Quartet tries to serve it up right

Jazz supper clubs pose unique problems for musicians. How loud is too loud for dining listeners? How much unfamiliar material can be offered up to an audience more receptive to familiar standards? What’s the proper mix of slow tunes and fast numbers?

All those questions came to mind during the performance of the Rich Eames quartet on Thursday at Spazio in Sherman Oaks.

Eames is a pianist, a stellar studio artist and a composer with a substantial resume of television credits. His quartet included similarly adept players: saxophonist Rob Lockhart, bassist Jeff D’Angelo and drummer Dick Weller. Although it took a full set for their potential to become clear, it was an ensemble that fully deserved a receptive hearing.

But first the three questions noted above had to be addressed.

Too loud, as it turned out, was the only way to describe Weller’s drumming in general, and his bass drum in particular, especially in the opening set.

The repertoire was most effective when it was most familiar -- standards such as “Gone With the Wind,” “Just in Time” and “Old Folks.” Eames’ originals had less effect, partly because the players seemed more focused on reading the correct notes than making the music come alive.

The balance between fast and slow tunes, however, worked fairly well, with an occasional ballad mixing amiably with up-tempo rhythm tunes.

By the time the second set rolled around, the Eames quartet had begun to pull things together. Lockhart played a beautifully crafted set of ballad choruses on “Old Folks,” with the rhythm team (including Weller) providing subtle, understated support. The old standard “You and the Night and the Music” was delivered at overdrive speed, with Lockhart again whipping through a highflying solo and Eames mixing solid accompaniment with brisk, bop-tinged improvising.

Did they completely solve those jazz supper club problems? Not quite. Jazz demands attentive listening, and fine dining makes too many of its own insistent demands upon an audience for the two ever to be completely in sync. But on this night, at least, the quartet gave it a valiant try.