Rob Chidester calls it “dinner theater without the dinner,” but it’s gaining considerable crowds under the moniker “Drop the Needle.”
The monthly event Chidester hosts at Chelsea’s Cafe via his Royal Cyclops Productions pays homage to a different classic record each show by having local singer-songwriters offer up their own takes on the songs.
Since the series began in January, and with the aid of a stellar house band, the performers have tackled Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks, Carole King’s Tapestry, The Kinks’ Muswell Hillbillies, Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska and in August, The Rolling Stones’ Beggar’s Banquet.