Legend And The Roots Turn Marching Band Ahead Of New York Gig

JOHN LEGEND and THE ROOTS turned heads on the streets of New York on Thursday night (23Sep10) when they marched through the city playing instruments on their way to their concert at Terminal 5.

The two critically-acclaimed acts, who have joined forces for their new collaborative covers album Wake Up!, caused a stir as they made their way west on Manhattan’s 56th Street and walked through the main doors of the venue, causing fans to scream in excitement.

But their big entrance wasn’t the only surprise of the night - Legend and The Roots were joined on stage by a string of stars, including rapper Common and R&B star Jennifer Hudson.

Taking his place behind a grand piano, Legend introduced Common and soul singer Melanie Fiona to the spotlight to perform the disc’s title track, while hip-hop veteran CL Smooth took over the mic for his verse on Our Generation - Legend and The Roots’ take on the Ernie Hines hit.

American Boy hitmaker Estelle appeared alongside MC Black Thought for a rendition of The Roots classic You Got Me, with the Brit filling in for original vocalist Erykah Badu.

But the biggest surprise of the night came right at the end of the show, when Legend and The Roots returned for an encore, accompanied by Oscar-winner Hudson. The singer/actress performed Kurt Carr’s gospel hit Be Grateful, showing off her new svelte look in a figure-hugging all-black ensemble to duet with Legend.

The band also played their covers of Compared to What, I Can’t Write Left Handed and the album’s only original song Shine, from the soundtrack to new documentary Waiting for Superman, while Legend sang a handful of his solo tracks, including Green Light and a rousing rendition of Ordinary People.