The Stray Cats kicked off their 2026 U.S. tour on Friday in Las Vegas, delivering a rousing 22-song set at the Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan.
You can see video from the performance and the full set list below.
Friday’s show marked the first Stray Cats performance in almost exactly a year, as the band was forced to cancel its fall 2025 tour due to singer and guitarist Brian Setzer’s reported “serious illness.” But on Friday, those issues were in the rearview, as the Stray Cats ripped through staples such as “Stray Cat Strut” and “Rock This Town,” along with early rock ‘n’ roll classics such as Eddie Cochran’s “Twenty Flight Rock” and Santo & Johnny’s “Sleep Walk.”
A pair of covers immortalized by Elvis Presley — his own “Jailhouse Rock” and Big Mama Thornton’s “Hound Dog” — appeared in the encore before the group wrapped things up with “Built for Speed.”
READ MORE: Top 250 American Songs
What Were Brian Setzer’s Health Issues?
Setzer revealed in early 2025 that he was dealing with an autoimmune disease that made it impossible for him to play guitar. “There is no pain, but it feels like I am wearing a pair of gloves when I try to play,” Setzer told fans. “I have seen some progress in that I can hold a pen and tie my shoes. I know this sounds ridiculous, but I was at a point where I couldn’t even do that.”
The guitarist said that amid these health struggles, he became addicted to Kratom, an over-the-counter herbal wellness tonic. But a trip to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, yielded a proper diagnosis and put Setzer on the road to recovery.
“The best way I can describe it is, your nerves are like wires, and wires have sheathing on them,” Setzer explained (via Guitar Player). “Well, that’s coating has kind of eroded, so the wires malfunction. Basically, they lock up my hands and feet. I can’t move them. I can’t button my pants, let alone play guitar.”
Progress was incremental. “I was able to hold a guitar pick – that came first,” Setzer said. “It was, ‘All right, I’m more than halfway there.’ And then when I was able to fingerpick, when my fingers came back, then I had the whole package.”
A rejuvenated Setzer and Co. now have dozens of shows booked through the end of the year. The first leg of their just-launched tour will end on Aug. 16 in Morristown, New Jersey. Following a three-month break, they’ll hit the road for a second leg that begins on Nov. 9 in Grand Prairie, Texas, and ends on Dec. 6 in Mashantucket, Connecticut.
Watch the Stray Cats Play ‘Stray Cat Strut’ on July 24, 2026
Watch the Stray Cats Play ‘Please Don’t Touch’ on July 24, 2026
Watch the Stray Cats Play ‘Rumble in Brighton’ on July 24, 2026
Stray Cats – July 24, 2026, Las Vegas Set List
1. “Please Don’t Touch” (Johnny Kidd and the Pirates cover)
2. “Too Hip, Gotta Go”
3. “Runaway Boys”
4. “Double Talkin’ Baby” (Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps cover)
5. “My One Desire” (Dorsey Burnette cover)
6. “Stray Cat Strut”
7. “Gene and Eddie”
8. “Rumble in Brighton”
9. “Twenty Flight Rock” (Eddie Cochran cover)
10. “Sleep Walk” (Santo & Johnny cover)
11. “Cry Baby”
12. “Three Time’s a Charm”
13. “My Baby Left Me” (Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup cover)
14. “When Nothing’s Going Right”
15. “Bring It Back Again”
16. “Blast Off”
17. “I Won’t Stand in Your Way”
18. “Fishnet Stockings”
19. “Rock This Town”
Encore
20. “Jailhouse Rock” (Elvis Presley cover)
21. “Hound Dog” (Big Mama Thornton cover)
22. “Built for Speed”
2026’s Biggest Rock Tours
Rock reunions are creating some of the biggest headlines for 2026 – but there are lots of other huge shows on the way.
Gallery Credit: Nick DeRiso
