It is not often that State College gets a pure, unadulterated shot of rhythm and blues. Tuesday night was an exception -- blues guitarist Bobby Radcliff and his band brought the house down at Mr. C's.

Although the acoustics at Mr. C's aren't quite as good as they could be, the club provides an up-close, intimate setting for a musical performance.

The opening act, Queen Bee and the Blue Hornet Band, set the tone for the evening with a tight, driving set that got the audience going. Mark Ross' stinging guitar lines and Tanya Brown's fiery vocals proved once again that the band's reputation for hot R & B is no fluke.

After a 30-minute break that left the audience hungry for the blues, Bobby Radcliff took the stage and showed State College what all the hype is about. From the opening notes of "Dys Funk Shon," a smoking instrumental, it was obvious that the audience was in the presence of a master.

Dressed almost entirely in black, hair pulled back into a long ponytail, Radcliff played up to his role as bluesman incarnate. Standing rigid, immobile but for his flailing fingers, he spat out licks that might even make Stevie Ray Vaughan blush -- and he didn't falter during either of his one hour sets.

His band -- Richard "Dickie" Dworkin on drums and Dave Hofstra on bass guitar -- provided a solid back-up for all of Radcliff's guitar outbursts. This did not go unnoticed by the "star," who ended two different songs with "Let's hear it for the band, folks!"

Highlights from the first set included "Sail On," "Going Home Tomorrow," (from his new LP, Dresses Too Short), and a scorching version of James Brown's "Sex Machine."

The somewhat looser second set featured such blues classics as Slim Harpo's "Scratch My Back," Otis Rush's "Keep on Loving Me Baby," and Elvis Presley's "Mystery Train."

Although his live set consists almost entirely of covers, Radcliff brings a freshness and renewed vigor to even the most tired blues songs, notably "Kansas City," that is incredibly hard to come by. He has a unique style -- often sounding like two guitarists playing at once -- that surely ranks him as one of the most innovative blues guitarists around. He is also a very talented, emotive R & B vocalist that makes almost any standard song come alive.

Blues fanatics everywhere should be waiting breathlessly to see what he does next.