More Fans Digging His Roots

The voice of William Topley runs deep, a warm and husky instrument in the tradition of Van Morrison, Paul Rodgers and Mick Jagger. That’s no accident, since it was those fellow British blues shouters who introduced Topley to the roots of rock and pop.

That same sound has defined Topley’s career, first as a member of the group the Blessing and now as a solo artist. But he reserves special respect for the Rolling Stones singer. “What he’s done is to combine something that British people find hard to combine: hard work and fun,� says Topley, a London native. “I don’t think I have the same energy levels as that. I’m more of a slow burner.�

At 37, Topley--who plays the Coach House on Tuesday and the Troubadour on Wednesday--is a 10-year veteran of pop music. But he’s only now being discovered by a growing number of fans drawn to his roots-flavored solo work. His newest album, “Feasting With Panthers,� is a soulful mix of blues and rock, with touches of reggae (“Excuses�) and even hip-hop (“Soul I Want�).

“It does change the experience,� Topley says of the larger crowds. “In Denver we had 3,000, and that doesn’t happen to me all the time. So there is still a bit of a learning curve there. It’s just nicer to have more people there who know the words and sing along.�

The new album also marks his debut on the fledgling Lost Highway label, which has quickly built a reputation as a dependable home for such acclaimed, roots-influenced artists as Ryan Adams and Lucinda Williams.

“I think they’re trying to create a label that serves as its own recommendation,� Topley says.

As a teenage musician playing his first gigs in London, Topley felt much the same about Island Records and its roster of reggae acts and such British singers as Steve Winwood and Robert Palmer.

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Topley’s career with the Blessing began in 1987 and soon accelerated with a monthly gig at the Half Moon pub in London for three years. By the end of the band’s run there, more than 300 fans were regularly crowding the shows. Record companies noticed.

The Blessing enjoyed some success in England, recording two albums before disbanding. “It was exciting,� Topley remembers. “We were very naive. I must confess to making the mistake of thinking the entire world was waiting to hear my points of view on Western civilization. It was quite chastening at the age of 26 to find that they hadn’t been.�

Before the Blessing broke up, the band did some work with producer Jimmy Miller, still best known for working on such genre-defining rock albums as the Rolling Stones’ “Beggars Banquet� and “Exile on Main Street.� Topley and Miller became friends and neighbors, working on tracks with the Blessing at Olympic Studios, where Miller had once recorded the Stones.

“What he did for us as a group was to connect us intellectually with the heart of the music,� he says of the late producer. “He taught us what to go for and what to value.�

That same direct approach is what Topley says he had in mind while recording “Feasting With Panthers.� The singer, who still plays with former Blessing guitarist Luke Brighty, solidified a raw, forceful sound for such tracks as “Back to Believing� and “Desire Is Sad� in late 2000 while playing new songs to a live audience for three nights at the Fox Theater in Boulder, Colo.

“I came marching out there knowing that some of the stuff would work,� he says.

After the bigger sound of the ‘90s Blessing albums, Topley says, the more direct music of his solo career has been a refreshing return to his roots as a musician. “In a way, you could say my career is working backwards,� he says.

The rewards have been encouraging. “This tour has brought me more people than I ever had before,� he says. “I hope I can continue to develop the artistic side a little bit more. The two things do go hand-in-hand.

“Without support and encouragement, every singer-songwriter is a potential mini-cab driver.�

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William Topley, Tuesday at the Coach House, 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano, 8 p.m. $12.50. (949) 496-8930. Also Wednesday at the Troubadour, 9081 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, 9 p.m. $10. (310) 276-6168.