Yesterday, Hugh Laurie and the rest of the Band From TV were at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Auto Club 500 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA. Hugh Laurie was the Master of Ceremonies for the racing event and here are a couple of photos of him when he announced to the drivers, “Start your engines.” I think it’s cute that they all dressed in very casual clothes for the vent. We don’t get to see them this way very often.

There are also a bunch of photos after the jump where Hugh, Greg Grunberg, James Denton & Jesse Spencer were interviewed at the event too. Band From TV performed there yesterday and I know it was a real treat for the NASCAR fans!

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Thanks to Grace for the tip about Band From TV’s big news!! After their television debut on the Tonight Show about a week and a half ago,
their CD, Hoggin’ All the Covers
hit #1 in sales on Amazon.com. It looks like the band is really taking off in popularity!

And to celebrate their success, the Band From TV is holding an online sweepstakes. Visitors to the Amazon.com page for BFTV will be able to enter to win a Gibson guitar signed by Hugh Laurie, James Denton, Greg Grunberg, Bob Guiney and other members of the band. The sweepstakes will run for 30 days and there is no purchase necessary to enter.

As always, Hugh Laurie was so witty and wonderful when he appeared on the Tonight Show last night. He talked about his first “Christmas among the palm trees” and the fact that Stephen Fry joined them for Christmas, as he has for the past 20 years. And who knew that Christmas was orginally a pagan knitwear festival….? There’s a cute flub when he talks about Stephen…so fun.

Then, he tells some very funny accounts of helping his father, who was a physician. He jokingly said that he had to at times answer the phone for his father and people would think he was the doctor and he would “diagnose” them. Really funny stuff! TIP: “pus everywhere” is not a good thing.

He was a young hero and made a citizen’s arrest. And he didn’t even get any free leather underwear….you have to watch to know what that means.

Here’s the second part of Hugh’s appearance on the Tonight Show. He tells about how Greg Grunberg started the band and that they have raised over $2,000,000 for their charities. How cool! Then he tells a hilarious story about a guest performer who did the 40-minute version of Free Bird…you really have to watch to find out the rest. It’s soooo funny!

He talks a bit about the House 100th episode, about his planned motorcycle trip across the US and about how quickly medical tests come back on TV vs. in real life. He also talks about how turning 50 may be a problem for him in his career, since only young people are usually wanted on TV. Hugh, we’ll love you even at 100!!!

If you were unfortunate enough to miss last night’s Tonight Show, here’s the fantastic performance by Band From TV, including Hugh Laurie & Jesse Spencer. They played Will it Go ‘Round in Circles.

First of all, I’ve always loved the song anyway, and they really did a great job with it!! The beginning has Jesse on the violin, immediately followed by Hugh on the piano and with the first part of the vocals. I backed it up and listened twice last night with the old TiVo, and just now while I’ve been writing this little intro, I’ve listened 3 times. I DARE you to listen without at least tapping your foot!!

Be sure to set your TiVo or other recording device to capture this Friday night’s (January 16) episode of the Tonight Show With Jay Leno.

Hugh Laurie will be a guest on the show and afterwards, the entire Band From TV will play a song…including Hugh! Greg Grunberg just confirmed this.

Be sure to check your local listings for times in your area. You won’t want to miss this one!

Hurray! The photos of Hugh Laurie’s People’s Choice win are starting to be released. Here are a bunch more for you to enjoy. I especially love that his fellow Band From TV member Teri Hatcher was the one to give him his award.

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Recently, the Band From TV released its CD/DVD set called Hoggin’ All the Covers. Hugh Laurie played keyboards and sang for the set and plans to donate all of his share of the proceeds to the Save the Children fund. Save the Children is the leading independent humanitarian organization helping children and families in need in the U.S. and around the world.

I really like that he and the rest of the band give the money from their music to worthy charities. It’s very cool of them!!

[Photo: newscom.com]

The Band From TV is scheduled to perform at the Hollywood Christmas Celebration at The Grove on Sunday November 23 at 7 p.m. in Los Angeles.

UPDATE: I just got a chance to ask Greg Grunberg if Hugh Laurie will be performing with the band on Sunday and he said that Hugh is so far, unable to make it. But he added that Hugh has surprised them before. So everyone who is going, be sure to keep your fingers crossed that Hugh shows up! (And I’ll update you if I hear more…)

According to the press release, both Hugh Laurie (keyboards) and Jesse Spencer (violin) will be performing. In fact, there will be a lot of other big-name acts performing too. Oh, how I wish I could be there! Here’s the official run-down of celebrities scheduled for the event:

• Natalie Cole
• The Band From TV - Teri Hatcher, Bonnie Somerville, and Bob Guiney on vocals, Hugh Laurie on keyboards, James Denton and Adrian Pasdar on guitar, Greg Grunberg on drums and Jesse Spencer on violin
• HB Barnum New Life Choir
• Straight No Chaser, a talented A Capella group
• Jon Lovitz will host the celebration
• The Hills’ Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt
• The Top Hats, a professional chorus line dance troupe
• A visit from Santa
• Lighting of the brilliant 100-foot Christmas tree
• Snow falling and a stunning fireworks display

I see no mention of an admission cost, but here’s the press release if you want to check for more details. And if anyone goes to the event and takes photos, please send a copy of them to share here! But by all means, have fun!!

Yes, it’s a little like a play appearing “off-Broadway.” But Band From TV will appear to help celebrate the grand opening of Mohegan Sun’s brand new Casino of the Wind!

The performance is scheduled for October 11 at 8:00 PM and the stars who are booked to appear are Greg Grunberg, James Denton, Bob Guiney, and Jesse Spencer. They be joined by guest stars Adrian Pasdar (Heroes), James Kyson Lee (Heroes),and Rebecca Budig (All My Children) at this free concert.

So if you will be in the area, be sure to go enjoy the show (and send some photos afterward so I can post them to share with other fans!) Have a great time!

[Thanks for the tip, Grace!]

I found another good clip from the free Netflix concert last Saturday with Band From TV. This clip is a bit grainy, and it’s not up close, but you can hear some of the songs and Hugh Laurie singing! And you can see Jesse Spencer playing violin up there too. Gee, I wish I could have been there!