Brian Setzer Struts His New Swing Stuff

The ‘90s swing revival is more often about the rumble of Louis Prima than the sweet pop of Glenn Miller. This suits the purposes of Brian Setzer, who led his big band in a sold-out performance at the Greek Theatre on Saturday to prove one point: Swing or no swing, the man is still rocking.

With his new album “The Dirty Boogie” a Top-20 hit, Setzer has returned to the sort of success he enjoyed as singer-guitarist of the Stray Cats in the early ‘80s. The Brian Setzer Orchestra is no left turn from his rockabilly days, merely a reinterpretation, bolstering the three-piece Stray Cats concept with a 13-man horn section.

Standing in his silver suit and golden pompadour, Setzer blended driving roots rock with the smooth crime-jazz flavor of Henry Mancini, even dropping a piece of Mancini’s “Pink Panther Theme” into Setzer’s own “Stray Cat Strut.” The band’s new version of Santo & Johnny’s “Sleep Walk” made more sense in the live setting, balancing the original’s hypnotic guitar intro with blustery horn passages that fell just short of overwhelming the song.

Not all of Setzer’s original material was up to the standard of the night’s rock ‘n’ roll chestnuts, but the band’s intensity never wavered. Setzer was joined on stage by No Doubt’s Gwen Stefani to reprise their taunting duet “You’re the Boss.” And the night’s only misstep was a schmaltzy rendition of the Beatles’ “Got to Get You Into My Life,” which came off about as urgent as a Merv Griffin performance.