The David Morwood and Friends jazz series at Hyatt Monterey delivers great sound – for free – on MJF weekend.

While memories abound from jamming at the Hyatt in Monterey for the last 20 years, two brushes with the brothers Marsalis are what stand out most for drummer/organizer David Morwood.

“One year we knew Wynton was in the room,” he says. “All of a sudden he grabs his horn and starts playing ‘I Can’t Get Started With You’ from the audience.”

Spellbound listeners stopped dead in their tracks. “It was like somebody rang a bell or set off an alarm,” Morwood says. “His sound is so true and so clear and so pure, it just stopped the room. Everybody fell silent. It was quite a moment.”

Another time, Wynton’s brother Branford was scheduled to play but his drummer was late due to a travel snag. Morwood got to play with the band for almost an entire set.

“We jammed for 45 minutes,” Morwood says. “It was like if Mickey Mantle came up to you and said, ‘Hey kid, can I join your stickball game?’”

The hotel’s lobby has become the unofficial jazz fest after-hours spot largely by default, since so many of the players stay there owing to its proximity to the Monterey Jazz Festival (see story, p. 20). It began when the hotel hired Morwood and three others for one night a month each as an audition for new talent. Over time, once a month became once a week, and now there’s live jazz every Friday and Saturday year-round, along with occasional Thursday and Sunday nights, plus some Sunday brunches.

Morwood and company bulk up this week, hosting late-night sessions Friday through Sunday night to accommodate listeners and players alike.

“The sidemen, they just want to blow,” Morwood says. “They want to play solos, they get tired of just reading charts. So a lot of the guys go get their horns and come jam with us late night.”

Sharing the bandstand with Morwood’s trio this week are pianist Eddie Mendenhall on Wednesday and ace Oakland guitarist Calvin Keys on Thursday. For Friday happy hour, clarinetist/pianist Nik Bortolussi offers a tribute to Benny Goodman, and Friday night, pianist Jon Dryden – fresh off a seven-year stint at NYC’s Empire Diner – celebrates his relocation back to Santa Cruz. Saturday sees SF saxman Andrew Speight with bassist Tomoko Funaki, followed by a Brazilian-themed Sunday brunch showcasing Berkeley-based bossa pianist Marcos Silva. Sunday late-night brings in guitarist Mike Lent, just returning from a world tour with Barry Manilow.

DAVID MORWOOD AND FRIENDS 9:30pm-1am Thursday-Sunday, Sept. 14-17. Hyatt Regency, 1 Old Golf Course Road, Monterey. No cover. 372-1234, monterey.regency.hyatt.com