Yellowjackets is an American jazz fusion band founded in 1977 in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

History

In 1977, guitarist

Robben Ford Robben Lee Ford (born December 16, 1951) is an American blues, jazz, and rock guitarist. He was a member of the L.A. Express and Yellowjackets and has collaborated with Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, George Harrison, Larry Carlton, Rick Sprin ...

, for his first solo album, recruited keyboardist Russell Ferrante, electric bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer

Ricky Lawson William Riser III (November 8, 1954 – December 23, 2013), better known as Ricky Lawson, was an American drummer and composer. A native of Detroit, Michigan, he worked extensively as a session musician, collaborating with Stevie Wonder, Mich ...

. They decided to continue as a group and were signed to

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

by producer

Tommy LiPuma Tommy LiPuma (July 5, 1936 – March 13, 2017) was an American music producer. He received 33 Grammy nominations, 5 Grammy wins, and his productions sold over 75 million albums. LiPuma worked with many musicians, including Barbra Streisand, Miles ...

, who chose the name "Yellowjackets" from a list of potential group names the band had compiled. In 1984, the band's second album, '' Mirage a Trois'', was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

for Best Fusion Performance. Ford only played on half this album, and after he departed the group, saxophonist Marc Russo was hired in his place. The next album, '' Shades'', reached No. 4 on the '' Billboard'' magazine jazz album chart, while the single "And You Know That" won a Grammy for Best R&B Instrumental Performance. Lawson left and was replaced by Will Kennedy in 1987. Their next three albums, '' Four Corners'', ''

Politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...

'', and '' The Spin'' all received Grammy nominations for Best Jazz Fusion Performance. With Russo leaving the band in 1990, Bob Mintzer replaced him for the album '' Greenhouse'', which reached No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Contemporary Jazz Album chart. Mintzer has remained a band member. The Yellowjackets celebrated their 30th anniversary in 2011 with the album ''

Timeline A timeline is a display of a list of events in chronological order. It is typically a graphic design showing a long bar labelled with dates paralleling it, and usually contemporaneous events. Timelines can use any suitable scale represen ...

'' for

Mack Avenue Mack Avenue Records is an independent record label in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan. Background Mack Avenue was founded in 1999 by Gretchen Carhartt Valade, a jazz fan and chair of the American apparel company Carhartt. The company is a sponsor ...

. When Haslip took an extended hiatus, he was replaced by Felix Pastorius (son of bassist

Jaco Pastorius John Francis Anthony "Jaco" Pastorius III (; December 1, 1951 – September 21, 1987) was an American jazz bassist, composer and producer. He recorded albums as a solo artist and band leader and was a member of Weather Report from 1976 to 1981. ...

.) The band released ''A Rise in the Road'' with Pastorius. On some of the songs, Pastorius played the fretless bass guitar made famous by his father. In addition to their studio albums, the Yellowjackets contributed two tracks to the soundtrack of the film '' Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'' in 1986..

Awards and honors

Grammy Awards * R&B Instrumental Performance: "And You Know That" (1987) * Jazz Fusion Performance: ''Politics'' (1989) Grammy nominations * Jazz Fusion Performance: ''Mirage a Trois'' (1984), ''Four Corners'' (1987) * Contemporary Jazz Performance: ''Greenhouse'' (1992), ''Like a River'' (1994), ''Run for Your Life'' (1995), ''Dreamland'' (1996), ''Club Nocturne'' (1999) * Contemporary Jazz Album: ''Mint Jam'' (2003), ''Time Squared'' (2004), ''Lifecycle'' (2009) * Jazz Instrumental Performance: ''The Spin'' (1990) * Instrumental Composition: "Claire's Closet", Russell Ferrante (2009), "Civil War", Bob Mintzer (2014) * Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album: ''Jackets XL'' with the (2022)

Discography

*1981: ''

Yellowjackets A yellowjacket is a black-and-yellow vespid wasp. Yellowjacket(s) or Yellow Jacket(s) may also refer to: Places * Yellow Jacket, Colorado, an unincorporated town * Yellow Jacket, Florida, an unincorporated area in Dixie County, Florida Arts, e ...

'' (

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

) *1983: '' Mirage a Trois'' (Warner Bros.) *1985: '' Samurai Samba'' (Warner Bros.) *1986: '' Shades'' ( GRP) *1987: '' Four Corners'' (GRP) *1988: ''

'' ( MCA) *1989: '' The Spin'' (MCA) *1991: '' Greenhouse'' (MCA) *1992: '' Live Wires'' (GRP) *1993: '' Like a River'' (GRP) *1994: '' Run for Your Life'' (GRP) *1995: '' Dreamland'' (Warner Bros.) *1995:

Bobby McFerrin Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. (born March 11, 1950) is an American folk and jazz singer. He is known for his vocal techniques, such as singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in pitch—for example, sustaining a melody while also rap ...

