Last night, funk-jam quartet Pigeons Playing Ping Pong performed at New York City’s intimate Cutting Room to help raise money and awareness for the Songs of Love Foundation.

Songs of Love helps sick and struggling children by giving them the gift of a personalized song. Before Pigeons Playing Ping Pong took the stage, the audience joined together to record group vocals for four-year-old Songs of Love recipient Ivy Kirschenbaum, who was also in attendance.

Pigeons opened their two-set performance with originals “Time to Ride” and “Henrietta,” before diving into a “King Solomon’s Marbles” > “F.U.” jam. The crowd was a mix of Pigeons newcomers and die-hard fans (a.k.a Flockers), and both groups throughly enjoyed the band’s mid-set, love-themed rendition of the Doobie Brothers’ “Long Train Runnin’” leading into their own “Somethin’ For Ya.”

“We’re so happy to be here for Ivy and for such a good cause,” singer-guitarist Greg Ormont said to the crowd before kicking into a lively cover of The Beatles’ “Get Back.” Set one closed with the band’s self-referential “Fun in Funk.”

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong opened set two with a spacey “Landing” jam, followed by the Velvet Underground’s “Rock and Roll” wherein orange and white ping pong balls were thrown from the balcony into the crowd below. (Both “Rock and Roll” and the subsequent “Burning Up My Time” had adapted lyrics to reference Ivy Kirschenbaum.)

The band wrapped up set two with their funkified “Horize of the World” jam, fusing together their original “Horizon” with the Dead’s “Eyes of the World,” and giving guitarist Jeremy Schon plenty of room to improvise.

The encore was a double dose of The Lion King‘s “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” and one of P4’s signature love songs “Julia.”

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong will be back out on the road starting Feb. 27 with a show in Bloomington, Ind. For a full list of tour dates click here.

Check out the full setlist and a video of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong performing “Funk E. Zekiel” at LOCKN’ 2017 below:

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong
The Cutting Room, New York, NY
Songs of Love Benefit
Feb. 16, 2018

Set I: Time To Ride, Henrietta, King Solomon’s Marbles > F.U., Dawn A New Day, Long Train Runnin’^ > Somethin’ For Ya, Get Back%, Fun In Funk

Set II: Landing > Jam > Rock And Roll@ > Burning Up My Time > Offshoot, Horizon > Eyes of The World$$ > Horizon

Enc: Can You Feel The Love Tonight## > Julia

Notes:
^ – Doobie Brothers cover
% – Beatles cover
@ – Velvet Underground cover
$$ – Grateful Dead cover

  1. – from The Lion King soundtrack