FireAid benefit for Los Angeles had everyone from Nirvana to Stevie Wonder to Billie Eilish

By Dan Condon, ABC

When the first song of the night features record-smashing pop icon Billie Eilish out the front of pop-punk royalty Green Day, you know you're in for something special.

That's how FireAid, a massive fundraiser for those impacted by this month's Californian wildfires, kicked off this afternoon.

This spirit of collaboration made for one of the most impressive displays of star power a music fan could hope for and was just the beginning of what became a cavalcade of surprise team-ups and tributes to the city of Los Angeles.

It was already to be one of the biggest music events in recent memory, boasting a once-in-a-lifetime line-up packed with a bevy of era-defining acts. But the surprises were almost as massive as the announced line-up.

Not long after Green Day finished, revered percussionist and pop star in her own right Sheila E. joined Los Angelino Anderson .Paak for a couple of songs.

Paak's biggest surprise was still to come, though. Soon, Dr Dre, one of the architects of modern hip-hop and the sound of '90s and 2000s Los Angeles, strutted on stage and blasted through versions of his 1999 hit 'Still D.R.E.' and 2Pac collaboration 'California Love'.

Dawes were one of the bands heavily impacted by the fires and their short set brought a few of the night's big moments. After performing one of their own songs, they brought on Stephen Stills, who sang Buffalo Springfield's enduring classic 'For What It's Worth'.

Following this, Stills's old companion Graham Nash emerged, and together they played the anthemic 'Teach Your Children'.

It was the first time Stills and Nash have performed together since 1983.

One of the completely unannounced and unexpected surprises was a sort of Nirvana reunion.

In similar scenes to what we saw at their 2014 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark), Joan Jett, Kim Gordon (famously of Sonic Youth), and Dave Grohl's daughter Violet assumed the role of Kurt Cobain.

Grohl belted the drums, Krist Novoselic pounded the bass (and played a little piano accordion) and Pat Smear made lots of noise in what was a gloriously unexpected surprise from some of the true greats of rock'n'roll from the past, present and future.

Earlier, The Black Crowes brought Creedence Clearwater Revival frontman John Fogerty up for a version of 'Have You Ever Seen the Rain', which wasn't entirely unexpected.

Immediately afterwards, the unmistakable mop of curly hair and top hat belonging to Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash emerged and the Californian crowd went bananas.

What songs were played at FireAid?

When there weren't surprise guests, performers opted for songs that had an emotional resonance in the wake of the fires.

Tributes to California were frequent: Jelly Roll ripped through Bob Seger's 'Hollywood Nights', The Black Crowes and Slash took on Led Zeppelin's 'Going To California', Gracie Abrams called her version of Counting Crows's 'A Long December' "a love letter to LA", and Mayer introduced Tom Petty's 'Free Fallin'' by saying it was his first taste of the dream that Los Angeles represented for so many.

Lady Gaga performed a new song she'd written just for the FireAid show. "It's just for tonight," she said, before launching into a peppy pop song with a typically big chorus.

Other songs were chosen for their emotional resonance: Tate McRae's version of Crowded House's 'Don't Dream It's Over', P!nk's take on Kris Kristofferson's 'Me and Bobby McGee', Rod Stewart's 'People Get Ready' just a few examples of the emotive songs chosen.

An epic but seamless undertaking

There weren't any major controversies, but a few things no doubt didn't go to plan.

John Mayer was impressive in solo, acoustic mode, but that's not what we were promised. The singer was to team up with jam band demigod Dave Matthews for their first-ever duo set, but Matthews pulled out at the last minute due to a "critical family emergency".

Conversely, the legendary Stevie Nicks didn't want to leave the stage, so they moved the stage with her standing on it. Her microphone was cut just as she began to address the crowd about the situation.

Ultimately, it was brilliantly executed.

It offered music fans a broad but cohesive snapshot of some of the world's most vital artists, and once-in-a-lifetime collaborations that will go down in history.

Given the short time frame in which it was put together, things appeared to run incredibly smoothly. Awkward pauses were quickly rectified and the production quality for those watching at home was top-class: leave it to Los Angeles to put on a show properly.

Being readily streamable worldwide will hopefully ensure the show is a financial success as well, as California continues what will be a long and difficult recovery.

Here are all the setlists from the night:

Green Day

• Last Night on Earth (with Billie Eilish)
• Still Breathing
• When I Come Around

Alanis Morissette

• Hand in My Pocket
• Thank U

Anderson .Paak

• Put Me Thru (with Sheila E.)
• Come Down (with Sheila E.)
• Still D.R.E. (with Dr. Dre and Sheila E.)
• California Love (with Dr. Dre and Sheila E.)

Joni Mitchell

• Both Sides, Now

Dawes

• Time Spent in Los Angeles

Stephen Stills

• For What It's Worth (with Dawes and Mike Campbell)

Stephen Stills & Graham Nash

• Teach Your Children (with Dawes)

P!nk

• What About Us
• Me and Bobby McGee
• Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You

Rod Stewart

• Forever Young
• Maggie May
• People Get Ready

John Mayer

• Neon
• Gravity
• Free Fallin'

Earth, Wind & Fire

• That's the Way of the World
• Shining Star
• September

The Black Crowes

• Remedy
• Going to California (with Slash)

John Fogerty

• Have You Ever See the Rain (with The Black Crowes)

Gracie Abrams

• I Love You, I'm Sorry (with Aaron Dessner)
• A Long December (with Aaron Dessner)

No Doubt

• Just a Girl
• Don't Speak
• Spiderwebs

Tate McRae

• You Broke Me First
• Don't Dream It's Over

Jelly Roll

• I Am Not Okay
• Hollywood Nights (with Travis Barker)

Stevie Nicks

• Stand Back
• Landslide
• Edge Of Seventeen

Katy Perry

• Rise
• Roar
• California Gurls

Nirvana

• Breed (with St. Vincent)
• School (with Kim Gordon)
• Stay Away (with Joan Jett)
• All Apologies (with Violet Grohl)

Lil Baby

• So Sorry
• Emotionally Scarred

Red Hot Chili Peppers

• Dani California
• Californication
• Black Summer
• Under The Bridge

Olivia Rodrigo

• Drivers License
• Deja Vu

Sting

• Message In A Bottle
• Driven To Tears
• Fragile

Peso Pluma

• La Bebe

Billie Eilish

• Wildflower
• The Greatest
• Birds Of A Feather

Stevie Wonder

• Love's In Need Of Love Today
• Superstition (with Sting)
• Higher Ground (with Sting and Flea)

Lady Gaga

• Shallow
• Always Remember Us This Way
• New unnamed song

- ABC News