Over the five decades that Saturday Night Live has been on the air, almost ever major rock or rock-adjacent act has appeared on the show. So in honor of the show’s milestone 50th season, Rolling Stone has ranked its 50 greatest musical performances.
Topping the list is David Bowie‘s 1979 performance of “The Man Who Sold the World,” during which he was carried to the mic by performance artists Klaus Nomi and Joey Arias. Why? Because he was encased in a plastic tuxedo that made it difficult for him to move.
Rolling Stone chose that performance over the other two Bowie did that night, which were just as weird: He sang “TVC15” while wearing a pencil skirt and performed “Boys Keep Swinging” while using special effects to place his head on a marionette.
Number two on Rolling Stones‘ list is The Replacements‘ 1986 performance of “Bastards of Young,” during which singer Paul Westerberg shouted, “Come on f*****!” at guitarist Bob Stinson. According to Rolling Stone, Lorne Michaels was furious and said they’d never perform on TV again, though they did return that night to sing “Kiss Me on the Bus.”
Number three is Elvis Costello‘s legendary 1977 appearance, where he stopped his agreed-upon song, “Less Than Zero,” and then kicked into the then-unreleased track “Radio Radio.”
Number 4 and 5 are Prince‘s 1981 performance of “Partyup” and Radiohead‘s 2000 take on “The National Anthem.”
Others that made the list: Neil Young‘s “Rockin’ in the Free World”; R.E.M.’s “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?”; Pearl Jam‘s “Alive”; George Harrison and Paul Simon‘s acoustic duet of “Homeward Bound”; Tom Petty‘s “Free Fallin'”; U2‘s “I Will Follow”; Talking Heads‘ “Take Me to the River”; The Rolling Stones‘ “Shattered”; and Smashing Pumpkins‘ “Cherub Rock.”
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