Another Fine Ness He’s Made

There was a time when the only thing less likely than a fan handing punk-rock heavyweight Mike Ness a bouquet of roses at the end of a concert would have been for him to respond to such a gesture with a gracious and openhearted, “Thanks, I love roses.”

In fact, that time could have been as recently as April, when Ness embarked on his first shows apart from Social Distortion, the Fullerton band he shepherded to status as Orange County’s longest running and most distinguished punk group. In those shows, he exposed a broader musical picture of himself, but as a performer, he didn’t reveal anything other than the steely I-can-take-your-best-shot persona that carried him through the punk trenches.

Seven months later, this harder-than-cobalt rocker proved he’s ready to stop and smell the roses too.

He was considerably looser this time around, chatting often with the SRO crowd, sharing anecdotes about several of the songs and generally opening up more than he did last spring. Like the roses he was handed at the end, Ness gave the impression that he’s still just beginning to bloom.

That’s not to say he’s lost any of his fire. For much of his 80-minute set Wednesday at the Coach House--the first of an unprecedented five-night stand at the San Juan Capistrano club, where he played two shows last spring--Ness glared at the crowd, his guitar slung pelvis low as he and his four-piece band bashed out amped-up vintage country songs from his forthcoming “Under the Influences” album, as well as a generous dose of those from his own pen off his solo debut, “Cheating at Solitaire.”

Where the line between autobiography and skilled interpretation fell was hard to tell as he dug into such made-to-order numbers as Wayne Walker’s ‘All I Can Do Is Cry” and Carl Perkins’ early “Let the Jukebox Keep On Playing” beside his own “Charmed Life” and “Ballad of a Lonely Man.”

The country choices aren’t those from a recent convert’s sentimental heart, but from a battle-scarred aficionado’s ear. Don’t expect to hear Ness’ unflinching version of George Jones’ weeper “Once a Day” on contemporary “no downers” country radio.

On the other hand, perhaps some of the artists Ness pays homage to in “Under the Influences” might return the favor and record one of his songs, which are as grittily honest, if not always as skillfully constructed, as the works of Johnny Cash, Hank Williams and others who helped shape Ness’ music.

It’s hard not to salivate over the thought of what a master vocalist like Jones might pull out of Ness’ ballad “If You Leave Before Me,” which Ness sang near the end in an even more muscular bluegrass-rooted arrangement than on “Solitaire.”

Ness’ handpicked opening act, the Texas-based Road Kings, preceded him with a blast of Sugar Smacked-up rockabilly that was longer on nouveau-greaser attitude than musical proficiency. Lead singer Jesse Dayton is a charismatic front man but isn’t nearly as facile with a guitar as someone with his cockiness ought to be. (Brian Setzer may have played mightily on his matinee idol looks when he brought rockabilly back into the mainstream with the Stray Cats in the early ‘80s, but he also had the advantage of knowing his electric guitar’s fret board inside out.)

Fortunately, most of the songs from the trio’s new album, a bracing blend of roots rock, blues, R&B; and punk, were played with a ferocity that highlighted the emotional link between rock’s first punks and the first punk-rockers.

* Mike Ness, Coach House, 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano. 8 p.m. today through Sunday. With the Road Kings. $20-$22. (949) 496-8930.

Randy Lewis may be reached by e-mail at Randy.Lewis@latimes.com.