Giving a Lesson in the Blues

Nothing like a little rock ‘n’ roll to shake things up.

Corey Stevens had been teaching third grade for 10 years in the Los Angeles Unified School District when he left the youngsters and job security behind at the end of 1995.

He developed a new lesson plan when Eureka Records offered him a contract, and within months he was on the road in support of his debut album, “Blue Drops of Rain.” It spent 33 weeks in the Top 10 of Billboard’s blues albums chart and has sold 109,000 copies, according to SoundScan.

Last year, Stevens followed up with “Road to Zen,” which features all original material and the current single, “Take It Back.” SoundScan reports that it has sold 73,000 copies since its May release.

On the local front, hard rockin’ KLOS-FM (95.5) has embraced the hometown boy. Four of Stevens’ songs (“Blue Drops of Rain,” “My Neighborhood,” “One More Time” and “Take It Back”) have received airplay, and the station has sponsored several of his local gigs.

Stevens--backed by bassist Eli Thomson, his guitarist brother Josh Thomson, drummer Joe Goff and harmonica player Kelli Rucker--returns to Orange County for a show Thursday at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano.

“It does blow people’s minds sometimes,” said Stevens, 43, by phone from his home in L.A. “In the music biz, it’s always a crapshoot, but it was kinda my plan all along. To me, I don’t think I switched careers, really.

“I played as a sideman with bands for years, but they never made any money. I have a degree in music, so I figured if I could teach, I’d make enough money to buy some equipment and then write some songs and record demos. So I never really gave up music to teach.”

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In fact, about a half dozen songs from his two albums were written in the late-’80s while he was teaching.

“I was actually writing a lot back then . . . stuff like ‘Lessons of Love,’ ‘Blue Drops of Rain’ and ‘Take It Back,’ ” said Stevens, an Illinois native who lived for a time in Florida before moving to Los Angeles in 1980. “I honestly feel that I was hitting my stride as a songwriter right about that time.”

The singer-songwriter-guitarist has roots in the classic-rock sounds of the Rolling Stones, Tom Petty, the Allman Brothers Band, ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Eagles. His initial interest in the blues came after reading that one of his idols, Mick Jagger, was a big fan of Howlin’ Wolf, T-Bone Walker and Muddy Waters.

“I didn’t know any of the real blues artists,” Stevens confessed. “The fact that Jagger loved these guys inspired me to check them out. Once I did, I dug the music too. The simplicity of the sound and the straightforward lyrics are very appealing to me.

“For baby boomers like myself, we’re tired of the adolescent themes in pop music. We’ve outgrown that. The blues is the cold, hard facts . . . it’s honest music for grown-ups.”

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Not surprisingly, there’s nothing fancy about Stevens’ brand of blues-rock. He plays with a meat-and-potatoes style recalling George Thorogood’s rock ‘n’ boogie; thematically, he focuses on relationship woes and the pitfalls of contemporary urban life.

The highlights of “Road to Zen” include “Charles Bronson Vibe,” in which he vents his anger over crimes deemed insignificant by local police, and his sense of impending claustrophobia in “My Neighborhood.” Feeling the walls closing in, Stevens barks out in his husky growl: “Everybody’s got a patio, but no one’s got a view.”

“I try to write songs about . . . the stuff that’s affecting me,” Stevens said. “When I’m not onstage, I’m a pretty average guy, and people can relate to what I’m saying through my songs. I think that’s why I’ve caught on.”

“With what I do, I don’t want to take myself too seriously, either,” he said. “If fans can forget about their problems for 90 minutes and maybe walk away from my concerts feeling a little better about themselves, that’s enough for me.”

Stevens said he misses the students he used to teach, but not getting up early or the personality clashes.

“I never considered myself to be a great teacher, but I learned to work with kids, especially those with problems,” he said. “I had a boy whom the other teachers gave hell because he didn’t fit in. So I gave him a little more attention and tried to focus on his positive side. Maybe someday he’ll look back and say, ‘Yeah, that was the year I actually liked school.’ ”

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Stevens also misses a climate marked by the unjaded aspirations of youth.

“I liked the innocence at that age . . . when they’re still optimistic about life,” he said. “It’s so refreshing to be around kids who honestly believe they’ll grow up to be lawyers, doctors and scientists. I mean, with them, what you see is generally what you get.

“The music industry is another story. I’m grateful for what I’ve been able to accomplish, but when you see the guts of the business side, it’s not a very pretty sight,” he said. “There are hidden agendas everywhere--so, sadly, it’s been really hard to establish a level of trust with anyone.”

* Corey Stevens, the Pat Hennessey Band and Max Gringo perform Thursday at the Coach House, 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano. 8 p.m. $13.50-$15.50. (714) 496-8930.