Over the past few years I have gotten to see some pretty amazing Christmas shows. One of my favorite shows as always been Brian Setzer’s Christmas show which is full of great rock & roll Christmas songs played by a brilliant group of talented musicians.
On December 16th the Brian Setzer Orchestra’s 13th Christmas Extravaganza rocked Pechanga Casino in beautiful Temecula, California. So let’s see how this amazing show came to be.
Setzer first received fame as leader of the Stray Cats in the early eighties capturing a revival of rockabilly music. The Stray Cats were popular on their own turf and at places like CBGS & Max’s Kansas City. When they heard of a rockabilly revival in England they packed up & went to London.
Soon they hit it big there, even attracting members of the Stones & Led Zeppelin to their shows. (Setzer later played as a guest in Robert Plant’s Honey Dripper’s project, even appearing on Saturday Night Live with him in 1984.) The Stray Cats album; Built For Speed made it to number two on the Billboard charts & stayed there for six months, spawning two top ten singles.
In the 1990’s Setzer revitalized his career, as a new Swing movement was taking place, fronting the Brian Setzer Orchestra. He has had successful albums & tours since with the project. Years later, they along with Big Voodoo Daddy are the last survivors of that Swing movement.
Setzer has taken it a step further, adding Christmas music into his mix of musical styles & taking it on the road. The result is a unique style that combines; rockabilly, swing, rock & roll, punk, big band, & Holiday music all fronted by an amazing guitarist.
The band is led by Brian Setzer who is a well-respected guitarist in the music community. He plays a variety of fifties & sixties guitars making a unique sound all his own. He also is an excellent singer whose voice is perfect for the styles of music he has perfected. The stage at the Pechanga Theater was just big enough to hold the entire 19 piece ensemble of musicians which included a horn section, drummer, Stand up bassist and two female singers.
The set list features Brian Setzer Orchestra songs, Stray Cats Classic songs and of course Christmas songs that put a smile on your face, and this particular show through in an AC/DC song which was very cool.
I was a Stray Cat fan back in 1982, the Stray Cat Strut and Rock this Town are still a couple of my favorite songs. Seeing Brian perform the classic Stray Cats songs was worth the price of admission.
Throughout the set list there were lots of moments where the musicians got the spotlight to solo and there were some brilliant solos. Other highlights were Gene and Eddie, Sleepwalk, The Christmas song & of course Rock This Town.
They rocked the house, especially during Rock This Town which had everybody up singing & dancing along. The full orchestra joined after the second verse in a grand finale.
The Encore was one of the highlights of the night. The first song was “the Nutcracker Suite” followed by “Jingle Bells”, which had an appearance by Santa Claus who threw out Candy to the crowd. (At least we think it was…..Ed) The whole evening was magical and I am looking forward to seeing the next Christmas Extravaganza.
Brian Setzer Pechanga setlist:
- Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree
- Hoodoo Voodoo Doll
- Stray Cat Strut
- Boogie Woogie Santa
- Gene and Eddie
- Here comes Santa Claus
- Sleepwalk
- Angels Heard on High
- Dirty Boogie
- Jump Jive an’ Wail
- Let there be Rock
- The Christmas Song
- Mystery Train
- Cat Clothes
- Fishnet Stockings
- Rockin’ Rudolph
- Rock this Town
- The Nutcracker Suite
- Jingle Bells
Brian Setzer Orchestra
Review by Storm@backstage360.com
Venue: Pechanga Casino