The perfect comedy for the holiday season! A TUNA CHRISTMAS byjaston Williams, Joe Sears & Ed Hoeard Directed by Joe Zingo Dec. 5,10,11,12.13.17,18 Valid Sundays and Mondays i 8*11 p.m. only. I I I % Steelhead Brewing Company 199 East 5th Avenue Eugene, OR Phone 686-2739 No to go orders please. Coupon expires 11/30/98 ^ COUPON . | ^ I I 4 Little Charlie and the Nightcats combined hard Chicago blues and swing jazz to produce their lat est album‘Shadow of the Blues.' Courtesy photo Shadow of the Blues’lacks originality Little Charlie and the Nightcats offers recycled sounds and cliche vocals By Casey Kelly lor the Emerald On their latest CD, “Shadow of the Blues,” Little Charlie and the Nightcats offer up 13 tracks of re cycled guitar riffs and horribly cliche vocals that actually make the swing revival sound almost in novative. Revolving around Little Charlie Baty’s guitar stylings and RickEs trin’s ridiculous vocal delivery, The Nightcats create the type of banal blues that typically accom panies commercials for breakfast cereals and soft drinks. In short: nothing terribly original, or for that matter interesting. Baty and Estrin began collabo rating almost 25 years ago while attending college at UC Berkeley. They formed Little Charlie and The Nightcats and released their first album, “All The Way Crazy,” in 1987. In the time since, they have released seven full-length al bums, in cluding a greatest hits col lection. “Shad ow of the Blues” be gins with “Never Shadow of the Blues Little Charlie and the Nightcats TYPE: Jazz RATING: Trust A Woman,” a tongue-in-cheek tune about unfaithfulness. Instead of trying to capture the raw emotions of the situation, it seems as if The Nightcats are just poking fun at it. Estrin’s lyrics are delivered without a hint of the pain and suffering that factors heavily into the most successful blues songs. And as with all the tracks on this CD, it includes a gra tuitous guitar solo that is as dull and unimpressive as it is drawn out. Another song that employs ridiculous humor rather than real feeling is “Big and Fat." Featuring vocals that can only be described as nerve grating, it’s by far the worst song of the album. Estrin reaches a lyrical low when he sings, “We go together like big and fat/Just like an alley and an alley cat.” It’s not quite clear what mes sage such inane subject matter is supposed to convey, but in any event it seems out of place on a blues CD. The next track is a cover of “You Don’t Love Me That Way,” by legendary blues harmonica player Sonny Boy Williamson. It’s bad enough that The Nightcats have to ruin the blues with their own songs, but here they tarnish a tune by one of the genre’s most influential artists. Integrating ele ments of swing and jazz, “You Don’t Love Me That Way” is easi ly the most upbeat track of the record. But Estrin’s insipid har monica fails to live up to Williamson’s genius. Little Charlie and The Nightcats will play at the Good Times Cafe tonight and Saturday night. Both performances begin at 9 p.m. But if "Shadow of the Blues” is any in dication of what their live set will be like, it would probably be a good idea to steer clear. Cj?y Cf?v ^IcBAr£ SJ?IffD£XX See Cry Cry Cry live The Majestic Theatre Sunday Dec. 6th 005145