James Taylor performs at White House celebration for the Inflation Reduction Act

James Taylor performs at an event celebrating the Inflation Reduction Act on the South Lawn of the White House Tuesday.MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

James Taylor performed at the White House Tuesday, starting off a celebration of the newly enacted Inflation Reduction Act.

Taylor, a Boston native who now lives in the Berkshires, performed “Fire and Rain” and then, joined by his wife, Kim Taylor, sang his familiar “You Can Close Your Eyes” and covered “America the Beautiful.”

Playing in front of a crowd of several hundred, Taylor called the Inflation Reduction Act, signed by President Biden last month, a “hopeful moment” for the nation. He focused in particular on the law’s implications for addressing climate change; it allocates $369 billion for “energy security and climate change resilience investments,” according to American Progress.

“More than ever before, perhaps more than anything since the Second World War, the world needs to get together and respond to the climate crisis,” Taylor said to audience applause. “I think that people should look at it as a great opportunity for us to come together to protect our home, and to recognize the great good fortune of living on this planet.”

The White House event also included speeches from President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Biden called Taylor, who was awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, “a voice that heals our soul and unites the nation.”