Little Charlie, Nightcats celebrates new release

Alligator recording artists Little Charlie and the Nightcats will celebrate the release of their new CD, "Nine Lives," during a performance scheduled July 30 at 9:30 p.m. at the Powerhouse Pub, 614 Sutter Street in historic Folsom.The Sacramento-based blues and jump masters' music is fueled by Little Charlie Baty's guitar acrobatics and driven by Rick Estrin's winning original songs, cutting vocals and deep harmonica playing.It's been more than 30 years since world-class musicians guitarist Little Charlie Baty and harmonicist/ vocalist/ songwriter Rick Estrin first teamed up and took hard Chicago blues, jump, Texas swing and jazz and mixed it with rockabilly, proto-rock 'n' roll, jumping jive, bebop and Estrin's sharply original lyrics, creating a sound one critic described as "Charlie Christian playing in Little Walter's band." The new CD features 13 original songs, including three instrumentals, and showcases the band's constantly growing repertoire and chops. Little Charlie and the Nightcats formed in the early 1970s when Baty, a harmonica-playing UC Berkeley student, first met Estrin. With Rick already an accomplished harp player, Baty decided to switch to guitar full-time and the two formed a blues band.