SIKESTON JAYCEES PICK SINGERS FOR 44TH RODEO

SIKESTON -- Four major country western stars will shine Aug. 7-10 at the Sikeston Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo.

The rodeo will begin at 7:30 p.m. each night, Wednesday through Saturday.

John Anderson, best known for his 1980s monster hit "Swingin'," will perform Aug. 7. A new rendition of the hit is on his latest album, "Country 'til I Die."

The 39-year-old Florida native came to Nashville when he was 17, where he quickly joined the New Traditionalists country western movement. Now he sees the results of his influence, as country has moved away from the pop sound and back to its early roots.

Clay Walker will perform Aug. 8, and he's sure to perform hits off his latest album, "Hypnotize The Moon." The Beaumont, Texas, native grew up around guitar music and worked his way through clubs and honky tonks before achieving worldwide recognition.

These days, he's known for hits like "Where Were You," "Hand Me Down Heart," and "Only On Days That End in `Y'."

Most people see Joe Diffie, slated to perform Aug. 9, every time they turn on the television. His hit "Pickup Man" was picked up by a truck manufacturer, and Diffie performs part of it on a commercial. The song spent four weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1994.

His latest album is "Life's So Funny." It charts new territory for the singer, setting a more contemporary and contemplative country tone.

Country western newcomer Chris LeDoux will round out the rodeo with his Aug. 10 performance. The bronc-rider-turned-singer distributed his own tapes for years. He said his big break came when Garth Brooks mentioned listening to "worn out tapes by ol' Chris LeDoux" in his hit "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)."

LeDoux, the father of five, is famous for "Cadillac Ranch" and "Whatcha Gonna Do With a Cowboy?"

Tickets for all four performances are available by writing: Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo, P.O. Box 5, Sikeston, Mo. 63801. They are $18 for box seats and $12 for bleacher seats. A toll-free number for the ticket office at the rodeo office will be activated June 1: 1-800-455-BULL.