ON THE TOWN: You can bet that...

ON THE TOWN: You can bet that through the ages, jazz players have dreamed some pretty incredible hustles for getting off the stage at a decent hour. But Branford Marsalis invented a novel new excuse Monday night at the Beverly Theatre. At 11 p.m., after a generous 90-minute set, the young sax player said it was time for the band to quit, assuring the enthusiastic crowd that he could offer them a good reason.

He ducked backstage and returned with Reese, his year-old son, cradled in his arms. “I’ve got to get up at 8:30 tomorrow morning,” Marsalis explained, “because I promised to take Reese to Disneyland.”

Wearing a navy-blue suit and a matching beret, Reese simply stared at his dad, mouth open and eyes wide, as if he were wondering, “What am I doing out here, in front of all these noisy people?” Marsalis playfully stuck out his tongue at his son and--still holding Reese in his arms--finished the show with an exuberant soprano-sax solo. . . .