The Green Street Music Series continues to be an exciting and popular draw for fans of the Worcester music scene. The series basically features a band made up of some of that city’s most talented and well respected players and singers. Another 35 guest singers take turns coming to the microphone. Together, they perform tributes to the greatest bands and songwriters in rock and roll history. The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Clash, and The Police are the among the artists whose music has been performed in this series. Series number 6 was dubbed Green Street 78 because it featured the music of four bands who had substantial hit records in the year 1978. A tribute to The Cars, Blondie, Elvis Costello, and Cheap Trick, this night gave the band and guest singers a lot to sink their teeth into, and in turn band and singers offered up a lot of excellent entertainment for the Lucky Dog Music Hall crowd. Sound man Paul Dagnello had everything technical going right in this show and that helped give the concert more clarity and edge. Opening with a set by The Cars, master showman Craig Rawding from Vibrotica worked his charisma on the tunes “Bye Bye Love” and “Since You’re Gone.” My favorite in this set was “Movin’ In Stereo.” The song allowed guitarist Roger LaVallee to use a theremin in the beginning, and Eric Deneen from Baby Strange played up the eerie vocal parts. The Blondie set was definitely more entertaining for the men in the audience. Deborah Harry was one of the sexiest women to write songs and perform in a rock band, and the female singers gathered for this show didn’t hesitate to meet the challenge. Aside from the eye candy, the singers each did their jobs effectively. Nicole Langlois tore into “One Way Or Another” with rock and roll abandon and Oracle from The Deadites, dressed quaintly as Raggedy Anne, really rang the bitterness out of “Rip Her To Shreds.” Dawn Sweet from Pet Rock did a nice job with the mid-tempo “The Tide Is High” and Robin Tinker from Twelfth Of Never played up the anxious anxiety of “Hanging From The Telephone.” The biggest highlight of the whole night came when singer Sunta Africa of Nu Life, rapper Nytmare and turntablist DJ Shame turned Blondie’s Rapture into a unique hybrid of rock, rap, and hip hop. Sunta has a beautiful, soulful voice and Nytmare and DJ Shame worked wonders on the “rap” portion of the song. The Elvis Costello set featured most of my personal favorites by the incredible wordsmith, and I was glad the band and singers did justice to these numbers. Erick Godin from Chillum did exceptionally well on “Every Day I Write The Book.” Possessing genuine range Godin hit all of the high notes and captured the song’s tender honesty. Buck Paxton from Giraffe was also a hit on “Pump It Up,” a song that requires a lot of energy to keep up with its driving rhythms. Laurence LaVallee merrily delivered the sing song melody of “Oliver’s Army,” and Chris Cah of Musclecah made the most out of Costello’s “Radio Radio.” The Cheap Trick portion of the show was definitely the most exciting of all. Neil Lucey of Thinner and the Green Street house band ripped into “Hello There” and “Clock Strikes Ten” with more rock and roll energy that what I usually see at local clubs. Dan Jenkins from Sumo performed the fun pop hit “Dream Police” with over the top front man Shtick. Jenkins was moving around so much I was afraid he might knock something over. Jodee Frawlee of Starr Faithfull turned in an energetic performance during “On Top Of The World,” complete with foot stomping, caterwauling, rock star bravado, and that’s pretty good for a gal who performed at The Harley Rendezvous in New York only hours earlier. The house band must also be credited for the high octane entertainment. Guitarist Roger LaVallee played a number of good solos in each set, keyboardist Steve Mossberg brought to life a lot of the melodies and washy synthesizer sounds, and bass player Ron Mominee with drummer Duncan Arsenault and second guitarist John Donovan kept a tight rhythm section through out it all. Arsenault also shined during the drum solo on the intro to “Ain’t That A Shame.” Producer Greg Munro brought together a team of good Worcester musicians for the house band, and he creatively selected the right singers for each song. Munro, along with Arsenault, created the Green Street Music Series, and I think they deserve as much credit for managing the affair as they do for the creative aspect. The show ran pretty smoothly for an event with 35 guest singers. Green Street 7 will pay tribute to Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, and AC/DC some time this fall.

-Bill Copeland