Hot, hot sounds on a cool, cool day

The sun never quite managed to slip through the clouds at the Old Pasadena Summer Fest on Saturday. But overcast skies and cool temperatures couldn’t deter the usual overflow crowd at Pasadena’s Central Park, eager to experience the foot-tapping joys of the Playboy Jazz Festival’s full afternoon of free, high-voltage jazz and blues -- with two more afternoons of music scheduled to follow on Sunday and today.

Starting at 11 a.m. and running until 7:20 in the evening, the performances reached from the versatile Baba Alade and drummer Rayford Griffin’s “Birth of the Cool” to a pair of smooth jazz artists -- guitarist Brian Hughes and effervescent alto saxophonist Mindi Abair. Each was well-suited to an event in which visual display, high decibel sounds and hook-oriented tunes were the order of the day.

Like the principal Playboy Jazz Festival, which takes place at the Hollywood Bowl on June 14 and 15, the Pasadena event is as much party time as it is listening time.

The crowd -- a third or so of the 100,000-plus revelers expected to turn out for the three-day Summer Fest -- was further encouraged to keep its spirits high by dozens of food and beverage stands surrounding the performance area.

Enhancing the festive atmosphere even more were the numerous carnival rides, arts and crafts booths and an entire section devoted to demonstrations of extreme sports activities.

Of course, the presence of all those pleasures of sight, sound, taste and touch didn’t exactly encourage an environment for musical adventuring.

But a few artists -- singer Victor Fields and Jose Rizo’s Jazz on the Latin Side All Stars, in particular -- offered the sort of performances capable of drawing attention away from all the ancillary activities. Fields’ romp through a set ranging from Thelonious Monk’s “ ‘Round Midnight” to Van Morrison’s “Moondance” was the work of a stylistically accomplished singer who deserves much more attention.

And the Latin All Stars, energized by the percussion of Alex Acuna and Francisco Aguabella, colorfully explored the passionate romance between jazz and Latin rhythms.

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Pasadena Playboy Jazz Festival

Where: Central Park, on Fair Oaks Avenue two blocks south of Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena

When: Today, 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Price: Free

Contact: (626) 797-6803