An Old Hand Navigates the Waters

Give Bill Perkins a horn, a rhythm section and a place to play, and you’ll hear some imaginative jazz soloing. It doesn’t even matter if it’s an alto, a tenor or a baritone saxophone, a big band or a small group, a concert hall or a small club. Perkins, at 76, after decades of jazz activity, continues to be one of the Southland’s most versatile, if underappreciated, jazz treasures.

On Friday night he was performing in what players call a jazz casual at Charlie O’s in Valley Glen. The warm and cozy room, only recently opened to music, has an intimate quality, not unlike a downtown Manhattan jazz room, with the musicians in close proximity to their listeners.

But Perkins always seems relaxed, whatever the setting. Appearing as a guest artist with bassist John Heard’s trio (with Ed Vodicka on piano and Roy McCurdy on drums), he played a set that ranged spontaneously from the flowing blues of Thelonious Monk’s “Straight, No Chaser” to the melodic twists and turns of the lovely Legrand/Bergman ballad “You Must Believe in Spring.”

Although, like so many tenor saxophonists of his generation, he has been significantly influenced by Lester Young, Perkins’ style doesn’t stop there. And there’s no telling, in any given appearance, how far he will stretch his creative envelope. In this particular set, he occasionally sounded a bit hesitant. But the hesitancy seemed less problematic than a reflection of a kind of stuttering approach to some of his solos in which he broke his lines up into brief, expository segments. At its best, it was the work of a player who seemed eager to take every opportunity--even in a one-nighter, jazz casual--to explore his improvisatory potential.

Perkins was ably supported by the Heard trio, a solidly professional grouping balancing the leader’s firm and solid bass lines with McCurdy’s exceedingly musical drumming and Vodicka’s potent blend of pianistic articulateness and brisk, swinging accompaniment.

The John Heard Trio performs every Friday and Saturday at Charlie O’s, 13725 Victory Blvd., Valley Glen. On Friday, Feb. 2, Perkins returns as guest artist, with Pete Christlieb, Ray Reed and George Harper appearing on successive Fridays. The Earl Palmer Trio performs every Thursday. Music from 8 p.m. to midnight. No cover, no minimum. (818) 994-3058.