ROCKIN' COUNTRY NIGHTS HEADLINE GRANDSTAND ENTERTAINMENT AT FAIR

The Charlie Daniels Band, Collin Raye, and the Gibson-Miller Band will be the grandstand headliners at this year's Southeast Missouri District Fair.

Fair officials are enthusiastic about this year's bookings, which feature a return engagement by the Daniels band.

"This is the strongest entertainment we've had in years," said Steve Engles, a member of the fair board. "And it has a stronger pull than any of the other fairs going on right now.

"They are great entertainers who were on their way to someplace else or had an open date."

Mike Ford, whose Ford Entertainment booked the lineup, said, "We are fortunate in getting the people we got."

All shows start at 7:30 p.m.. Tickets for Charlie Daniels and Collin Raye are $15, $10.50 and $8.50. Tickets for the Gibson-Miller Band are $10.50, $8.50 and $6.50. For information, phone 1-800-455-FAIR.

The Gibson-Miller Band kicks off the grandstand musical entertainment on Thursday, Sept. 16. The band combines the raw rock energy of lead guitarist Blue Miller he formerly played with Bob Seger with the pure country songwriting talent of Dave Gibson, who wrote Joe Diffie's "Ships That Don't Come In" and Alabama's "Jukebox in My Mind."

The band's debut album, "Where There's Smoke," has produced the current hit, "Texas Tattoo."

The Daniels band performs Friday.

Daniels, who was born in Wilmington, N.C. in 1936, is best-known for the hits "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," "The South's Gonna Do It Again" and "Simple Man." Earlier this year, the band released its 22nd album, "America, I Believe In You."

One of those albums, "Million Mile Reflections," was certified double platinum.

On Saturday, Collin Raye will sing his hits "Love, Me," and "I Want You Bad." Raye, whose second album is "In This Life," was voted the 1992 Country Hunk of the Year.

Raye hails from Greenville, Texas, and has been a country music singer for some 16 years. His first album, "All I Can Be," went gold and was named one of the top 10 albums of the year by USA Today.

Other grandstand entertainments at the fair will be the Demolition Derby at 8 p.m. Monday; the Tractor Pull at 7 p.m. Tuesday; and the Big Bull Chute-Out at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

The Big Bull Chute-Out is a crowd favorite in which bull riders compete for $2,500 top prize money.