Bay Area vocalist, pianist and composer Marty Williams has been part of the jazz scene for over 25 years. Along with his journeys into jazz, he has also turned heads with his forays into soul and hip hop. The San Francisco Chronicle called him a "catalyst" and other Bay Area critics have compared him to Oscar Brown Jr. and Mose Allison. Williams calls himself, "a jazz story teller." The Marty Williams Quartet is playing Saturday night at Pacifica Performances Mildred Owen Concert Hall. The quartet features Williams on piano and vocals, Eric Swinderman on guitar, Jon Evans on Bass and Ranzel Merritt on drums.

Born in Indiana, Williams was 20 years old when he took up playing the piano. He heard the record "Voices" by Ahmad Jamaal and suddenly he knew - playing the piano was his calling.

"The reason was to save my life though I didn't know it at the time," Williams said. "I thought I was just finding my way. Lessons were not mandatory but I was very aggressive at my attempt to play this music — 'jazz.'" Self taught, Williams would occasionally pull in artists to study under and they included Merrill Hoover, Ed Kelly and Don Haas. He was 32 when he realized that music was his career.

"There was a time it consumed me 100 percent, or what seemed like it," Williams said. "Now I split it with my 16 year old son and his academic and basketball careers and being a husband. A pretty full plate — always time for music though." Williams said his first professional gig at Orinda House was a special moment in time. Since then locals have caught him at such places as Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, Pasta Moon (The Music Box), Caffé DiVino, Bird's Nest Jazz Party, Marq's in Menlo, Sausalito's No Name Bar and the Oak City Bar and Grill. He played that first gig with Eric Swinderman.

"Eric and all the guys in the quartet are world class and they have played around the world," the pianist said offering highlights. "Eric has played with Brenda Boykin. Jon has played with Tori Amos. Ranzel has played with David Murray. We all trust each other and there is this incredible talent." Williams has also played internationally. As to his influences, he lists Hampton Hawes, Les McCann, Ahmad Jamaal, Thelonious Monk, Ramsey Lewis, Herbie Hancock, Shirley Horn, Miles Davis and Junior Mance as the most significant.

Williams calls the music the quartet is playing Saturday night — "vocal jazz" or "jazz with vocals." They will touch down on tunes from a number of his CDs including the most recently released "Long Time Comin'." Songs on the evening's menu include "Brother (Where Are You)," "Caravan," "Come Together," and "Compared To What." "Tell your audience, I'm coming!" Williams laughed. "This concert is like a first take and I am the headliner — and as anyone knows, if you achieve your goal the first time down, it is indeed special. I plan to play beautifully!"