Twenty years ago, Billy Bacon started rocking and, much to his chagrin, he's been on the road ever since.

"I thought I'd be living in Beverly Hills by now, resting on my laurels and counting my gold records," Bacon said with a laugh. "Apparently, I don't have what it takes. I'm one of those unknown legends who's going to stay unknown."

That self-deprecating humor aside, Bacon says he's thinking about cutting back on his touring. He's moved to Austin, Texas, from California and is considering buying a business there and doing only a couple of long tours a year rather than being on the road for 40 weeks.

But even if he makes that change, he'll still make time for regular runs up to Lincoln and the Zoo Bar, where he and the Forbidden Pigs will start a five-night residency on Wednesday.

"People all over the place ask 'What's your favorite place to play?' I always tell them the Zoo Bar in Lincoln, Nebraska," Bacon said. "If they haven't heard of it, they always say 'What's so great about Lincoln, Nebraska?' I tell them, ‘You've got to be there.'

"We've had so many great times there. (Former Zoo owner) Larry Boehmer is the greatest guy. (Current owner) Pete Watters has been there all along. Those guys are all my friends. It's like coming home, it's like family."

Bacon's local fan base has rolled over two or three times in the 15 or so years he's been playing the Zoo, through generations of college students. But there's a loyal group of longtime fans as well, guaranteeing that every Pigs show is a party.

 Next weekend, the shows definitely will be parties — Halloween parties.

 "There will be some hideous Halloween costumes, I believe," Bacon said in a telephone interview from Michigan. "We haven't decided what they're going to be. But they'll be hideous."

While Bacon and the Forbidden Pigs, a backing duo that has changed often over the years, come to Lincoln regularly just to play, there's a purpose behind this tour.

He's pushing "Still Smokin' After 20 Years," a "greatest hits" CD of sorts.

Bacon started with 40 songs for the package and had to hone it down to the 21 that fit on a disc.

"It got tough toward the end, having to eliminate some of the songs," he said. "I think it's a good collection showing the styles of music I've written over the years, and a lot of people's favorite songs are on there."

That stylistic variety comes, in part, from Bacon's family background. His father listened to '40s big band music, and his six older brothers left him with a record collection that covered the heyday of rock 'n' roll from the '50s through the Beatles, the Beach Boys and '60s bands such as Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs.

But the musical mixture was inspired by Bacon's biggest influence, the late, great Doug Sahm.

"He was the best; he was also the most versatile," Bacon said of Sahm. "He'd put out a country record, then a doo-wop record, then a Tex-Mex record, then a blues record, then a rock record. He was a musical genius. I learned more from him than anybody."

That musical mixture, with a heavy emphasis on the rockin' Tex-Mex sounds, helps keep people coming back to see Bacon and the Pigs in the clubs they play across the country, especially at the Zoo.

"I think I'm just lucky to have found that place," Bacon said. "It's similar to a lot of the other college towns we play — a good music audience and people who like to have a good time. But there's something special there."

Reach L. Kent Wolgamott at 473-7244 or kwolgamott@journalstar.com.