A Guitar-Strumming Actor Returns to His Country Roots : Bands: Ronny Cox from ‘Cop Rock’ premieres his new group Tuesday. But he hasn’t forsaken his TV-film career.

For those who remember Ronny Cox as the mature, distinguished chief of services at St. Eligius Hospital on the NBC medical drama “St. Elsewhere,” a vision of the actor singing and strumming guitar in a country-blues band might seem out of character.

But Cox can make a case for his “plain country roots.”

“My dad worked on a ranch in Texas and played guitar and fiddle at some of the local square dances, and I spent summer vacations bailing hay in Portales, New Mexico. . . . My great grandmother was a full-blooded Cherokee Indian,” he added proudly, “so I have a fondness for the Indian culture.”

Raised with the traditional sounds of folk music and ballads, Cox, 52, cultivated an early appreciation for the harmonies that originated near his hometown. “There’s a bedrock honesty and integrity about country music and blues,” he said. “That’s why it appeals to me.”

Tuesday night, Cox will premiere his new band--Ronny and the Ghostriders--at the Palomino in North Hollywood. In keeping with the weekly barn dance theme hosted by singer-guitarist Ronnie Mack, the group will share the spotlight with four other bands, performing a 30- to 40-minute set of five upbeat rhythmic numbers ranging from grass-roots country and Texas swing to blues and jazz.

“The music industry doesn’t know how to take someone like me who’s over 50,” said Cox with a laugh, picking up a satin-finished guitar from a case on the floor beside him. “I don’t want to make money from all of this--I’m doing it simply for the joy it brings me.”

Mack said he agreed to have the band perform because “it sounded like his band does the kind of traditional country and swing that I am trying to promote.”

In high school, Cox sang in a quartet and worked as a backup singer at the sound studio that recorded Buddy Holly’s hit single “Peggy Sue.” And while studying acting at Eastern New Mexico University, he earned extra money performing with a college band. In 1976, he sang a number of songs in the Academy Award-winning film “Bound for Glory.”

But during the 1980s, his singing and strumming were limited to the confines of his Sherman Oaks residence, where he and his two children--Brian, 29, and John, 24--casually entertained his wife, Mary, 49. “When my sons moved out, I didn’t have an outlet for my music,” he said.

He found a means of musical expression as singing Police Chief Roger Kendrick on the ABC musical drama “Cop Rock.” Although the series was canceled this season after 11 episodes, Cox made some enduring friendships. A number of musicians from the show are in his band, which has an ever-changing membership that revolves around three core players.

Performing with him at the Palomino will be songwriters Donny Markowitz and David Ferguson on guitar, and guest artists (the “Ghostriders”) Leland Sklar on bass, Alan Steinberger on piano, Sid Page on violin, Tom Harriman on drums and background vocalists Robbyn Kirmsse and Luana Jackman.

“I think they’re all doing this because they think it might be funny to watch me,” Cox said. “These are monster musicians that are just playing with me for fun.”

Of the nine musicians scheduled to harmonize, all except Ferguson and Page appeared with the “Cop Rock” ensemble. “This is a chance to get together with friends and have an evening of playing,” Sklar said. “I’ve enjoyed Ronny’s work throughout his appearances on ‘Cop Rock,’ and I have an appreciation for him as an actor.”

Only the core members of the band have rehearsed regularly for Tuesday’s opening, with Markowitz responsible for penning the charts and arrangements. “These people are so accomplished, they really just need to come and play,” Cox said during a recent practice session in the small music studio adjacent to Markowitz’s residence in the Hollywood Hills. “I don’t want to rehearse too much with them because I love the improvisational feeling.”

Clad in jeans and carved leather boots, the threesome--Ferguson on electric guitar, Markowitz on bass and Cox on guitar and vocals--quickly strummed through the melodies they plan to perform: “I Got That Music In Me,” “Boot Scootin’ Boogie,” “Keepin’ Me Up Nights,” Markowitz’s original number, “Kendrick’s Lament,” and “Apples Dipped In Candy.”

Although Cox doesn’t aspire to work the country circuit, he would like to perform solo with the house band on “Nashville Now.” In early March, he is scheduled to travel to Oklahoma City to perform at the Oklahoma Opry and make an appearance on the KOCO-TV variety show “Good Morning Oklahoma.”

He will take a break from music this spring when he goes on location to Durango, Colo., to direct his first film, a contemporary love story he co-wrote with his wife. He also hopes to expand his acting credits, which include roles in the films “Beverly Hills Cop,” “Robo Cop” and “Total Recall.”

His musical aspirations are a little more modest. “I would love to put together a group and go and play gigs in between doing movies,” Cox said.

Ronny and the Ghostriders perform at Ronnie Mack’s Barn Dance at 9 p.m . Tuesday at the Palomino, 6907 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood. Admission free . For information, call (818) 764-4010.

Delmar is a Sherman Oaks writer.