Stars Join Their Voices To Support Live Earth

LONDON, July 7 — They joined forces two years ago to combat global poverty under the flag of Live 8, and rock and pop stars and their myriad fans around the world threw their voices behind a good cause again on Saturday, this time that of raising awareness about global warming through a campaign called Live Earth.

Jon Pareles reports from the Live Earth concert series, plus more photographs. Related Music Review | Live Earth: A Global Chorus on Climate Change (July 8, 2007) Pledging Allegiance to the Earth, in New Jersey (July 8, 2007) Getty Images

David Gray performs at the Live Earth concert at Wembley Stadium in London.

In eight major concerts attended by hundreds of thousands and watched on television or the Web by many hundreds of millions more, local and international celebrities backed solo and group acts to promote individual, corporate and government action to slow, even reverse, climate change.

Were here to save the world, Chris Moyles, a British D.J., told the crowd at the start of the nine-hour show at Wembley Stadium here. Will you help? After a bit of prodding, a loud Yes was the response.

The entire venture has Al Gore as its guardian guru. The former vice presidents environmental documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, inspired the American producer, Kevin Wall, to apply the formula he used to organize Live 8 to the fresh challenge of global warming. And Mr. Gore enthusiastically backed the 24-hour initiative.

Its the largest entertainment event in the history of the world, he said Thursday with some hyperbole on CNNs Larry King Live, noting that an audience of two billion people was expected.

Starting at Aussie Stadium in Sydney, the concerts were timed to spread west throughout the day, to Tokyo and Shanghai, to Johannesburg, to Hamburg, Germany, to Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro and on to Giants Stadium, in East Rutherford, N.J., and a smaller event in Washington, as well as London.

The show at Wembley Stadium, which only a week ago was the site of a huge concert in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, offered one of the liveliest lineups of rock stars.

It opened under an early afternoon sun with Phil Collins and Genesis and ended after dark with Madonna as the show-stopping finale.

In between, performing before a crowd of some 50,000, were, among others, Black Eyed Peas, John Legend, Duran Duran, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, Spinal Tap, Beastie Boys and Foo Fighters.

In other cities, well-known performers included Crowded House and Jack Johnson in Sydney; Linkin Park and Rihanna in Tokyo; Sarah Brightman in Shanghai; Baaba Maal in Johannesburg; Chris Cornell, Shakira and Snoop Dogg in Hamburg; and Lenny Kravitz and Pharrell Williams in Rio de Janeiro.

At Giants Stadium, the temperature hovered near 90 degrees as a succession of bands and musicians including Kanye West, Roger Waters and The Police were among 18 scheduled performers.

Organizers said the crowd inside the stadium numbered 52,000 and indeed, as the day went on throngs filled seats on several levels of the stadium. They wore hats and sunscreen to guard against the glare of the sun while they bobbed enthusiastically to the music from the stage.

One of the most rousing responses of the afternoon came barely 45 minutes into the marathon show, when Al Gore bounded onto the stage wearing jeans and a black shirt. You are Live Earth, he told the crowd, then thanked performers for participating in a global effort to solve the climate crisis.

As he spoke, a montage of grainy black and white images playing on a screen above the stage depicted an abandoned car, a freighter stranded high and dry on a beach and a polar bear plunging into water.

A moment later, Keith Urban, joined by Alicia Keys, launched into a droning, apocalyptic cover version of Gimme Shelter by the Rolling Stones, as the audience clapped and stomped along.

For all the public interest in the environment, Live Earth has also been sharply criticized, notably in Britain by Bob Geldof, the singer who played a central role in promoting Live 8.

Live Earth doesnt have a final goal, he said in May, adding that it would be useful only if it forced politicians and corporations to announce concrete environmental measures.

Arctic Monkeyss drummer, Matt Helders, was also outspoken, saying it would be a bit patronizing to think his youthful group could change the world. Especially when were using enough power for 10 houses just for lighting, it would be a bit hypocritical, he told Agence France-Presse after a recent concert in Paris.

Even harsher has been criticism in newspapers of the energy-expending habits of many performers, some of whom, it has been reported, flew their private planes halfway across the world to play in the concerts.

The artists formerly known as huge carbon footprints was the acerbic headline of a newspaper commentary by Marina Hyde in The Guardian on Saturday.

Mr. Gore and Mr. Wall have tried to answer those critics, responding to Mr. Geldofs snipe about goals by asking the public to commit to a seven-point pledge.

It includes demanding an international treaty to cut carbon emissions by 90 percent, working for energy efficiency at home and in the workplace and reducing individual carbon pollution to become carbon neutral.

Live Earths organizers also said the rocks concerts were the most green ever held, with recyclable material used wherever possible. Profits are to go to the Alliance for Climate Protection, led by Mr. Gore, and other ecological groups.

Colin Moynihan contributed reporting from East Rutherford, N.J.

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