McClure topless bar books concert

MCCLURE, Ill. -- The tops will be on at the HushPuppy Saloon in McClure on Wednesday when reconfigured hard rock band Skid Row performs at a bar known for its topless dancers.

Club owner Jamie Thompson said this is the first time he's booked a band to play the strip club in the time he's owned the HushPuppy, since April 2005. The club will hold about 800 people as a concert venue, Thompson said. In the future he may decide to book more shows at the HushPuppy.

"If they go well, we're going to keep doing the shows," Thompson said.

Skid Row's show will be open to people 18 years old and up, with no dancers. Thompson said club security will be watching closely to prevent underage drinking.

Thompson said he wants to book national touring acts of the classic rock variety, like Skid Row, for future dates at the venue, with local acts opening up for the touring groups. The only other venue that can hold a large enough crowd to attract such bands is the Show Me Center, Thompson said.

If booking bands at the HushPuppy becomes successful, Thompson said the club may switch into a rock concert venue instead of a strip club.

"That just depends on the num¿bers,"Thompson said. "If I can make more money doing bands, I'll happily do bands."

Classic rock acts have typically drawn large crowds at the Show Me Center. Local classic rock station 100.7 KGMO and music store P-Mac Music are sponsoring the Wednesday night concert.

Thompson said bringing in bands is a way to change the way people see the HushPuppy.

"The problem we've got on this side of the river is we can't get people to cross the river until Cape closes," Thompson said. "We're trying to get something to get them across the river earlier than 1:30 in the morning."

Thompson plans to use all local bands to open up for his rock acts, and says he's accepting promotional materials from local bands right now.

Local hard rockers Drivin' Rain -- a band that has opened for other well-known hard rock acts in the past -- will open for Skid Row Wednesday. Drivin' Rain frontman Timexx Nasty said this will be Skid Row's first time playing a local show. "This is our first time with Skid Row, and we're really excited about it," he said. "They're one of my favorite bands."

Skid Row was one of the last "hair metals" bands to experience popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s, just before grunge music began to dominate rock. After experiencing success with its first album in 1989, the band later broke up in 1996 before re-forming in 2000 without controversial vocalist Sebastian Bach.

msanders@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 182

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Want to go?

What: Skid Row w/ Drivin' Rain

When: Wednesday, 9 p.m.

Where: HushPuppy Saloon

Info: (618) 661-1010