The jazz combo Mercy has provided Pinch Penny Pub with a smooth atmosphere every Sunday night save for a few Christmases and Easter for more than a quarter of a century. The four members of the band see performing the weekly gig as either a jump start on the week ahead or a place to catch their breath as the week comes to a close.

All members, that is, except for saxophonist and flute player Buddy Rogers.

[The other members] look at Sunday as the start of the week or as a good place to unwind at the end of the week, Rogers said. Since I’m retired, it doesn’t make a difference. I lose track of all the dates except when it’s Sunday.

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Not only do the members of Mercy bring jazz vitality to the pub every Sunday night, but some of the pub’s clientele are equally devoted to coming to absorb the laid-back atmosphere the quartet provides.

A few of the same people that were here back when [Mercy] began playing are still coming now, bassist Jim Wall said. There’s something very unusual about this Sunday night thing. We see different people every week, and then we always see the same people every week. It’s constantly changing.

Mercy’s jazz has been present for more than 25 years, so changes have occurred in more places than the crowd. Founding members Rogers and keyboardist Joe Liberto have shared the stage with a slew of bass players and drummers.

One of those bass players that could list Mercy on his resume would also be able to mention Sting, Miles Davis and The Rolling Stones.

Daryl Jones showed signs of bass playing excellence to the members of Mercy long before he shared the stage and studio with Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and company.

He was the kind of guy that even if he didn’t know the song the first time through was pretty good, and the next time was as if he wrote it, Rogers said.

The current Mercy line up has been together since Wall who left after he joined in 1976 rejoined in 1989. But the crowds and the members have not been the only things fluid with the band.

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Mercy keeps its blend of jazz staples, originals, swing and funk numbers from staying within one standard structure or formula. This improvisation keeps the band members from getting bored with redundant sets.

What keeps it interesting is the other players. They amaze me every week, Wall said. It may be in a song we did last week that’s done in an entirely different way, or it may be when someone takes a solo that blows you away.

Some musicians may wake in the middle of sweaty nightmares about being on stage in front of a crowd without an idea of what to play. But the years the members of Mercy have put into keeping jazz alive in Carbondale allows them to jump on stage without a set list.

We never know what we’re going to do. Someone will say, Let’s play this song. And we’ll either say, OK,’ or Nah, let’s do a swing or samba or whatever,’ said drummer Scott Ollar, who joined Mercy in 1986. We don’t have a set list.

Sometimes we don’t even know what we’re doing when we’re playing.

Clarity of song direction may not always be within the grasp of the band members, but the improvisation keeps Mercy on its toes. To switch gears within a song, all it takes is a quick glance or a nod of the head from one of the members.

The jazz idiom is based on the instrumental. The instrumental is a chance to solo and shine, Wall said. We’ve played together so long that we can just look at each other a certain way and know what that person is going to do. That’s when you know you have the foundation for good jazz.

FACTOID:Mercy takes the stage at 9 p.m. every Sunday at Pinch Penny Pub, 700 E. Grand Ave. There is no cover charge.