Coldplay, Jon Stewart, Mumford and Sons to Headline First Secret Policeman’s Ball in New York

The lineup is announced for the 1st U.S. Secret Policemen's Ball.

Stephen Lovekin/Kevin Mazur/Shirlaine Forrest/WireImage/Getty

A much-loved British television tradition will travel across the pond this spring when Coldplay, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Mumford & Sons stage the first Secret Policeman's Ball in New York.

The Stateside adaptation of the longstanding British benefit shows will be held March 4th at Radio City Music Hall. Like its English predecessors, it will raise money for Amnesty International and feature a varied roster of musicians and comedians. Standup comics Russell Brand and Reggie Watts are also scheduled to perform in the show, with more acts to be announced soon.

The British Secret Policeman's Balls, which launched in the 1970s, have featured such stars as U2, Sting, Duran Duran, the Monty Python troupe and Hugh Laurie. New York Secret Policeman's Ball organizer David Javerbaum, a former Daily Show producer, tells The New York Times that his event will be "in the same spirit, for the same cause" as its British counterpart, "and we're trying to do it with the same energy and élan." Tickets go on sale Monday. The show will stream live on EpixHD beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern on March 4th.

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Song Stories

“Satisfied”

Tom Waits | 2011

Only the genius of Tom Waits could combine the subject of mortality, a reoccurring theme in his work, with wordplay that name checks both Mick and Keith, whom he calls "Mr. Jagger" and "Mr. Richards," and the title of their magnum opus, "Satisfaction." And to show just how cool Waits really is, he even got Mr. Richards to play along, one of nine guest appearances the guitarist has made on three Waits albums. "This growling roadhouse stomp is a late-breaking response to the Stones' greatest hit," Rolling Stone said of the track.

More Song Stories entries »

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