Jim Fox is man behind concerts Rock industry is becoming a corporate venture By DEB LORENZEN Courier Staff Writer Up until 1975, the chances of seeing top, big-name rock groups in a metropolitan concert were few. True concert-goers found themselves traveling the state (and in some cases, the Midwest) to catch favorite top-selling bands. But, in the fall of 1975, something called Fox Productions came along, and soon as many as 7,500 fans were flocking to metropolitan auditoriums to see those groups they missed before. FOX PRODUCTIONS is a promotion corporation, of which Jim Fox is president and principal stock owner, and which, in its one year of existence, has grown to impressive heights. "We started off from scratch," says Fox. "Good things have happened. We now have thousands of kids coming from all over Iowa more than 5,000 came for our Aerosmith concert, and 6,500 showed up for Chicago's performance in the UNI-Dome." Fox, admittedly, comes from the Harry James era of music, and likens his concerts to a convention, pointing out the benefits Waterloo and Cedar Falls have reaped from the inflow of concert-goers. He is full-time president of Allbee Printing Co., but his conventional office is filled with stacks of glossy photographs, rock concert billing charts, and magazines of his newest venture. FOX ESTIMATES that his promotion business takes an hour or so on the phone each day, up until the week before the concert takes place. "That week I work practically full-time on getting the concert going," he says. This promoter says he got in "the business" because "I like to promote or sell things it is a challenge. I have to decide what groups I want to bring in.. .what groups will attract area people." Besides selling a group to the fans, Fox says the biggest challenge is "selling Waterloo to the booking agents in places like Los Angeles." Fox admits that the first six months or so after Fox Productions was created were a "losing effort." "We had to learn the business. After we became familiar with that business, we teamed ways to cut expenses." FOX PRODUCTIONS has backed comics and country western stars, but the "best bet" for the corporation seems to be rock music, and the best audience consists of teenagers. "Teenagers are the one group you can really depend on. They will pay their money for a good concert, and they will bring their friends. "There is also more action in the rock field more good groups are available and the outcome of concerts is more predictable," Fox says. Rock music has become big business, a fact which becomes apparent with a glance at figures grossed at Waterloo and Cedar Falls concerts: $88,000 for an October concert of Chicago in the UNI-Dome, $64,000 for the April McElroy Auditorium performance of Aerosmith, and $59,000 for the Beach Boys in the Dome. How are those enormous amounts of money spent? Fox explains that a large, well-known rock group will have a guarantee of, say, $25,000. "If they bring their own light and sound systems, you can add around $5,000 more." "THEN AFTER expenses are taken out of the amount of money left, the group gets a percentage of that, maybe around 65 or 75 per cent." " r I -t -ywa I V , '( luiif, ri it- A S , till u facilities, advertising and promotion, security, food and beverages, dressing rooms, and such minute details as parking space, and number of mirrors required." Fox has five people working full-time besides himself, and hires what he calls "contemporary security" (teenagers to patrol the crowds) as well as uniformed police. "We also have to hire janitorial and clean-up help for the day after the show." , This promoter admits that his musical tastes have changed since his plunge into the rock world but not to rock, specifically. He will talk of his love for the music of Harry James in the late 1940 s and 50's, but now he rates as favorites Engelbert Humperdinck, the Beach Boys and Barry Manilow. i "LET'S FACE it. I have been listening to a lot of contemporary music I really like most of what I hear, except for the very hard, acid-rock sounds," he continues. Fox is quick to defend members of the touring bands. "Many people have 'rock bands' capsulized as people who spend their entire lives in a drug or alcoholic stupor. Many of the people I have dealt with don't even drink or smoke at all before a performance". Does this promoter see this trend of big money concerts for extremely large numbers of people as one that will last? "I think it will last. These groups demand more more money and larger audiences, but they are also very good musical talents. Most of them not only write their own music, but also arrange it and play and record it." ' And of Fox Productions? "There is a lot of excitement in this business. "It is a gamble and a challenge," he concludes. Jim Fox Fly-by-night promoters that were in the rock business back when it wasn't such a corporate venture are still around, Fox says. "You can still find guys with a telephone and no money, but owners of the concert halls and auditoriums have learned to tell the legitimate promoters with financial backing from the ones with no money behind a show." As the rock industry has begun to blossom into a large venture, so have the demands and expectations of the groups in that industry. "After you get the deal, the work has just begun," Fox says, explaining that an additional contract called a "rider" is usually attached to the group's contract. "THAT RIDER covers the auditorium specifications a group demands, Hwy. 218 Betwaen Waterloo and Cedar Falls ( We're the best in the