Mixing and Mingling the Maxi Priest Way

Maxi Priest straddles a precarious line.

The veteran singer, who performs Friday at the Freedman Forum in Anaheim as part of the Reggae Explosion lineup, has a sound that draws from myriad influences, pleasing many roots purists and pop radio programmers at the same time. Only reggae architects Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff before him managed to pull off this sort of mass appeal.

Priest, 36, is no Rasta augur, but a spiritual honesty and joy come through in his soulful vocalizing. Equally at home with the Marvin Gaye school of soul and the Trenchtown vibe of Marley, Priest brings reggae, R&B; and pop stylings together as one.

“It’s been that way since Day One,” Priest said in a recent phone interview. “I love R&B.; I love reggae. I love a wide range of music. I see myself as an artist first, with the title of ‘reggae’ above it. That’s where I come from. I grew up in the era of Marvin Gaye and the Jackson Five, Hall and Oates. I also grew up with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh and Burning Spear and Jimmy Cliff and that kind of thing. I grew up in a very radical time, with all the hippie changes and stuff going on as well.”

Born and raised in London by his widowed mother, Priest learned the value of hard work as a young boy. By age 14, he was building his own recording studio.

“I only had my mother, and I had to get out there and work very early,” he said. “I just had this thing at a very early age where I was working toward the future, being successful. I was always ambitious. My talent as a singer was there, and everybody was touting it--that was always the thing that really shone for me. So I went full speed ahead, and, thank God, I was lucky enough that I got a break.”

Priest’s first single, 1983’s independently released “Hey Little Girl,” went straight to No. 1 in Jamaica and shot up to No. 8 on the British reggae charts. His current label, Virgin Records, signed him the next year. Priest has since charted in the United States with a number of songs, including a cover of Cat Stevens’ “Wild World” in 1988 and “Close to You” in 1990.

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After a long delay stemming from politics and management hassles, Priest said, Virgin recently released “Man With the Fun,” his first album since 1992’s “Fe Real.” A characteristically R&B-influenced; effort, the new album’s highlight is the opening “That Girl,” a slinky groove featuring a sample of Booker T. & the MGs’ “Green Onions” and a vocal duet with Priest’s label mate Shaggy.

“I’m happy with the album, but I think we’re always our own biggest critics,” he said. “There’s tracks I hear and say, ‘Damn! We could have done a better mix than that.’ It’s weird. You go in the studio, make your album and then you go hit the road. That’s when you really start rinsing the tracks, you know what I’m saying? You’re playing it live; it puts me in a vibe where I want to go back and do some live stuff on the next album.”

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The earnest, blissful vibe of Priest’s singing has gained him the respect of roots reggae fans not usually known for their approbation of genre-bending sounds. The way Priest sees it, any music that comes from the heart, no matter the style, can’t be bad.

“I think my respect comes from starting out in sound system, which was what they called dance hall back then. Then what I created was unique enough to go into the international market. My success is based on an understanding of Bob Marley. Some people might look at my music and say it’s not pure reggae, but I say, ‘It’s music.’ ”

Priest makes no pretense about walking in the master’s shoes. And he believes his career has its own important message.

“I hope I can be an influence on young people,” he said. “I came from what others would classify as nowhere and went on to be achieving something in life. That’s something I would like to pass on. Because I ain’t no Bob Marley, I ain’t no prophet. I’m just an ordinary cat that’s been blessed with a talent. So I think the most important thing to show the youth is that if you put your head down to something, you can achieve.”

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* Reggae Explosion, featuring Maxi Priest, Shabba Ranks, Big Mountain and Third World, starts at 8 p.m. Friday at Freedman Forum, 201 E. Broadway, Anaheim. $25-$41. (714) 999-9599 (box office) or (714) 740-2000 (Ticketmaster).