Since the premiere of "The Muppet Show" in 1974, music has been an integral part of the Muppet universe. In the original series, each episode would have a single guest star who, whether a musician by trade or not, would perform some sort of song routine, usually with the cast. Additionally, the Muppets would perform their own covers of songs, like the Muppet Glee Club’s rousing "Temptation" and Miss Piggy’s Marie Antoinette version of "Staying Alive". ABC’s new show "The Muppets" promises to turn the traditional format upside-down, with each episode offering multiple guest stars, in addition to a musical guest. While the success of this modern approach remains to be seen, the original series created many iconic numbers that are the perfect mix of humorous and heartbreaking, just like the Muppets themselves.
Below is a list of the best musical numbers from "The Muppet Show"’s original run:
Elton John
Season 2, Episode 4
When Elton John appeared on "The Muppet Show" in 1978, he was the first real rockstar to host the program, following a string of comedians and country stars. However, in between the production of the episode and airing, John announced that he would be retiring from performing live (this only lasted a year and a half, but is still a fun fact that makes this performance even more of a treat).
As Brian Henson explains in the episode’s opening commentary, John’s appearance on the show occurred as he was exciting his career’s more flamboyant stage. Henson explains that John agreed to do anything on the show except wear all those "crazy flamboyant costumes with the big feathers and glasses." Of course, the Muppets got their way, and John performs "Bennie and the Jets", "Goodbye Yellow Road", and "Don’t Go Breaking My Heart" in full regalia. The show’s highlight is John’s rendition of "Crocodile Rock", which remains one of the show’s most famous performances. Dressed in rainbow peacock plumage, a mirrored headdress, and pink glasses, John plays the song in a swamp, backed by the Electric Mayhem.
Julie Andrews
Season 2, Episode 17
For her episode’s opening number, Andrews gamely performed "The Lonely Goatherd" from Rodger and Hammerstein’s 1959 musical The Sound of Music. In the 1965 film, the song is performed by Andrews’ Maria and the von Trapp children in their home’s puppet theatre. "The Muppet Show" acknowledges the film’s original choreography, staging their rendition of the song in a soundstage version of a puppet theatre, an elaborate mountain set complete with yodeling goat, chickens, and a very dapper Prince Kermit. Near the end of the number, Andrews sits in front of the Alpine lodge, reminding viewers just how tiny her costars are.
Alice Cooper
Season 3, Episode 7
In his 1978 episode, the "talented but frightening" Cooper offers the Muppets riches and fame in exchange for their souls. Cooper is one of the few guests whose persona informs the tone of the entire show; episode 307 is sinister and creepy, with Cooper arriving with his own group of monsters called the Vile Bunch. While his opening number "Welcome to My Nightmare" sets the episode’s ghoulish mood, the final number, "School’s Out", is the episode’s best. Backed by the Vile Bunch, a cap-and-gown-clad Cooper and series of scholarly Muppets dance their way through the number. The song ends with the gentle giant Thog setting off a small explosion and Cooper ultimately ripping off his outfit to reveal a devil costume.
Loretta Lynn
Season 3, Episode 8
Lynn’s 1978 episode is one of the rare few to not occur in the Muppet Theatre—perhaps fittingly for the country star, the show takes place in a rustic railroad station. For her closing number, Lynn performed her hit "One’s on the Way", originally written in 1971 by poet Shel Silverstein. "One’s on the Way" followed a string of controversial feminist hits like "Rated X" (about the stigma faced by divorced women) and "The Pill" (about the power of choice brought by birth control). By the song’s release, Lynn herself had six children, making the song’s exhausted tone seem extremely autobiographical. In the "Muppet Show" performance, Lynn sings the song as a weary and increasingly exasperated housewife as Muppet babies crawl over her ironing board and cry for attention.
Paul Simon
Season 5, Episode 11
In the 10 years since the end of Simon & Garfunkel, Simon had become a popular solo artist. While Simon mainly performed his solo material on the show, episode 511 opens with a performance of Simon & Garfunkel’s "Scarborough Fair", in an Olde English faire with Simon playing the lute and Miss Piggy forcefully singing the "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme" chorus. Near the end of the song, Fozzie recites part of the nursery rhyme "Simple Simon", only to be pied in the face by the singer. The song concludes with Simon being arrested for playing a lute without a license.
