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Rick Hannah

Rick Hannah, jazz guitarist, was born in Philadelphia, USA, and raised in Baltimore. He started playing guitar at 12 years of age, playing rock and other pop music of the day. By the age of 19 he became exposed to jazz and funk and for the next 15 years played a combination of Jazz, Funk and Blues usually in a fusion format.

He moved to Los Angeles in 1976, where he tried to adapt to the musical culture, playing fusion music with such notables as Alphonse Mouzon, Bunny Brunel and Brian Auger. Searching for a deeper understanding of jazz music, Rick turned his attention to the roots of American Classic Jazz and began studying and playing that music exclusively. His last few years in LA were spent playing and recording with one of the best Jazz and R&B bands in the local area: the Billy Mitchell/John Bolivar group.

In 1996 he moved back to the East Coast where he formed a trio with Phil Cunneff and Tom Baldwin. Their collaboration results in two CDs: "Oui Bop" and "Encore Oui Bop". "Oui Bop" was released in 2000 and distributed by the British label String Jazz. The British label Mainstem Records released "Encore Oui Bop" in 2006.

In 2005 Rick moved across the Big Pond to settle in Strasbourg, France, where he currently lives. He formed his "French Trio" with Thomas Laedlein-Greilsammer and Gerald Muller, and in 2008 produced their CD "Going Forward". Rick also released his American Trio's 2005 recording The Beatles Project - a tribute to Rick's first influence in music, The Beatles!.

The current Rick Hannah Trio is now fully international, with German bass player Maurice Kuehn and French drummer Thomas Laedlein-Greilsammer. The Trio features a variety of classic jazz-based music including original compositions by Rick along with creative treatments of jazz standards. Unlike guitar trios of the past, the Rick Hannah Trio explores the historic piano trio format developed by Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett (among others) while exploiting the unique dimensions in sound offered by the guitar. He also directs the Guitar Big Band de Strasbourg, an ensemble of skilled jazz guitarists performing in the classic American Big Band style, featuring Rick's arrangements of well-known American standards along with some special pop offerings (Beatles, George Benson) in the same spirit. Rick also performs in a variety of duo and other formats. In 2012 Rick also launched the Strasbourg Jazz Initiative to promote live jazz.

Tags

15
Album Review

Brian Auger: Introspection

Read "Introspection" reviewed by Doug Collette


A purposefully more far-ranging companion piece to The Best of Brian Auger's Oblivion Express (PolyGram, 1996), among other such compendia, Introspection is keyboardist/composer Brian Auger's personally-curated anthology covering the span of his career. In keeping with John Sellard's graphic design that features an array of period photos, the three-CDs' sound is as impeccable as its track sequencing also overseen by the artist himself This forward-thinking musician has hand-selected thirty-five of his favorite live and studio cuts, a handful ...

1
Album Review

Rick Hannah / Erwin Siffer: 2-Man Jazz Band

Read "2-Man Jazz Band" reviewed by Budd Kopman


Piano and guitar is a relatively rare combination for a number of reasons including overlapping ranges and having the similar timbre of percussive string. Yes, players of both instruments spend a lot of time perfecting a singing or legato sound, but in the end they are what they are. Instead of fighting it, with 2-Man Jazz Band, guitarist Rick Hannah and pianist Erwin Siffer have put together eleven arrangements that revel in their instrument's sound and the myriad ...

7
Album Review

Rick Hannah: Handful Of Strings

Read "Handful Of Strings" reviewed by Budd Kopman


The guitar is a deceptively simple instrument to play, as any teenager who learns the basic strumming chords, and then tries to go beyond that, in any style, will tell you. It hints at being self-contained, that the player can accompany himself. Contrapuntally however, the piano, which allows two independent hands, dwarfs the guitar, even in the realm of the Classical guitar. In jazz, the guitar has played the varied roles of being part of the rhythm section ...

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Mêlant accords et notes aux attaques nettes, il nous développe son jazz, très "mainstream", racé, haut de gamme, chic et élégiaque sans être triste, ce jazz qui nous charme depuis toujours et sait être d’aujourd’hui. (unofficial translation - Attacking chords and notes with equal precision, he develops his jazz - mainstream, first-rate, classy, chic, elegiac but not sad - jazz that has never lost its charm or its timeliness) Michel Bedin, www.agitato.net
Primary Instrument

Guitar

Location

Philadelphia

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Introspection

Sunset Blvd. Records
2020

buy

Handful Of Strings

Best Effort Productions
2016

buy

2-Man Jazz Band

Best Effort Productions
2016

buy

Videos

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