A new venue for easy listening

Joan Maire Driscoll (left) and Claire Driscoll at the new Showcase Live. (Rose Lincoln for the Boston Globe)

FOXBOROUGH - Football, not music, is what generally comes to mind when most people think of Foxborough. But the folks at National Amusements are hoping to change that with the new venue Showcase Live.

In the shadow of Gillette Stadium in the Patriot Place complex, the spiffy new supper club boasts some impressive perks: No seat is farther than 35 feet from the stage and there's plenty of free parking.

On Saturday night R&B/jazz vocalist Al Jarreau christened the room with a performance that highlighted the room's pristine sound quality - thanks to acoustic tiling on the walls and flashing on the high ceiling. The room has the feel of a casino club on a more compact scale with seating for 508 at a mix of tables, booths, and the bar designed by Brit Julian Taylor. (For rock-oriented shows the space converts to a standing room capacity of 1,000.)

Jarreau backing vocalist Debbie Davis gave the sound and ambiance the thumbs-up after the show. "It's a nice intimate setting," she said.

Jonathan Richardson, 54, a 15-time Jarreau concert veteran, ranked the venue among the best. "I had an easy commute," he said of his 60-minute ride from Danvers. "I'll definitely come back." Brian Gibson of Norfolk was disappointed in his rib eye but said "the music was awesome, the venue was awesome. I'm willing to give it another try."

Judy Haughey passed on the Allman Brothers at the Comcast Center to check out the new spot 10 minutes from her Wrentham home and was glad she did. She and daughter Carly, 20, are Jarreau fans, but admitted convenience was a factor, saying if the show had been in Boston they would've opted for the Allmans. Carly reported that "it was a little awkward at first" being seated family-style with other concertgoers but that it worked out fine. The pair is already planning return trips for Dave Mason and Boyz II Men.

Booking is handled by Blue Note and Bernstein says they hope to eventually program upward of 200 shows a year with a mix of varied genres of music, comedy, and dancing.

SARAH RODMAN