I love that tune. But would the Jordanaire-type backup vocals translate as well live with just the three of them? Maybe. I know Slim Jim's more into bangin' and a-yellin' than singin'. And the richness of the over-dubbed backup vocals is a key element of that song for me. Maybe Dave Edmunds could show up at a few of the gigs. There are plenty of Stay Cats tunes where the acoustic rhythm guitar seems indispensible on the record, and the songs are perfectly fine in concert without it.
Lee definitely has a decent voice. I have often thought that if Lee, Brian, and Jim decided to record an album today, Lee's songwriting and vocals are strong enough that his contributions would need to be bigger than the token "one track for Ringo" every other album. But let's not get too carried away. Even at 49, Brian Setzer is still THE premier vocal talent in the band.
Of course, the Stray Cats records we know and love gave 95% of the leads to Brian, and since most of the fans want to hear the hits, Lee would get 2-3 songs at the most, and just about no one would cry foul. Lee did take the lead on Bring It Back Again in 2007, and on Rock Therapy in 2004.
It would be interesting to see Lee and Brian tour as sort of a Gene-n-Eddie package down the road. Lee could do his thing, Brian could do his thing, then they could close the show together. Brian could be Cliff Gallup to Lee's Gene Vincent. Although I would feel ripped off if Lee and Brian were together and Lee sang Double Talkin' Baby...
On second thought, that's a bad idea. They're two great artists who deserve their own spotlight. And that, in a nutshell, probably explains in part why this is a farewell tour.
Double Talkin'-billy