Earth tunes: Worldwide
concerts fuel the fight against global warming
By Herald wire services
Saturday, July 7, 2007 - Updated: Jul 8, 2007 02:15 PM EST
Today’s nine Live
Earth concerts across the globe intend to prove that
well-intentioned musicians can do more than just spout hot air -
they also can help to cool it off.
More
than 100 musical acts - including Madonna, Metallica, Kanye West and
the Police - are set to perform to raise funds and awareness in the
fight against global warming. More than a million are expected to
attend, and organizers are predicting live broadcasts on cable
television and the Internet could reach up to 2 billion people.
The
biggest names will appear at Live Earth concerts in London and New
York (actually, East Rutherford, N.J.), with more modest lineups of
mostly local and regional acts in Australia, Japan, China, South
Africa, Brazil and Germany.
A ninth
concert was added to the lineup just yesterday. Country music stars
Garth Brooks and Tricia Yearwood will headline a show in Washington
on the National Mall, about two blocks from the U.S. Capitol.
Live
Earth was inspired and is backed by former Vice President Al Gore’s
campaign to force global warming onto the international political
agenda by generating a groundswell of public concern.
There
have been some organizational hiccups. A judge canceled the Brazil
concert because of security concerns, then reversed the decision
just two days before the event, and lukewarm public interest caused
a planned show in Istanbul, Turkey, to be called off.
The
concerts began last night in Sydney, Australia, with Jack Johnson,
Ghostwriters and Crowded House. The U.S. concert, featuring the
Police, Kanye West, Ludacris, Bon Jovi and Kelly Clarkson, wraps
things up, beginning at 2:30 this afternoon.
Many
of the acts booked for Live Earth are certified superstars, but
nothing announced so far looks to be a must-see event on par with
Pink Floyd’s reunion at the Live 8 concert in 2003. The closest
thing is the Smashing Pumpkins at the U.S. concert; this will be
most folks’ first chance to see the new lineup of the band, which
has been dormant since 2000.
For
more on Live Earth, go to www.liveearth.org
How
to watch
ON TV:
WHDH-TV Ch. 7, 8-11 p.m.
BRAVO:
9 a.m.-2 a.m.
SUNDANCE CHANNEL: 4 a.m.-2 a.m.
MSNBC:
8 a.m.-4 p.m.
CNBC:
8 a.m.-2 a.m.
TELEMUNDO: 7-8 p.m.
ONLINE:
Streaming live at www.LiveEarth.MSN.com
Herald
music writer Christopher Blagg will be watching and blogging Live
Earth all day, starting at 8 a.m. Check in at the Rough Edge blog at
bostonherald.com
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