JAZZ REVIEW : Thielemans Mixes Pleasing Blend of Amiability, Artistry

Toots Thielemans knows something that a lot of young jazz players would do well to learn: That jazz and entertainment aren’t mutually exclusive. And that there’s nothing wrong with having fun with both the music and the audience.

Tuesday, in the opening set of a six-night run at Catalina Bar & Grill, the Belgian guitarist, harmonica player and whistler appeared to enjoy every moment. Looking almost gnomelike, he perched on a stool at stage center, dressed in dark shirt and trousers topped with a colorful vest, squinting through tinted horn-rimmed glasses. Obviously enjoying himself, he playfully interacted with his accompanying trio by giving little directive movements of arms and legs, occasionally tossed one-liners to a receptive, near-full-house crowd and generally created one of the most amiable jazz listening environments in recent memory.

Which is not to say that the music became offhanded or superficial. Thielemans has always been primarily a melodist, and melodies--from an interesting mix of ballads ranging from Paul Simon’s “I Do It for Your Love” to Ivan Lins’ “The Island”--dominated the program.

But they were melodies performed with an exquisite awareness of musical timbre and emotional emphasis. That they were played on an instrument that can be as tonally unyielding as the harmonica only testified further to Thielemans’ remarkable skills.

His articulation of the Simon song invested it with an unsuspected richness, and a reading of “In Your Own Sweet Way” made the Brubeck classic sound as though it had been composed specifically for Thielemans.

Good as the program was, however, two things were missing: a few more upbeat numbers to demonstrate Thielemans’ unrivaled capacity to play be-bop harmonica and a somewhat larger sampling of his excellent guitar playing. These days, he seems to restrict his guitar work to an obligatory dash through his hit jazz tune, “Bluesette.” And that’s a shame, since he is a first-rate player, and his improvisational mixture of plucked guitar lines with whistling is one of the unique sounds in jazz.

Thielemans was backed, erratically at times, by Kenny Werner on keyboards, Jay Anderson on bass and Adam Nussbaum on drums. Werner’s sense of drama added substance to the music, despite a tendency to overwhelm sections of the ballads with a soupy-sounding string synthesizer. Anderson contributed thoughtful solos and Nussbaum, when he wasn’t bashing, provided a solid rhythmic foundation.

* Toots Thielemans at Catalina Bar & Grill, 1640 N. Cahuenga Blvd., through Sunday. (213) 466-2210. $15-cover tonight and Sunday, $18-cover Fri. and Sat., with two-drink minimum. Thielemans performs two shows nightly, at 8:30 and 10:30.