fact, most of the songs in the set are covers, executed to perfection. From there, the band moved on to The Kinks’ “Tired of Waiting For You” before Jimmy Vivino took over for “Slow Blues.” Vivino ditched the mic and sang the song directly to the crowd, heading to each balcony to serenade them with a bit of the music. Throughout the night, each member had a chance to shine centerstage with Murray often sitting back and letting the other talented stars have their moments.
And then there were the special guests. The fun started with a violinist named Allison. Fans cheered her as she was introduced to the stage, but Murray stopped the crowd and deadpanned that she was from Canada, “our enemy to the North,” before asking for volunteers to help build that wall. She added her talent to a cover of Mel McDaniel’s “Big Ole Brew” before leaving the stage. The guests kept coming as Jim Keller led his talents to Tommy Tutone’s “867-5309/Jenny,” a song that he had written.
After a few more tracks, the one and only Paul Shaffer joined on keys. Murray joked that the snow had already started and everyone was stuck at the venue for the night, though in reality, the blizzard wasn’t set to kick in until early the next morning. He made it known he didn’t want the night to end. Together, everyone closed out the show with Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone,” Stephen Stills’ “Love the One You’re With,” and finally Robert Johnson’s “Sweet Home Chicago.” When it was all said and done, everyone from the band to their guests came center stage for one final bow as fans cheered them on.
In general, a band that’s mostly performing covers is a hard sell. It takes a lot of talent and some name recognition to sell tickets, but Bill Murray & his Blood Brothers provided just that. The show was worth every penny, and even amid below-zero temperatures and a looming storm, fans showed up excited for a fun night. From the opening track to the curtain call, fans young and old sang, danced, and enjoyed a good amount of Murray’s distinct sense of humor. The band has a limited schedule of shows through April, with two stops in Texas and Florida each. While the band will surely embrace the warmer climates of both, the New York crowd made sure their night was just as unforgettable to the band as it was to them.
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