CITIZEN KANE BACK FROM SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS

Somewhere deep in the mind of just about every would-be rock star is a secret wish to find a millionaire benefactor to finance the long, hard climb to success.

For Orange County hard rock band Citizen Kane, that wish was apparently fulfilled when they met a rich inventor willing to build a multimillion-dollar record company around the group.

In this fairy-tale-like story, however, the musicians did not live happily ever after. In fact, Citizen Kane, which plays Joshua’s Parlour in Westminster tonight, has spent most of the last 18 months licking its wounds and gearing up for a comeback from what they thought was a stroke of good fortune.

“I’ve been trying to redevelop what the band used to have before Rocshire,” said group founder Mark Anderson, uttering with disdain the name of the ill-fated Rocshire Records company during a recent interview at the band’s Fullerton rehearsal studio.

As the first act signed to Anaheim-based Rocshire, Citizen Kane later learned that its benefactor, Rocshire owner Clyde L. (Rocky) Davis, was not the millionaire inventor he professed to be but instead was an ex-convict with a long record of burglary, robbery and grand theft.

Rocshire folded abruptly in July, 1984, after it was discovered that Davis and his wife, Shirley, had embezzled more than $12 million from Hughes Aircraft in the period 1980-84 to finance Rocshire. The Davises were sentenced to prison in 1985, and various divisions of the company were subsequently sold off.

For the numerous acts signed by Rocshire, a dream come true had turned into a nightmare.

In Citizen Kane’s case, Anderson decided it was time to fall back and literally regroup. With only drummer Chris Olson remaining from the band’s Rocshire days, Anderson established a new edition of the band with lead singer Dave MacDonald, guitarist Ed Nacif and bassist Craig Miller.

Looking back at the Rocshire experience philosophically, Anderson said, “It was a godsend that it happened, because at the time we were trying to figure out how to get out of it. We had decided we didn’t like the direction Rocshire wanted us to go in, which was a lighter sound they thought would get more air play.”

Anderson said that while the band was on a tour in Canada, Davis re-recorded and re-mixed their 1983 four-song EP “Hot Blooded Rocker” and then released it.

“We had no control whatsoever,” he said.

The new Citizen Kane has spent nearly a year writing new material and rehearsing, Anderson said, and is now anxious to resume an active schedule of concert dates. After today’s show at Joshua’s Parlour, the five-man band will perform at the Troubadour in Hollywood on Friday, Fender’s Ballroom in Long Beach on Sunday, the Roxy in Hollywood on March 29 and Jezebel’s in Anaheim on April 3.

Searching for the silver lining in the Rocshire cloud, Anderson said, “In some ways, Rocshire was a good business experience. Without that, I would not be in a band with these guys right now. And I learned a lot about what the business is and where it goes. So I know the mistakes not to make the next time.”

The band members also feel that with the popularity of hard rock and heavy metal on the rise, the new hard rock format at KNAC-FM in Long Beach and return of heavy metal videos to MTV, 1986 looks like an opportune time for Citizen Kane.

In addition, Miller said reaction to the revised band has been generally positive, which he said compensates for other frustrations inherent to the music business.

“After 10 years of being in a band,” Miller said, “you might feel like sitting down and saying, ‘Am I beating my head against a wall again?’ But when you play a few shows and get that feedback from the audience, it makes you feel good.”