Watch: Dave Matthews debuts new song 'Mercy' on Jimmy Fallon

When Dave Matthews was picked to be the musical guest on the President Obama episode of "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon," the jam band road warrior celebrated the occasion by unveiling a new song called "Mercy."

Matthews (sans band) was joined by The Roots’ Captain Kirk Douglas on second acoustic guitar for the tune, which will likely appear on the upcoming new DMB album. Like the title suggests, the slow-burning ditty is a plea for love, peace and unity. Consistent with many of his other acoustic-driven ballads, it's unlikely to win Matthews many new fans, but his faithful followers should approve, and the addition of Douglas' falsetto harmonies give the song a haunting edge. The clip ends with Matthews giving an approving thumbs up to his duet partner.

Watch "Mercy" here:



The episode was taped on the University of North Carolina campus, where guest President Obama sat down with Fallon to discuss Mitt Romney, student loan rates, the secret service controversy and other timely items of the week. He even slow-jammed the news with house band The Roots.

Fallon took advantage of his surroundings to comment on campus life with a jokey song called "Walk of Shame." He and Matthews opened the show with the tune. Watch it below:

Dave Lewis
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Dave Lewis has been a Los Angeles-based entertainment writer and editor for nearly ten years. Originally hailing from Minneapolis, he moved to L.A. in 1996 to attend USC, before working for various periodicals and web sites including a lengthy stint at Variety.com. He joined the HitFix staff in 2011.