ROCK BANDS RETURN FOR PERFORMANCE AT THE SHOW ME CENTER

The hallway in the administrative offices at the Show Me Center is lined with the publicity photos of acts that have performed there. Among them are an array of rock 'n' roll groups, including Guns 'n Roses, Motley Crue and a late 1980s collection of what Show Me Center Director David Ross calls "big-hair bands."

The scarcity of fresh pictures is a constant reminder that the venue hasn't been a popular stopover for rock groups since those heydays. So why is Sammy Hagar scheduled to perform Nov. 19, four nights after a Motley Crue/Cheap Trick concert at the SIU Arena and one night before Clay Walker headlines a four-artist country bill at the Show Me Center?

"We haven't done a rock 'n' roll show in a long time," Ross said. "We wanted to see if the base is still out there."

In August 1996, fewer than 1,200 people attended a show offering both Eddie Money and Kansas. A Crosby, Stills & Nash concert the same month drew a larger audience but still was disappointing, Ross said.

"We wanted more and the promoter was expecting more."

That was the most recent rock concert held at the Show Me Center.

Country music has been the venue's staple during the 1990s, but more than a year ago Ross stated that he wanted to book more rock 'n' roll shows. That hasn't happened.

A big part of the problem is that the rock 'n' roll audience has become increasingly segmented in the 1990s, says St. Louis-based music promoter Brad Garrett. He says MTV took control of the music.

"A guy like me couldn't find anything to relate to," said Garrett, whose tastes run toward heavy metal.

Says Ross, "It's still got the label of rock 'n' roll but the music has changed dramatically."

Ross long ago elected not to book alternative bands whose "mosh pits" look to an administrator like a swarm of liability suits. The Show Me Center also has never booked a rap group.

Meanwhile, grunge has died, and Bruce Springsteen is singing folk songs.

"Rock 'n' roll is down," Ross says. "Somebody new has to come along and change the way people look at it. We're still recycling the Rolling Stones."

Many tours skip the Show Me Center because the bands can jump between St. Louis and Memphis in a single day. The SIU Arena also aces the Show Me Center out of many concerts because it has 3,000 more seats.

The Wallflowers and Hootie and the Blowfish are just two acts Ross lost to SIU.

Garrett, a Southeast alumnus who learned the promotion basics as vice president of the Student Activities Council, says Ross doesn't just compete with the SIU Arena.

"He's competing with every building within 200 miles," Garrett said, "from Peoria, Ill., to Little Rock, Ark."

About 1,000 tickets have been sold so far for the concert by Hagar, the former Van Halen lead singer. Ross hopes to sell another 1,500 to 2,000, and will set up the Show Me Center for a capacity of only 4,000.

A concert that doesn't sell out all 7,000-plus seats at the Show Me Center can still be successful, Ross says, as long as a good buying decision was made.

That decision is based on a delicate equation involving the act's popularity, its asking price and the price set for tickets. Tickets for the Hagar show are $20.50.

In comparison, a venue in Tupelo, Miss., not long ago booked the Eagles at a top ticket price of $75, a venture Ross considered extremely risky. What happened? "They hit big," he said.

But when sax balladeer Kenny G wanted $45 per ticket at the Show Me Center, the promoter canceled the date after ticket sales stalled at 2,000.

The Hagar concert is being jointly promoted by the Show Me Center and St. Louis-based Contemporary Productions, the Riverport Amphitheatre people.

Hagar sold out the huge amphitheater last summer.

Amphitheaters are one reason indoor venues like the Show Me Center have had a hard time recently. Many bands quit touring during the winter when promoters, many of whom own amphitheaters themselves, could offer them 40 or 50 summertime shows at large venues.

But Ross says the pendulum is swinging back. Amphitheaters didn't do well this past summer and promoters are suddenly eager to talk.

Blues Traveler, Jonny Lang and, yes, Hanson are among the rock acts Ross would like to book. He realizes that some rock fans don't take the prepubescents in Hanson seriously but a lot of young girls do.

He also wants to test the current market for contemporary Christian music. The Christian singer Carman has drawn some of the largest crowds in the history of the Show Me Center.