Music's Biggest Names Come Together for Sandy Relief

One of the most prestigious pop music lineups ever assembled is slated to perform for a Hurricane Sandy benefit concert Wednesday at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Called the 12-12-12 Concert for Sandy Relief, the long-sold out benefit show features a lineup that includes Jersey Shore rock stalwarts Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi. Proceeds from ticket sales and donations will benefit the Robin Hood Relief Fund, which has distributed approximately $10.5 million in grants to more than 100 different Hurricane Sandy-related groups.

Springsteen and Bon Jovi are being joined by Eric Clapton, Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters, Billy Joel, Alicia Keys, Chris Martin of Coldplay, Eddie Vedder, Roger Waters, Kanye West, the Who, Paul McCartney, and, as of just a few days ago, the Rolling Stones, who are in the midst of their abridged last-ever world tour.

Many of the participating musicians have recorded video testimonies, which can be viewed on the 12-12-12 website. Bon Jovi, who returned to New Jersey following Hurricane Sandy, shared his reaction to seeing the devastation first hand.

“There have been hurricanes. There have been storms. But I’ve never seen anything remotely close to what Hurricane Sandy was,” he said in the short benefit video. “When you see National Guard on Ocean Avenue in Sea Bright, your jaw drops.”

Springsteen’s testimonial describes the personality of the shore and its people. His conversation is made somber, unintentionally, perhaps, by his use of past tense to describe a shore and shore culture that may not return.

“To see it washed away was just very painful. The size of the destruction was shocking, and it took days and days to even understand the level of destruction that occurred along the Jersey Shore,” he said. “What makes a place that place is a fragile thing very often.”

The 12-12-12 benefit, presented by Chase, comes on the heels of a recent Sandy Relief telethon where Springsteen and Bon Jovi also performed that raised more than $20 million for the Red Cross.

According to the 12-12-12 website, Wednesday's concert at 7:30 p.m. will be accessible by 2 billion people throughout the world. In all, there will be 34 U.S. network and television feeds providing coverage in North and South America, Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia. The show also will be aired on the radio and streamed live online by multiple web outlets, including AOL.

For a full list of websites, television stations, movie theaters and radio stations, click here.

Donations are being solicited online here. Cell phone users can also donated $10 to Sandy Relief by texting “ROBINHOOD” to 50555.