You may hear a couple Elvis ditties when Brian Setzer brings his orchestra to Santa Rosa for two shows on Dec. 26 and 27.
T'was the night of Christmas, and all through the counties ...

Not a creature was stirring, because the clubs had locked up their bounties ...

That's true, all except Peri's Silver Dollar in Fairfax, which is presenting what appears to be the only significant Christmas live music anywhere. Its present on Dec. 25 will be a channeling of Elvis Presley with Allways Elvis ($5, 9:30 p.m.). This should include some material from Elvis' fourth album for RCA, “Elvis' Christmas Album,” which spent four weeks at No. 1 in 1957.

For the day after Christmas, some other clubs dip their curly pointed toes back into the live music, mainly with cover bands. Rancho Nicasio presents the 85's, featuring 1985 Tamalpais High grads making music from the 1980s ($12, 8:30 p.m.); Last Day Saloon in Santa Rosa gets in the spirit with Sweat Leaf, an Ozzy Osbourne/Black Sabbath tribute band with Lance Ozanix of the band Skitzo on vocals and Steve Smythe (Forbidden/Vicious Rumors/Testament) on guitar. If I remember correctly, Skitzo's slogan is “If all else fails I'll just puke.” Smythe's other band, the EssenEss Project, will open the show, which seems to be a trend lately ($8 in advance, $10 at the door, 8:30 p.m.).

Santa Rosa goes a little more traditional when the Brian Setzer Orchestra plays two shows (Dec. 26 and 27) at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts. Maybe the former Stray Cats guitarist also way play some Elvis Christmas tunes. Tickets for

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either of the 8 p.m. shows run $25.75 to $85.75. Merry Christmas, indeed.

On Dec. 27, Petaluma's Mystic Theatre welcomes back its patrons with a double bill of Cracker and Camper Van Beethoven ($25, 8:30 p.m.). Both bands feature David Lowery on guitars and vocals and Frank Funaro on drums, which should make set change a snap. One does wonder what it must be like to sing a song titled “Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)” when one is 49 years old.

The end of the week and the ushering in of the New Year brings us the bulk of the week's live entertainment. Dec. 31 brings us — on a sliding scale — the Pulsators at Cotati's Tradewinds ($20, 9:30 p.m.), the Hold Outs, Lansdale Station and the Diamond-Ortiz brothers at 19 Broadway ($20 in advance, $25 at the door, $10 for ladies before 10 p.m., 8 p.m.), Curtis Paul Campbell and the Eclectic Beast Band at the Mill Valley Masonic ($35-$60, 9 p.m.), the Zydeco Flames at Rancho Nicasio ($35-$45, 9 p.m.), Wonderbread 5 at the Last Day Saloon ($40, 9 p.m.) and Tommy Castro (along with Jeffrey Halford) at Petaluma's Mystic Theatre ($50 to $60, 8 p.m.).

For those with a more jazzy inclination, New Year's Eve also marks the premier of “Ella: The American Dream” at Petaluma's Cinnabar Theater starring jazz vocalist Kim Nalley. The show kicks of at 8:30 p.m. and is $60 (seniors and students $55). Hopefully, they serve the champagne in plastic cups because we all know what the amplified voice of Ella Fitzgerald can do to glassware (proven by TV's “Mythbusters”).

Instead of leaving you music fans with a cliched “Merry Christmas,” I will leave you with the lyrics from Elvis' “Santa Bring My Baby Back to Me”:

“I don't need a lot of presents, to make my Christmas bright

I just need my baby's arms, Wound around me tight

Oh oh, Santa, hear my plea. Santa bring my baby back to me.”

Please.

For band listings, musical news, music-related gossip or related sightings, contact Doctor.rock@live.com.