Simon’s episode is notable as the only one in which every song performed is written by one artist, with the Muppets’ usual musical interludes becoming covers of popular Simon songs. While Gonzo and the chickens perform a wonderful version of "El Condor Pasa", the real highlight is Bobby Benson and the All-Baby Band’s cover of "Baby Driver".
Ruth Buzzi
Season 1, Episode 4
Most famous for her appearances on sketch comedy show "Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In", Buzzi’s brand of physical comedy made her a perfect guest on her 1976 spot on "The Muppet Show" (and later, as a regular on "Sesame Street"). While her bits throughout the episode show off her comedy chops and playful chemistry with the Muppets, her cover of Frankie Valli’s 1967 hit "Can’t Take My Eyes Off You" is the real standout moment of the episode. Dressed as a medieval princess, Buzzi sings the ode to the uninterested monster Sweetums, hassling him until he eventually gives in to her advances, belting the "I love you baby and if it’s quite all right/ I need you baby to warm the lonely nights" verse.
Rita Moreno
Season 1, Episode 5
Originally written by Eddie Cooley and Otis Blackwell under the pseudonym John Davenport, "Fever" has been covered by Peggy Lee, Elvis Presley, James Brown, Madonna, and Beyoncé. Moreno sings the song for her closing number dressed in a slinky red dress with Animal on the drums. After being startled by the Muppet’s drum bursts, Moreno berates him in Spanish and English, only to eventually smash his head between two cymbals, causing the woozy Animal to exclaim, "Now that’s my kind of woman!" The performance would go on to win the 1977 Emmy for "Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program".
Ben Vereen
Season 1, Episode 17
Vereen’s performance of "Mr. Cellophane" from Chicago is minimal in terms of Muppet presence, shifting the focus to the song’s melancholy lyrics and his smooth moves. So why is this one of "The Muppet Show"’s best musical performances? He approaches the song with a pure and honest heart, which after all, is what the Muppets are all about.
Bernadette Peters
Season 2, Episode 12
Considering that Peters was already a huge star when she appeared on the show in 1977, her musical prowess seems underused on her episode, singing just three songs. Perhaps this was the wisest move because one of these songs overshadows all the rest. Midway through the episode, Kermit’s nephew Robin feels ignored and wants to run away, so Peters sings "Just One Person" from Snoopy! The Musical to teach him to believe in himself. Kermit soon joins in, "making it two whole people" and then, "if three whole people, why not four? And if four whole people, why not more?," as the rest of the gang joins. The song swells to a heartbreakingly beautiful conclusion, making it one of the show’s most memorable numbers. The song would become one of the Muppet’s signature songs, later performed by Robin in a Jim Henson tribute episode and at Henson’s 1990 memorial service, both of which call for tissues.
John Denver
Season 4, Episode 1
Denver’s 1979 appearance on "The Muppet Show" spawned a lifelong friendship with Jim Henson. The singer would later star in 1979’s "John Denver & the Muppets: A Christmas Together" and 1982’s "John Denver & the Muppets: Rocky Mountain Holiday". For his first appearance with the gang, the folk singer kept it simple and goofy, particularly in the song "Grandma’s Feather Bed". The tune is usually attributed to Denver, but it was originally written by banjo player Jim Connor. Dressed in a nightgown and cap, Denver is joined by the song’s "eight kids and four hound dogs," before dissolving into a pillow fight.
Linda Ronstadt
Season 5, Episode 23
In Ronstadt’s 1980 episode of "The Muppet Show", she causes quite a stir by developing a mutual crush on Kermit. Much of the episode is spent with Ronstadt searching for Kermit, who Miss Piggy has locked in a trunk to keep away from the singer. However, none of this chaos appears in her first and finest number, a cover of Roy Orbison’s "Blue Bayou". Set in a hokey swamp and accompanied by a group of rhythmically croaking frogs, Ronstadt delivers a powerhouse performance of the song.