Arizona Daily Star from Tucson, Arizona • Page 95

MUSIC Record sales no indicator of Wheel's true success i HOWARD POST Ranchscapes Saturday 6-8pm ArtistPresent Asleep at the Wheel in concert When: 6 p.m. today Where: Lions Park in Benson. Take Interstate 10 to Exit 303. Park is near Adams and Pearl streets. Admission: $15 through Zia's Record Exchange or at the gate Et cetera: The show, which also features Troy Olsen and Sonic Moon, is part of Benson's Butterfield Overland Stage Days, today through Sunday.

(See related story, Page 5.) nil "One of the Nation's GREAT Chinese Restaurants" USA Today 'Best of Tucson" Tucson Weekly 1999, 2000, 2001 Fl no Szechuan Cantonese Cuisine Every Tuesday Wednesday Evening CJI. Mara's Illusion Mask Show Offers Fun for the whole Family (Performances at 6:16 p.m. 7:15 p.m.) toed into the mainstream with "Ride With Bob." The album featured mainstream stars like Dixie Chick Natalie Maines, Lee Ann Womack, Vince Gill, Reba McEntire and Willie Nelson backing the band on classic Bob Wills Western songs. The ride earned the Wheel its ninth Grammy. "You hang around long enough they either give you an award or they throw you out," jokes the 51-year-old Benson.

But the award paled in comparison to the sudden surge in the band's popularity. Their gigs were attracting bigger crowds in bigger venues and fans were remembering them and their forgotten music. "People discover us and they go, 'Wow, I like that he says with a chuckle. "My idea on ('Ride With Bob') was to draw attention to Asleep at the Wheel and Bob Wills' music by bringing in very non-Western swing artists like Tim McGraw and the Dixie Chicks And it worked." Most surprising of all for Benson, perhaps, was the surge in respect paid the band by their peers. "I would trade that multimillion-dollar bank account for what I have any day," he says.

"Respect is something you can't buy. We have great respect among our peers and people. It's so gratifying." I Contact Cathalena E. Burch at burchceazstarnet.com or 573-4642. NEW SEAFOOD BUFFET 50 ENTREES Plus healthy mongolian stir-fry, soup, salad and fruit bar and soft serve ice cream By Cathalena E.

Burch ARIZONA DAILY STAR Ray Benson wishes he could say he's sold 20 million records and has a bank account as big as Garth Brooks. But the Asleep at the Wheel founder and frontman has much loftier bragging rights: He's helping America remember its forgotten music. For 31 years, he and his band have been scooting around the country spreading the gospel of classic Western swing, country blues, bluegrass and hillbilly music sounds that so clearly define America's roots. He hasn't sold 20 million albums, and he doesn't have a bank account worth bragging about Frankly, keeping the band going they've gone through about 80 members over the years has been financially draining at times. "It's still a struggle every day to make this thing work," Benson says in a smooth voice that favors the 28 years the Philadelphia native has spent in Austin.

"The pay's not great You make a lot more money playing different kinds of music." Just as quickly as the statement slips from his lips, he adds: "I really enjoy doing it and I feel a sense of responsibility. Nobody else is doing this." Until recently, that is. Asleep at the Wheel, which headlines tonight's ButterQeld Overland Stage Days concert in Benson, has inspired a new generation of artists to perform roots music. "We've had an effect That's very important to me that there's another gen HAPPY HOUR M-F All Cocktails 12 price BUFFET $1.00 OFF LUNCH '5X Mon. Frl.

6" Sat Sun. DINNER 7 COCKTAILS Complete Menu Catering Banquet Fri-Sot 1 1 Sun-Thurs 1 1 327-5055 1800 E. Ft. Lowell at Campbell Free Birthday Lunch or Dinner with I D. The Wheel has been turning out classic Western swing and country fare since the mid-1970s.

Early on, they enjoyed a few radio hits, although only one of their songs, the very country sounding "The Letter (That Johnny Walker Read)" from 1974, ever scored in the Top 10. (They've re-recorded it on their latest album, "The Very Best of Asleep at the When he was a nobody, George Strait used to open for the ensemble, which has varied in size from a dozen musicians to its current six over the years. These days, the Wheel opens for the bigger-than-life Strait at his yearly George Strait Country Music Festival giving the band exposure to tens of thousands of fans. In 1999, theWheel nimbly tip Cfl Have you been diagnosed with Knee Osteoarthritis or Rheumatoid Arthritis? Are you over the age of 18? Are you interested in learning about current research to help arthritis sufferers? If so, contact a research study coordinator at the University of Arizona Arthritis Center We will be happy to do a phone screening to see if you qualify for one of our current research studies. eration of people doing this stuff," Benson said from home in Austin last week.

Asleep at the Wheel once boasted 12 members; now there are six. rm AH For more information please call (OA) 520 626-8379 (RA) 520 626-3718 Se habla Espanol ARIZONA ARTHRITIS CENTER.