POP/SNEAK PEEK : GUITARIST GURR FINDS BLUESY NICHE IN VALLEY.

Byline: - Fred Shuster

Local blues-funk guitarist Stevie Gurr has a few points in his favor right off the bat.

For starters, he spent much of the '80s recording and touring with bluesman Elvin Bishop. Then the guitarist joined Dr. John's band.

Gurr has been living in the Valley Village area for a little more than three years. His biweekly Wednesday night sessions at Crazy Jack's in Burbank are drawing musicians from all over the place, including prolific British session guitarist Chris Spedding, who has been dropping by to jam lately.

``Elvin was a total hero of mine,'' said Gurr, who grew up in San Francisco. ``I used to see him and Boz Scaggs at the Fillmore West.''

As for playing with Dr. John (Mac Rebennack), Gurr recalls backstage conversations between the New Orleans piano legend and the band's equally renowned saxophonist, Red Tyler.

``When he and Mac would start talking about New Orleans in the '50s, everybody would just shut up,'' Gurr said.

Gurr, who also plays harmonica, is in San Francisco this weekend, working with original Meters drummer Ziggy Modeliste. He returns for his next date Wednesday at Crazy Jack's, 4311 W. Magnolia Blvd., Burbank; [phone].

``The opportunities are in L.A. more than in the Bay Area,'' Gurr said. ``Moving here was an emotional and financial hardship, but I knew this was the place to be.''

Topley rising

British singer-songwriter William Topley inspires passion among his fans.

His singles have topped the triple-A (album alternative) radio charts, he was named third favorite artist by the Adult Rock Radio panel - behind Sarah McLachlan and the Wallflowers - and was proclaimed ``the new Van Morrison'' by the New York Post.

Perhaps the best introduction to Topley's seductive sound is the just-released ``Mixed Blessing'' (Mercury Nashville), which offers a decade's worth of songs, including new material and several from albums made when Topley was lead singer of the band the Blessing.

``I picked out the songs I thought worked well together,'' said Topley, who appears Monday at the Viper Room, 8852 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood; [phone]. ``It's not a greatest-hits record, but the greatest hits within our little world.''

During his years with the Blessing, Topley worked with late Rolling Stones producer Jimmy Miller.

``Jimmy had some terrible problems, but he was also an enormously warm and generous person,'' Topley recalled. ``He'd seen so much talent and success in his travels, so to have him respond to my music the way he did gave me a great deal of confidence.''

HBO rocks

At 12:30 tonight, HBO broadcasts the season finale of the music show ``Reverb,'' which features a 90-minute visit with Green Day and the Foo Fighters taped in rainy Vancouver, British Columbia.

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Photo

Photo: Stevie Gurr considers relocating from the Bay Area to Valley Village a solid career move.