Live took some time away from preparations for its next album to join Patti Smith, Sheryl Crow and members of Bush at New York's Carnegie Hall Monday night for the 6th annual Tibet House Benefit.

In keeping with an ongoing theme for the evening, Live [1MB QuickTime] took the opportunity to join musical forces with some unlikely faces as Natalie Merchant, Crow [1MB QuickTime], and Angelique Kidjo provided backing vocals for the band. The night also saw Bush guitarist Nigel Pulsford join Velvet Underground bassist John Cale, and Smith, Kidjo, and a host of artists take to the stage for an offering of "1959."

The event marked the 39th anniversary of a bloody and futile uprising by Tibetans against the Chinese in 1959. There's no word yet on how much money the event raised for Tibet House, which was founded in 1987 with the Dalai Lama to help preserve and protect Tibetan culture from the brutal occupation by the Chinese government.

Live warmed up for the benefit with a surprise gig Sunday night at New York's CBGB's, where the band rolled out a half an hour's worth of new material.

While the band gave no advance word on the show, Live frontman Ed Kowalcyk told our friends in the MTV Radio Network that the band announced the gig on their official website about an hour before taking the stage, a move that resulted in a packed house before their set was finished.

Kowalcyk also said that the band already has 14 songs penned for its next album, which they hope to record with longtime producer Jerry Harrison this summer. The band expects to release the album late this year, or early next year.