JAZZ REVIEWS : WILLIAMS AT PALACE COURT

Jessica Williams, a pianist and composer who has earned respect and a loyal following in San Francisco, came to Los Angeles for the first time, opening and closing Saturday at the Palace Court.

The conditions could hardly have been less encouraging. It did not help that Williams has no personality and announced no tunes; worse, there was no bass player, no drummer, and, except for a few stragglers, no audience. This left Williams alone at a piano for one, and at an indifferent piano at that.

Standing at around six feet, Williams has large, muscular hands that could explain a surprisingly hard-driving, virile touch, coupled with an exceptional facility for swinging. Here is an artist who obviously grew up at a time when the maintenance of a rhythmic pulse was quintessential.

Clearly a disciple of Thelonious Monk, Williams played a medley of his ballads, such as “Crepuscule With Nellie” and “Monk’s Mood,” as well as an engaging original, “Monk’s Hat.” In one of the better standards performed, “Why Do I Love You?” there was an intriguing cross-hands passage, with the right hand playing fluent ad-lib lines in the lower register while the left strummed chords an octave or two higher.

“Blue Tuesday” was another original reflecting this artist’s quirkily personal style. Toward the end of the set, one sensed the loneliness of the long-distance soloist. Still, there was no doubt that given the right conditions, Williams could establish a Los Angeles following, though the Palace Court doesn’t seem likely to provide the setting.