A tent erected on the White House's South Lawn was the site of a two hour, invitation-only concert on Saturday (10/23) that featured a cross-section of stars who have made their mark in a variety of popular music styles. Among those who took the stage to perform their own songs and a variety of classic material from the last 100 years were Eric Clapton [ tickets ], B.B. King [ tickets ], Sheryl Crow [ tickets ] and Garth Brooks [ tickets ].

The event, which was hosted by President Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and broadcast live on VH1, was dubbed the ''Concert of the Century.'' The VH1 Save the Music Foundation produced the concert to increase awareness of efforts to revive battered, budget-cut music programs in schools across the United States.

''...We mustn't forget that America brought the world the rhythm of jazz, the consolation of country, the hard truth of the blues, the excitement of rock and roll,'' President Clinton told the crowd of about 800 following the show. ''And the diversity of our music and our musicians -- which we have seen tonight -- mirrors the diversity of our people, and reminds us of the greatest lesson we have always to teach and always to learn: that we are stronger when we're playing in harmony, based on our common humanity.''

The show opened with Eric Clapton's take on ''Ramblin' On My Mind,'' a Robert Johnson blues standard. Clapton was later joined by Lenny Kravitz [ tickets ] for a rendition of ''All Along the Watchtower,'' a Bob Dylan-penned song popularized by the late guitar ace Jimi Hendrix.

Kravitz followed up with his recent hit, ''Fly Away.''

Clapton returned later in the show to join blues legend B.B. King for a rendition of ''The Thrill Is Gone.'' As Clapton was leaving the stage, King patted him on the back and said, ''You get better all the time, young man.''

Al Green's performance of Sam Cooke's ''A Change Is Gonna Come'' brought the crowd to its feet, and Garth Brooks closed the show with the Don McClean hit ''American Pie.''

Among the other performers were 'N Sync, Gloria Estefan, John Fogerty, John Mellencamp, and Melissa Etheridge. The Paul Shaffer Band -- led by the musical director of ''Late Night with David Letterman'' -- was the evening's back-up band. Robert DeNiro, Kevin Spacey, Meryl Streep and Gwyneth Paltrow were among the screen stars who introduced each act.

Following the concert, a signature B.B. King electric guitar -- signed by all of the artists who performed during the day -- was presented to the Clintons. President Clinton donated one of his own saxophones to a student.

In thanking the musicians who performed, President Clinton said: ''I respect them so much, I left my saxophone up in the White House.''

Over the next 10 years, the nonprofit VH1 Save the Music Foundation hopes to raise $100 million to provide U.S. public schools with musical instruments and to increase awareness of the importance of music in the lives of children.

The foundation claims that the campaign has raised $25 million since it began its quest two years ago, and that it has spawned more than 350 music programs in 30 cities' schools.

Saturday's show was co-presented by the National Endowment for the Arts.