Sun. Feb. 28

 Last time I saw Berklee students on stage at the college's Performance Center it was a dozen or so singers and about the same number of musicians playing the songs written and produced by Don Was, with Was leading the band. He was genuinely stunned and flattered by what these guys and gals brought to the table. With that as a teaser, we can state that if you're a fan of Motown music of the '60s you should be at Berklee Performance Center Sunday Feb. 28 when Prof. Larry Watson hosts a gaggle of students singing and playing the songs of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, the Temptations and many more. It's called "The Great American Songbook: The Music of Motown." Nostalgia heaven for the boomer generation; amazing discovery for Gen Y-ers or whatever the poor unfortunates born post Gen X have been tagged. The show, at 7:30, celebrates the 50th anniversary of Motown. Tickets: $20-$15. Hit the "read more" button for a funny note to us from Don Was the day after the  Novemeber concert he did here ...

136 Massachusetts Ave., 617-931-2000 www.ticketmaster.com

I'd reviewed the show for the Boston Herald. The day it ran, with a picture of Was, who was born Donald Fagenson. In the review I'd tried, in short space, to use both the verb "was," the surname "Was" and the band name Was (Not Was) (in photo) Tricky territory. I got this e-mail from Was the day the review ran: "It was a great piece. Mant a whole lot to the kids and to me as well! I also thought you handled the 'was' issue with the proper blend of jocularity and economy....I suppose that, in adopting such a band name, it was our intention to both baffle and bemuse... It's funny-just last week, while looking at the beatle cd reissues,  I remembered exactly where the name came from: we knew that it was gonna adhere to the ' ------(not -----) ' form but lacked the right word to plug-in. Then, one day in 1980, I was checking out the 'Magical Mystery Tour' album package and there's a picture of McCartney in a military uniform, standing at a desk with a sign that says 'I Was" (you may recall that it was one of the big clues in the paul is dead controversy of '68)....Suddenly it clicked - there's our verb and there's our new last name! It never once occurred to me that, 30 years hence, an airline ticket made out to a fictional character named 'Don Was' might  cause so many problems boarding a flight from Boston to L.A. ... Back then, it would've taken a science fiction writer to imagine that you'd have to present precise identification papers and have your flip-flops x-rayed before getting on a fucking plane!!! Being able to show the ticketing agent a copy of that day's Boston Herald with a picture of me in the same hat, same glasses and the name Was in the caption was the tipping point in boarding the flight."