THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, January 26, 1995 TAG: 9501260051
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
SEE THAT LITTLE trickle of blood dripping from his lip where his teeth dug in? See the tear trickling from his eye?
This manager just heard the singer he represents tell an interviewer, ``I'm not the best. We (performer and band) are pretty good but we make mistakes.''
The modest Neal McCoy and his pickers will be at Hampton Coliseum tonight, opening for Alabama.
Alabama asked the Jacksonville, Texas, native to tour with them after noting the wild reception he received when he guested during two of Alabama's June Jam fund-raising concerts in Fort Payne, Ala.
``There are only two acts on this tour, so I do 45 minutes - sometimes 60,'' McCoy said.
It will be a wild 45 or 60 minutes; he has gained the reputation as one of the wildest acts in country and one of its best showmen.
``Most of what I do is up-tempo. There's a lot of demand for that because of the dance clubs,'' McCoy said during an interview from his home in Longview, Texas.
``I'm happy here - don't live in Nashville,'' he said. ``When I get off the road, it's a chance to get away from the music business. My family's happiest here. So am I.''
That all-American family includes wife Melinda, daughter Miki and son Christian.
Pure family values - that's McCoy. Well, almost.
``I don't drink, I don't smoke but, boy, I gamble way too much,'' he said. ``Whenever I get the opportunity, I like to visit race tracks. Anybody says they win, they're lying. Betting is my one weakness. I bet on football games, too.''
And he plays football with his band members when time allows.
``We've been together since 1990. They're regular guys,'' McCoy said, ``guys I can toss a football with or play cards with.''
They are guys who can keep up with a performer who often goes onstage minus a set list of songs - just playing what he feels is right.
His latest hit, ``For a Change,'' is making more than change. The chart-climbing single entered the big-bucks category shortly after release.
The hot item is from McCoy's Atlantic album ``You Gotta Love That.''
McCoy would love to see it equal the success of ``Wink'' and ``No Doubt About It,'' his 1994 No. 1 singles.
In addition to those hits, his show features some soul, some blues and sometimes some big band.
``I'm a big-band nut. I worked with guys who played with the Tommy Dorsey and Lionel Hampton orchestras,'' McCoy said.
Will he do a big-band piece at the Coliseum?
``I'll do you one,'' McCoy said.
It will be fun but it might be a little on the loose side.
``My band is just good ol' country boys, not Nashville pickers. They never could be; they're not that good,'' McCoy told a reporter for The Tennessean newspaper. ``I'm not that good a singer either.''
OOOeee - here comes that trickle of blood and tears again. ILLUSTRATION: CONCERT FACTS
Who: Alabama and Neal McCoy
Where: Hampton Coliseum
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday
Tickets: $21.50 and $24.50; call 671-8100.
by CNB