by Alex HendersonAldo Romano's Ritual has both an Italian connection and a French connection -- French because the post-bop CD was recorded in Paris for a French company (Owl Records), Italian in that all of the musicians are Italian (including drummer Romano, trumpeter/flugelhornist Paolo Fresu, pianist Franco D'Andrea, and bassist Furio Di Castri). If a person could only own one of Romano's Owl releases, To Be Ornette to Be would be the logical choice -- that excellent Ornette Coleman tribute is the best thing he recorded for Owl. But Ritual isn't bad. Although not as essential as To Be Ornette to Be, this is a decent post-bop outing that finds Romano performing his own compositions exclusively. The drummer doesn't embrace any overdone Tin Pan Alley warhorses on this 1988 session; everything on Ritual is a Romano original. Fresu adds electric keyboard touches to some of the material, but overall, Ritual has an acoustic-oriented outlook -- and when all is said and done, this is essentially a straight-ahead (as opposed to fusion) date. Although Romano is capable of outside/avant-garde playing, his quartet pretty much sticks to inside improvisation on Ritual. Some of the writing brings to mind Wayne Shorter, and some of it recalls Miles Davis' post-bop recordings of the early to mid-'60s. Fresu's playing, in fact, has a strong Davis influence (with some acknowledgment of Chet Baker as well). Fresu is mindful of Davis whether he is on trumpet or flugelhorn; he obviously admires Davis' use of subtlety and restraint. Again, Ritual falls short of essential, but it's a decent effort that Romano's hardcore fans will appreciate.