Eskovitz: A Good-Time Bar Band and Then Some

That Bruce Eskovitz is one sneaky guy. Thursday in the lounge at Spaghettini, the saxophonist’s quartet, thinly disguised as a good-time bar band, played a pair of sets that focused on the kind of mainstream jazz that might be considered stuffy in such party-hearty atmosphere.

However, such tunes as “How High the Moon?” “The More I See You” and Dizzy Gillespie’s “Night in Tunisia” not only were given skillful readings, but were delivered with a carefree spirit that fit the venue just fine.

Eskovitz is the director of jazz studies at the Crossroads School for the Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles, and has an eponymous album out on the Orange County-based Cexton Records label. At Spaghettini, he put the standards over by dressing them up with direct rhythmic treatments, sparked by electric bassist Mark Dreice and drummer Ed Smith, while playing up their more soulful sides. The occasional R&B; number, usually featuring keyboardist Danny Ironstone’s vocals, added further variety to the proceedings.

The Eskovitz style is a kind of be-bop for backbeat, a Sonny-Rollins-meets-Grover-Washington-Jr. sort of attack. Eskovitz drew long, twisting lines on Rollins’ “Tenor Madness” before working out his feelings with some Joe Henderson-like caterwauls. On Charlie Parker’s “Now’s the Time,” he injected bluesy notes bending into a string of Bird calls and bop-fired runs.

His solos built along dynamic changes without utilizing overly loud or repetitive appeals to emotion. Yet he was able to drum up plenty of excitement, mainly by playing to a tune’s more obvious rhythmic appeals.

Ironstone’s solid chordal approach and down-home way with a solo worked well as complement to the saxophonist’s style. The long keyboard introduction to “Someone to Watch Over Me” showed Ironstone’s sensitive side; the rest of the band joined in, building the theme from a quiet statement to a resounding peak.

The Caribbean feel of Rollins’ “St. Thomas” found Eskovitz and Ironstone trading one-liners: Eskovitz accented the tune’s carnival-like atmosphere by quoting from “Get Happy,” while Ironstone opened his improvisation with lines from “Hickory-Dickory Dock.” Ironstone’s vocal on Mose Allison’s “Days Like This,” despite muddy amplification, brought a touch of Southern blues to the performance.

The group took a modern turn on Gerald Albright’s “So Amazing,” with bassist Dreice putting funky touches to the piece’s simple theme. Smith proved his utility working through the diverse set, mixing it up between the cymbals and his snare, seldom content to just ride the beat.

Near the end of the evening, the group got more into the bar-band thing with the boogie-based “Never Make Your Move Too Soon” featuring Ironstone’s vocal, and “Cry to Me,” with Eskovitz taking up the flute, an instrument he handled with less confidence.

But just when the band seemed ready to slip entirely into an R&B; groove, it came back with Gillespie’s “Night in Tunisia,” closing out a well-rounded evening.

The Bruce Eskovitz Quartet will play every Wednesday in November at Spaghettini, 3005 Old Ranch Parkway, Seal Beach, from 7 to 11 p.m. No cover. Information: (213) 596-2199.