Andrea Rinciari

“Soho Sessions”

(Andrea Rinciari Recordings – ARR01CD)

Andrea Rinciari – guitar, Alex Garnett – tenor sax, Lorenzo Morabito – double bass, Mark Taylor – drums

Andrea Rinciari is an Italian guitarist based in London. A graduate of Trinity Laban he studied with the pianist and educator Barry Harris and has since played at leading jazz venues in both London and Paris.

Among those with whom he has worked are trumpeters Steve Fishwick and Mark Kavuma, saxophonists Alex Garnett, Jon Gordon, Ruben Fox and Leo Richardson, multi reeds player Giacomo Smith, guitarist Nigel Price, bassist Paul Sikivie. and American vocalist Ashley Pezzotti.

Rinciari’s style is rooted in the bebop / mainstream jazz tradition and his previous recordings include the 2021 EP “To Bud”, a homage to the pianist and composer Bud Powell recorded with a trio featuring Lorenzo Morabito on bass and Adam Merrell at the drums.

He followed this in 2022 with “The Takeover”, a quartet recording featuring Morabito on bass plus the Paris based musicians Thomas Gomez (saxophone) and Martin Cazales (drums).

His latest release is “Soho Sessions”, another quartet recording and one that features his regular working group with Alex Garnett on tenor sax, Mark Taylor at the drums and the faithful Morabito, a fellow ex-pat Italian, on bass.

The quartet played regular weekly sessions at Soho jazz venues, most notably Ronnie Scott’s and Pizza Express. Rinciari takes up the story in his album liner notes;
“Each week we’d feature on something different, whether it was music by Bud Powell, Tadd Dameron, Charlie Parker or tunes from the Great American Songbook. Those nights were all about exploring,  learning and connecting with the music and the audience. We were able to create a vast repertoire of tunes by various different composers, from American songbook composers to the most obscure bebop artists, so the tracks of this album are a good representation of those tunes”.

The majority of the arrangements are by Rinciari and Garnett, plus one by Barry Harris, a nod to Rinciari’s former mentor.

Rinciari is quick to praise Garnett’s contribution saying;
“Alex has been a massive help and inspiration, his vast repertoire is incredible. I used to go to his Late Shows at Ronnie’s and get roasted every time! He showed me that this music is a lifetime journey – there’s always more to learn.”

In conclusion Rinciari says;
“This album is a reflection of the magic that happens when musicians play together regularly. The tracks capture the spirit of our weekly Soho Sessions – improvised, refined and always evolving. The vibe of the album is very much rooted in bebop and straight-ahead jazz with plenty of groove, interplay and swing. We’d been playing these tunes for a while before we recorded them. Everything felt tight, natural and well rehearsed. We recorded the whole thing in five hours at the Fish Factory in North London – it was intense but I think we captured the spirit of the music. Soho Sessions is all about celebrating the jazz that I love, the musicians I admire and the joy of playing together. It’s a tribute to the jazz greats who have inspired me and the amazing musicians I’m lucky enough to play with.”

The album commences with a Barry Harris arrangement of the 1950s Coleman Hawkins tune “Bean and the Boys”, a lively swinging piece with a tricky bebop style ‘head’. It provides the jumping off point for lithe and fluent solos from Rinciari, who favours a clean, classic jazz guitar sound, and Garnett. Morabito and Taylor provide crisp, subtly propulsive rhythmic support. The impressive Taylor is then featured with a series of sharp, snappy drum breaks towards the close.

“John’s Delight” was composed by the now largely forgotten guitarist John Collins, a former sideman with Nat King Cole. Rinciari and Garnett worked together to translate the original big band arrangement (written for Tadd Dameron) into a quartet setting with the guitar leading the melody and the saxophone playing the harmony, as in Collins’ original arrangement. Garnett later features as a soloist alongside leader Rinciari.

Rinciari’s arrangement of the Vincent Youmans song for “Tea for Two” was specifically written for the Soho Sessions and puts a fresh spin on the familiar tune. An elegant and thoughtful unaccompanied guitar introduction, that includes some highly sophisticated chording, makes for a fascinating contrast with the rest of the tune, which is delivered by the quartet at an extremely brisk pace. Rinciari’s solo offers another demonstration of his fleet fingered fretboard skills. When he sits back Garnett cuts loose on tenor, with Taylor also adding another scintillating cameo at the drums. In his liner notes Rinciari describes Garnett’s solo on this track as “one of my favourite moments on the album”. He also praises Taylor, saying, “his energy and swing are a massive part of what makes this album what it is”.

An arrangement of the Vernon Duke composition “I Can’t Get Started” presents a gentler side of the quartet, a fine ballad performance featuring the warm tones of Garnett’s tenor, the mellow sound of the leader’s guitar and Taylor’s delicate deployment, for the first time thus far,  of brushes.

A version of Bud Powell’s “John’s Abbey” returns us to bustling bebop territory with a propulsive brushed drum groove fuelling the agile soloing of Rinciari and Garnett, plus their subsequent series of guitar / tenor exchanges.

A couple of rare gems follow. First the quartet unearth “Time to Smile”, a composition by the late pianist Freddie Redd (1928 – 2021), an appealing tune with its roots very much in the bebop tradition. Garnett’s opening theme statement and subsequent variations lead into a Rinciari guitar solo, the leader’s playing typically lithe and graceful. Garnett then stretches out more expansively, his sound fluent but with a harder edge, an effective contrast to Rinciari’s guitar. This piece is also notable for the first solo of the set from Morabito, the hitherto unsung member of the quartet, but a musician whose playing is at the very heart of the music. In his liner notes Rinciari says of his colleague;
“Lorenzo has been with me on almost every gig and record that I’ve done. He’s one of my closest friends and a musician who always brings the best out of everyone”.

The quartet dig up another nugget with “Carvin’ The Rock”, a composition by pianist Elmo Hope and saxophonist Sonny Rollins apparently written when both were serving time in New York’s Rikers Island prison (aka ‘The Rock’) for drug offences. Introduced by a drum salvo from Taylor it’s an angular, fast paced bebop style piece featuring a buccaneering Garnett sax solo and a slippery, richly inventive guitar solo from the leader, while Morabito’s bass makes a second break for freedom.

The album concludes with a solo guitar performance of the jazz standard “Polka Dots and Moonbeams”, composed by Johnny Van Heusen, a showcase for Rinciari’s impressive technique and particularly his use of sophisticated chording.

“Soho Sessions” is an unpretentious album that succeeds brilliantly in capturing the spirit of the Rinciari Quartet’s live appearances. It combines inventive and sophisticated arrangements with some exceptional playing and the band members impress both as individuals and as a highly cohesive and interactive unit. With its focus on traditional jazz and bebop virtues it may not pull up any trees, but that said musical deforestation is not its business. It is however a highly enjoyable representation of a jazz quartet at the very top of its game.

The official album launch took place at the Pizza Express Jazz Club in Soho on May 19th 2025, but there are further live appearances to come. Please see http://www.andrearinciari.com for details.
The website also includes a link to Rinciari’s Bandcamp page, where “Soho Sessions”, plus his previous recordings, can be purchased.

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