Gore told CNN the National Museum of the American Indian had offered its concert venue for Saturday's concert, which will also feature the Native American band Blues Nation.

The last-minute addition came after organizers had failed to bring Live Earth to Washington's national Mall because other events had booked spaces on the sprawling green space, US media reported.

A Congressional resolution was introduced in a bid to let the show be held on the US Capitol grounds, but some Republicans resisted the effort.

"I'm happy to announce here on CNN that a surprise new concert venue is going to be the Mall in our nation's capital," Gore said.

"You may remember earlier in the year, there was an effort to have one of the major concerts there and a couple of global warming naysayers used parliamentary tricks in the Congress to block that," he said.

"Well, instead of the cavalry riding to the rescue, the American Indians came to the rescue," Gore said.

Eight major Live Earth concerts are to kick off on Saturday with events that are to feature pop giants including Madonna and The Police, in addition to around 7,000 affiliated events in 129 countries.

The festivities start at 0200 GMT Saturday in Sydney, which passes on to Tokyo, then Shanghai, Hamburg, London, Johannesburg, New York and wrapping up in Rio de Janeiro, with a symbolic rendezvous in Kyoto, Japan and a base in Antarctica.

Washington's event is scheduled to begin at 10 am (1400 GMT), Gore said.

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