Stephen Colbert Joins David Byrne for Performance of “Burning Down the House”

As The Late Show with Stephen Colbert enters its final days, Colbert has lined up an impressive roster of guests, including Tuesday night’s musical performance from David Byrne.

Byrne played Talking Heads’ 1983 hit “Burning Down the House,” starting out the track on his own with an acoustic guitar. Other bandmates and dancers slowly joined in as the song progressed, with a backdrop of flames behind them. Colbert was the last to join, donning a blue jumpsuit to match the rest of the band and looking like he loved every second.

Byrne Has Stopped by The Late Show Before

Byrne explained his reasoning for the blue jumpsuits during a previous visit to The Late Show back in March.

“I knew I wanted it to be colorful,” he told Colbert. “The last one was grey. It was not a sad show, but it was grey. I thought, ‘No, the times we live in, we need some color.’”

During that episode, Byrne also performed the song “When We Are Singing” from his latest album, Who Is the Sky?, his first new release since 2018.

“I really don’t like writing songs about my business, but I thought, ‘Oh, you know, when people are singing they look kind of funny,” Byrne told Colbert. “You can’t tell if they’re in ecstasy. They just have their mouth open.’” He added, “It’s all the same look.”

Byrne has been a guest on the show a few times over the years, most notably for a reunion and interview with all members of Talking Heads in 2023.

Byrne kicked off his current tour in April, and it will continue through July, taking him through Europe, Asia, and the US. The scheduled shows include some festival appearances.

Tuesday’s episode of The Late Show also featured Colbert’s former Daily Show colleague, Jon Stewart, and director Steven Spielberg. The show’s episode on Wednesday, May 20, will feature Bruce Springsteen as a guest. The lineup for the final episode on Thursday, May 21, has not been announced. CBS announced in July 2025 that the show would be ending. Colbert took over hosting the show in 2015, following the departure of longtime host David Letterman.