Tonight, Monday night, at 8:00 PM, the Avalon in Hollywood hosts Concert For A Cause, a benefit for the International Myeloma Foundation, with a rare treat indeed: a virtual performance of a virtual band.

Yes that will be Michael McKean, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer on stage, in place of David, Nigel and Derek, a hard jolt of reality from the creators of the greatest illusion in rock history. Spinal Tap. Not to mention the Folksmen, who certainly had the DEFINITIVE version of “Never Did No Wanderin’.”

Michael McKean told KNX Radio, “We’re going to have to ask people to close their eyes and imagine that we’re wearing spandex and wigs…Christopher, Harry and myself are going to do a bunch of Spinal Tap stuff, a bunch of Folksmen stuff…some songs that people have never heard before.”

So, if all you came for was to see Stonehenge trodden upon by a dwarf, it might not be your kind of night. But the opportunity to hear new stuff from three guys who have written such memorable pieces of false history is awful enticing. This is a joke band that's proven to have more legs than most real bands, for the simple reason that the tunes hold up. And tunes we shall have, even if malfunctioning pods remain elusive.

Half-price tickets are on sale now at http://www.goldstarevents.com/ till 1:30pm Monday. Once those are sold out, you’ll have to go to http://www.wantickets.com/EventDetail.aspx?e_id=27874.

Photo by Walsh via Flickr.