Casinos going country

By Ben Bromley

Now that honky tonk bars are nearly extinct, country acts are finding that casinos are their bread and butter.

That's all right by Duane Propes of Little Texas, and not just because casinos let the band chow down at the buffet. For starters, casinos don't tend to reek of vomit and spilled beer. But more importantly, playing casinos is less of a financial gamble: "Their checks don't bounce," Propes said.

On Sunday, Little Texas will perform at Ho-Chunk Casino, playing the hits that brought the band to stardom in the early 1990s, as well as new songs. Propes promises "a night chock full of hits" such as "What Might Have Been."

Little Texas will perform between Restless Heart and Diamond Rio. "If you miss one (band) you're going to be upset," Propes said. "We're more the rock show, and the other two are more classy."

Wisconsin is one of Little Texas' hotbeds of fans, Propes said, but not enough know the band reunited five years ago — ending a seven-year hiatus — and resumed touring. "We have a ball every time we get into the state," he said.

Propes said Little Texas and its peers are grateful that casinos are booking them. He bemoans the increasingly homogenized state of country music, which he blames on radio stations playing only a handful of hits by bankable artists.

"They're playing the same 15 artists over and over again," said Propes, who sings and plays bass guitar. "They're not breaking anything new.

"I can't hardly listen to it anymore. If I hear another Kenny Chesney or Toby Keith song 15 times, I'm going to puke."

Little Texas came of age when country acts adopted pop and rock influences, cultivating a crossover audience. Groups like Brooks & Dunn grew up on 1970s classic rock and brought a new sensibility to their music and their live concerts. They dispensed with what Propes calls the "Hee Haw" factor, bringing in laser lights and pyrotechnics.

"The shows got wilder, more energetic," Propes said. "The days of just sitting behind your guitar and playing were over."

Little Texas dubbed itself the hardest-working band in America as it broke into the industry, playing more than 300 shows a year across the country. "We just thought that was normal," Propes said.

Founded in Arlington, Texas and forged in Nashville, the band found fame with its first radio release, "Some Guys Have All The Love," which became a top 10 hit in 1991. Five singles from that album, "First Time For Everything," reached the top of the charts.

A second album, 1993's "Big Time," sold more than 3 million copies and spawned three No. 1 singles — "What Might Have Been," "God Blessed Texas" and "My Love" — and captured the group's first CMT Award, a Billboard award and a Grammy nomination.

The group went on to tour with Clint Black, Travis Tritt and Trisha Yearwood before headlining its own tour in 1994. That year, the Academy of Country Music named Little Texas the Vocal Group of the Year.

The group disbanded in 1997. The members wanted to start families, and little tykes took precedence over Little Texas.

Four original members revived Little Texas seven years later without lead singer Tim Rushlow. Today, they plays 60-90 gigs per year, mostly on weekends. "We're Daddy during the week, then we play rock star on the weekend," Propes said. "The best of both worlds.

"I prefer the pace we're on now," he noted. "It's a lot more comfortable."

In addition to fatherhood, the band spends its days running Little Texas. All the members attended college, and one even holds a master's degree from Vanderbilt. They handle their own marketing, management and merchandising.

"We are our own cottage industry," Propes said. "We're pretty good at math and we can answer a telephone."

The honky tonks could've used some guys like that.

If you go

Who: Diamond Rio, Little Texas and Restless Heart

When: 6 p.m. Sunday

Where: Ho-Chunk Casino

Cost: $35 and $45