JAZZ REVIEW : A Homecoming for Bill Mays

New York is obviously a good place for Bill Mays.

The former locally-based pianist, who has been a Manhattanite for the past five years, played both at Alfonse’s in Toluca Lake and at the Comeback Inn in Venice over the weekend. And during Friday’s opening set at Alfonse’s, he revealed much more of singular stylistic stance than he had ever exhibited while living here.

While intelligence, harmonic dexterity, a facility for melody and a medium-hard swing feel have always been at the heart of Mays’ work, in the intervening years, those facets have been more keenly honed. It’s as if the pianist, backed beautifully here by bassist Andy Simpkins and drummer John Guerin, has removed most his past flab, resulting in a firm, hard body of musical expression.

Blue Mitchell’s “Fungii Mama,” with its Caribbean rhythmic base, was a fine opener, setting an upbeat mood. As he would throughout the set, Mays displayed his gleaming touch and a fondness for using block chords, both to state the theme of the tune and to offer color in his solo. Behind Mays, Guerin and Simpkins established a rhythm, then pushed and prodded it, then established it once again.

Herbie Hancock’s “Maiden Voyage” went through a series of phases, as Mays shifted from casual, almost conversational single-note lines to the ever-present chordal movement.

On “You Go to My Head,” Mays worked fluidly, playing lines that changed tacks like Walter Payton cutting through the defense.

Charlie Parker’s “Confirmation,” with a short Mays outing that was kicked nicely by Guerin’s crisp rat-a-tat snare accents, perfectly capped the first-rate set. It was a pleasure to hear Mays on once-familiar turf, well on his way toward becoming one of jazz piano’s unique voices.