POP MUSIC REVIEW : Irrepressible Buddy Guy at Coach House

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO — Blues music has plenty of Kings, but there’s no one who can give Buddy Guy a run for the title of clown prince. As usual, Guy’s performance on Thursday at the Coach House was virtually an over-amped, over-the-top caricature of the blues. And, as ever, the 56-year-old singer-guitarist’s emotional intensity and irrepressible personality prevailed over the ludicrous setting he placed it in.

Guy at times can seem to be doing a blues parody, over-playing at overwhelming volume while mugging, clowning and engaging in every crowd-pleasing trick extant. But one might as well criticize a volcano for gushing. Thursday his unfettered guitar work and ferocious singing came across like a force of nature, and, like a lava flow, you expect it to be a mite untidy.

He closed his set with Eddie Floyd’s “Knock on Wood,” pulling out what few stops he had left. He took his wireless guitar into the audience, into a restroom and even into a funky nirvana as he shook his strings through an avalanche of notes.

Co-billed John Mayall’s current music--most of his nine-song set was from his new “Wake Up Call” album--is neither quite emulation nor innovation, but it’s still enjoyable, craftsman-like stuff. The 59-year-old Englishman’s vocals and chops on keyboards and harmonica are still intact, and the longevity of his current lineup has paid off in a tight, distinctive band sound that was able to give each song its own flavor.