Classic Eclectic : After disappearing from view for years, the Dixie Dregs, a group of not-for-prom-time players, are back.

Back in those silly ‘70s, the Dixie Dregs were a critical success--which means they didn’t sell enough albums to keep it going. They disappeared years ago. But they’re back now, and the reunited band will be at the Ventura Theatre on Wednesday night--a night of notoriously bad television anyway.

The Dixie Dregs is a group of virtuosi led by guitarist Steve Morse. Don’t be startled if you don’t see some egotistical, prancing, dumb-bell vocalist skilled at shouting such half-witticisms as, “Hey, howzit goin’, Ven-choo-rah?” The Dregs is strictly an instrumental band.

“Well, we used to have vocalists but they were, you know, weird,” Morse said in a recent phone interview from his Florida home. “They always wanted to do classic rock.” While Dixie Dregs plays classic music, there’s more to it than just rock. You’ll find flavors of bluegrass, jazz, funk-rock--all of which are sure to keep them off MTV.

“You don’t want to hire us for the prom or New Year’s Eve,” he added. “One time we played at a Greek New Year celebration. They came on stage and started speaking Greek over the mike, and we weren’t quite sure what they said. They were voting on the jukebox or us. The jukebox won.”

Naturally, the Dregs aren’t heading West empty-handed. They won’t be bringing a jukebox but, surprising absolutely no one, they have a new album with a title inspired by African hunter Frank Buck: “Bring ‘Em Back Alive.” It’s on Capricorn Records, which also was gone but came back.

“I don’t know how (the album) is doing because I specifically can’t even talk about stuff like that because it makes me ill,” Morse said, alluding to the gulf between music and the music biz. “I don’t even go to record shops.

“I remember once back in ’77 or ‘78, we had three albums out and we were begging the record company to just guarantee us a hundred bucks a week. We figured, a hundred bucks, and we’d be set for life.”

They didn’t get it. “On tour, we’d buy a couple of loaves of bread and some peanut butter. If we ever got to stay in a motel, we were really living. We had to all live together in a band house to pay the rent.”

Since the Dregs broke up, its various members created impressive resumes and a few of them even got real jobs. Original violinist Allen Sloan is an anesthesiologist. He’s on the album but not on the tour; Jerry Goodman will take his place.

Morse got his pilot’s license and flew a commercial airliner for awhile. He doesn’t have to do that anymore, though, now that he’s gotten a better job as a Guitar God. He led his own band, played with the group Kansas, was voted Best Overall Guitarist five years in a row by Guitar Player magazine and received a Grammy nomination in 1989.

The other band members who would love to see their names in the paper are Rod Morgenstein on drums, T. Lavitz on keyboards and Dave LaRue on bass.

“I guess everybody got back together so we could have another logistical nightmare,” said Morse. “We just talked about it and wanted to play for fun. We were always an underground band, anyway. It’s just fun being around the guys I’ve known for 20 years.”

The new album features plenty of tasty solos by Morse, plus a trippy version of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir.” The hot rocker is “Medley,” which features riffs from such varied tunes as “My Sharona,” “Mississippi Queen,” “Summertime Blues” and “Gimme Some Lovin’.” Just showin’ off, I guess.

“Well, I used to call our music electric chamber music,” said the former pilot. “I mean, that’s how I think of it. There’s little pieces with intricate parts you can look at clearly. Then, if you move back to a distance, you can see a simple picture. It’s sort of like a Dali painting.”

The band was formed in the mid-’70s at the University of Miami, home to the Hurricanes, where the music department rivals the football program.

“I’m from Michigan originally, and before I went to Florida my brother and I had a garage band,” said the former Hurricane. “We knew this guy who owned a pizza parlor--actually the first Domino’s--and we played there and made ten bucks, then spent it on pizza and drinks.

“I went to Miami to learn to play classical music. I didn’t know how to read music or anything, but they let you be yourself there and stretch things out a bit. Bruce Springsteen’s wife, Patti, was there when I was, playing piano. Pat Metheny went for one semester, then was teaching guitar the next. Bruce Hornsby was there and a lot of guys from his band too.”

So, still want to be a rock star? You like peanut butter?

“You should play whatever you love and be prepared for anything,” Morse advised Guitar Gods-to-be. “Realistically, buy a lottery ticket. More people have been taken care of by winning the lottery than making it in bands. By the time you get done, you end up making assembly line wages.”