Paul McCartney (L) performs with Dave Grohl during the "12-12-12" benefit concert for victims of Superstorm Sandy at Madison Square Garden in New York, December 13, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi and the Rolling Stones joined with actors and comedians in headlining a benefit concert on Wednesday for victims of Superstorm Sandy, which six weeks ago devastated scores of communities along the coastline of the US northeast coastline.

The celebrity-packed "12-12-12" concert at New York's Madison Square Garden stretched on for nearly five hours, and organizers said it was distributed to nearly 2 billion people worldwide through television feeds, radio and online streaming.

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"How do I begin again? My city's in ruins," Springsteen sang to the packed crowd. He was joined by fellow New Jersey native Jon Bon Jovi for "Born to Run," ushering in a night of musical duets.

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Next up, Pink Floyd's Roger Waters performed alongside Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, and later Paul McCartney jammed with the surviving members of "Nirvana".

"This has got to be the largest collection of old English musicians ever assembled in Madison Square Garden," Mick Jagger told the crowd. The Stones, in the midst of a brief US tour, performed "You Got Me Rocking" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash".

Chris Martin of Coldplay jokingly suggested audience members should calculate the average age of the night's performers and agree to donate that much. "And I think you'll raise billions," he said.

At the end of the concert, R&B singer Alicia Keys closed the show with "Empire State of Mind".

To help with the fundraising, celebrities such as Kristen Stewart, Jake Gyllenhaal, Chelsea Clinton and Billy Crystal took part in a telethon during the concert.

Comedian Adam Sandler took the stage for a Sandy-themed spoof on Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," rhyming the title with "Sandy, Screw Ya!"

Backstage, actress Susan Sarandon recounted losing power in her New York home but said that was a small hardship compared with the real victims who lost their homes.

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