Jazz Reviews : Al Williams Quintet Heats Up His Long Beach Club

Al Williams, who has split his musical career between owning nightclubs and playing in them, led his five-man Jazz Society Band from behind the drums at his Long Beach nitery, Birdland West on Wednesday evening.

Working before a small, but enthusiastically appreciative audience, Williams and company, who will work the room every Wednesday through February, provided an attractive opening set that was loose and swinging from top to bottom. Four tunes--a pair of standards and a pair of less familiar classics--gave the quintet ample solo room and provided a showcase for the band’s well-thought ensemble passages.

A front line of saxophonist Charles Owens and trumpeter Nolan Smith allowed for Blakeyesque melodic statements during three up-tempo swing tunes. An opening “One by One,” a Wayne Shorter composition from his days with Art Blakey, showed the band’s hard-bop bent, as well as providing an aural view of the contrasting solo styles of Owens and Smith.

Owens, a long-established force on the Southland jazz scene, offered long, flowing lines within the syncopated context on the tenor sax. Smith, newer to the scene, offered shorter bursts of melody on both “One by One” and the closing “The Preacher,” by Horace Silver. But on Blue Mitchell’s “Fuji Mama” and the ballad, “Here’s That Rainy Day,” the trumpeter’s style turned smooth and liquid with full-bodied, round tones that showed Smith a major contender.

Also by contrast was Owens’ work on the Mitchell tune. With a more jagged style, Owens traversed traditions, approaching some familiar quotes through brief forays into modality.

Williams capably spurred the band throughout the set, displaying a solid sense of swing and showing deft artistry with brushes during the set’s only ballad. Bassist Richard Reid, a powerhouse, authoritative player, was terrific in both solo and accompanying roles.

Pianist Bobby Pierce, while certainly adept at comping behind the soloists, showed more chops than musicality during his frequent solo outings. Notes flew furiously during his solos, giving the listener little opportunity to embrace any of his ideas.

The group, which will be appearing Wednesdays through February, communicated a great sense of fun during its hourlong opening set. The group’s unbridled enthusiasm, in generally too short a supply on the local scene, was infectious.