Rick Hannah, Jazz guitarist was born in the US in Philadelphia. He started playing guitar at young age, being exposed to and playing a variety of Jazz, Funk, and Blues. He moved to Los Angeles in 1976, playing 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. In 1996 he moved back to the east coast where he met and formed a trio with Phil Cunneff and Tom Baldwin. Together they put out two CDs entitled “ Oui Bop†and “Encore Oui Bopâ€.
During this period, he also played with Anita O’Day, Chick Corea, Barney Kessel, Joe Pass, Jimmy Smith, John Pattitucci, Steve Smith, Joe Farrell, Stevie Wonder, Stix Hooper, Billy Mitchell, Albert Mangelsdorf, Jaochim Kuhn, Kei Akagi, Gerald Albright, Gary Willis....
In 2005, he moved to France where he has put a new trio together with the bass player Gerald Muller and the drummer Thomas Laedlein. After over three years of collaboration, this trio has put out its first CD entitled “Going Forwardâ€.
Coming from the jazz mainstream tradition, he keeps exploring, as Bill Evans did in the 60’s, the possibilities of the jazz trio giving to each musician more freedom and responsibility in contributing to the music. Instead of alternating melody and chords as most guitarists would, Rick ‘s style fuses both with fluidity. He is rigorous in his arrangements of standards, as well as his own compositions, mixing elegantly the writing and improvisation. The work of his trio for the last two years has raised his music to a new level of density, sophistication, and clarity.
