This week's Box Tops shows in Winnipeg promise to be a nostalgic affair -- for the band as well as fans.

"Winnipeg is kind of an important place in our history," says Gary Talley, lead guitarist for the '60s pop outfit from Memphis. "Back in 1967 when we were just getting started, our first big tour was in Canada with a group from North Dakota called The Tradewinds. And our very first show on that tour was in Winnipeg.

"I don't remember where we played -- it was some club, I think. But I remember we flew up there and spent Christmas Day of 1967 in a hotel in Winnipeg. That wasn't too much fun. And I remember it being very cold. I'll always remember that."

The band's return for three shows at Club Regent Casino tonight through Saturday should be equally memorable for music lovers -- the reunited Box Tops includes enigmatic singer Alex Chilton, one of the most revered cult figures in rock.

While still in his teens, Chilton led the group to success with blue-eyed soul hits such as Soul Deep, Cry Like a Baby and the unforgettable The Letter ("Get me a ticket for an airplane") before tiring of pop stardom and quitting the band in 1970. He went on to form the group Big Star, whose pop-rock classics like September Gurls influenced everyone from R.E.M. to The Replacements' Paul Westerberg, who penned the song Alex Chilton in homage. Although his subsequent solo career has been erratic due to reported battles with the bottle, Chilton's impact is still felt far and wide -- even the theme for TV's That '70s Show is based on the Big Star track In the Street.

But if it seems odd for the iconoclastic Chilton to be playing for free at a local casino in January, that's nothing compared to how shocked Talley was when he agreed to rejoin the band in 1997.

"Our bass player Bill Cunningham had called everybody with the idea that we would just get together in the studio and record some things for fun. I was very surprised Alex wanted to do it, given the bad feelings he had at the time. He's got a lot of negative associations with The Box Tops era. We all got screwed over financially.

"But he just said he thought it might be fun," says the 53-year-old Talley. "He's pretty mellow compared to the old days. He seems more at peace now. He's laid-back and easygoing."

Which is not to say that The Box Tops -- which also number drummer Danny Smythe and new keyboardist Jamie Whiting -- are just a lark.

"Alex takes the music very seriously. If he didn't like the way the band sounded, he wouldn't do it. And these days we're sounding pretty good. For the first few gigs we were pretty rough, but every gig in 2000 was a good gig. No stinkers."

The band's set features mostly their hits, augmented by R&B chestnuts like Wang Dang Doodle, some of which were taped at that studio reunion and issued on a 1998 CD called Tear Off! Lately there's been talk of writing new tunes, and the Tops just covered Blondie's Call Me for an '80s rock compilation.

But for now, Talley -- who has played with everyone from George Fox to Willie Nelson over his career -- seems content for The Box Tops to be a chance to get together with old friends every few weeks, relive old times and pick up a nice piece of change.

"I'm sure we're making more for this than we made for that first gig," he laughs. "That's another thing I remember."