Roots Go All Out For Kimmel Center Performance

The Roots brought down the house at the Kimmel Center on Friday night, bringing a rather stagnant crowd to its feet for a two-and-a-half hour set that spanned the entire Roots discography.

As fans of all ages and dress entered the Kimmel, they sat on their hands for most of the show, which included solid if unspectacular sets from Deerhoof and TV on the Radio. The Roots, however, amazed the sell-out crowd from the get-go as they emerged from the back entrance of Verizon Hall. Black Thought led the way, rapping the lyrics to "Duck Down" over a megaphone, and he was followed by the rest of The Roots, as well as a New Orleans jazz band flown in for the occasion. The impromptu marching band finished the rendition of the song on stage and then split up to their separate spaces. Black Thought was front and center, but ?uestlove managed the entire show from his drumkit in the back, calling on the string and horn sections with a mere flick of his drumstick.

Jill Scott, a late addition to the line-up, was spectacular filling in for Erykah Badu on "You Got Me," and she was even better on her new song, "My Petition," which she wrote in honor of the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

The Roots are always an excellent live show, but as Phillyist reader "j" commented:

"it fucking rocked. best Roots show evah"

While we normally reserve the "evah"s for our Hello Kitty journals, we have to agree: the group went all out for the Kimmel Center show, and if enough people go make their voices heard at the new Kimmel Center blog, perhaps the Kimmel folks will bring The Roots back again in the future.

The show went on even after the marching band exited Verizon Hall as the New Orleans group marched out onto Broad and Spruce streets for a spontaneous concert. The cab drivers were annoyed, but the patrons were pleased. They even capped it off with a few "E-A-G-L-E-S" cheers.

Only in Philadelphia.