's '' Bang!Zoom'' (Blue Note) *1997: '' Blue Hats'' (Warner Bros.) *1998: ''

Club Nocturne ''Club Nocturne'' (1998) is the 13th studio album (14th overall) from the jazz group Yellowjackets, and their sixth and final release for the Warner Bros. label. The album was nominated for "Best Contemporary Jazz Album" Grammy Award. The album ...

'' (Warner Bros.) *2001: '' Mint Jam'' ( Heads Up) *2003: '' Time Squared'' (Heads Up) *2003: '' Peace Round: A Christmas Celebration'' (Heads Up) *2005: '' Altered State'' (Heads Up) *2006: ''Twenty-Five'' (Heads Up) *2008: '' Lifecycle'' (Heads Up) *2011: ''

'' (

Mack Avenue Records Mack Avenue Records is an independent record label in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan. Background Mack Avenue was founded in 1999 by Gretchen Carhartt Valade, a jazz fan and chair of the American apparel company Carhartt. The company is a sponsor ...

) *2013: ''A Rise in the Road'' (

) *2016: ''Cohearence'' (

) *2018: ''Raising Our Voice'' (

) *2020: ''Jackets XL'' (

) *2022: ''Parallel Motion'' (

)

Members

Present lineup

* Russell Ferrante – keyboards, synthesizers (1977–present) * Bob Mintzer – saxophones, bass clarinet, EWI (1991–present) *William Kennedy – drums, percussion (1987–1999, 2010–present) *Dane Alderson – bass (2015–present)

Former members

– guitar (1977–1983) * Jimmy Haslip – bass (1977–2012) * Mike Miller - guitar (1983) *

– drums (1977–1987; died 2013) * Michael Landau - guitar (1985) * Marc Russo – saxophones (1985–1989) *

Peter Erskine Peter Erskine (born June 5, 1954) is an American jazz drummer who was a member of the jazz fusion groups Weather Report and Steps Ahead. Early life and education Erskine was born in Somers Point, New Jersey, U.S. He began playing the dru ...

– drums (1999-2000) *

Terri Lyne Carrington Terri Lyne Carrington (born August 4, 1965) is an American jazz drummer, composer, producer, and educator. She has played with Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Clark Terry, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Joe Sample, Al Jarreau, Yellowjackets, and ma ...

– drums (2000) *Marcus Baylor – drums (2000–2010) *Felix Pastorius – bass (2012–2015)

Timeline

ImageSize = width:1100 height:380 PlotArea = left:84 bottom:80 top:0 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1981 till:01/01/2023 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors = id:Saxophone value:gray(0.75) legend:Saxophone id:Guitar value:green legend:Guitar id:Keyboard value:purple legend:Keyboard id:Bass value:blue legend:Bass id:Drums value:orange legend:Drums Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom ScaleMajor = increment:2 start:1981 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:1981 LineData = at:01/01/1981 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1983 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1985 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1986 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1987 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1988 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1989 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1991 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1992 color:yellow layer:back at:01/01/1993 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1994 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1995 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1997 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1998 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2001 color:yellow layer:back at:01/01/2003 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2004 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2005 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2006 color:yellow layer:back at:01/01/2008 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2011 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2013 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2016 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2018 color:black layer:back BarData = bar:ford text:"Robben Ford" bar:russo text:"Marc Russo" bar:mintzer text:"Bob Mintzer" bar:ferrante text:"Russell Ferrante" bar:haslip text:"Jimmy Haslip" bar:pastorius text:"Felix Pastorius" bar:alderson text:"Dane Alderson" bar:lawson text:"Ricky Lawson" bar:kennedy text:"William Kennedy" bar:erskine text:"Peter Erskine" bar:carrington text:"Terri Lyne Carrington" bar:baylor text:"Marcus Baylor" PlotData= width:10 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:ferrante from:01/01/1981 till:end color:Keyboard bar:haslip from:01/01/1981 till:01/01/2012 color:Bass bar:pastorius from:01/01/2012 till:01/01/2015 color:Bass bar:alderson from:01/01/2015 till:end color:Bass bar:lawson from:01/01/1981 till:01/01/1987 color:Drums bar:kennedy from:01/01/1987 till:01/01/1999 color:Drums bar:kennedy from:01/01/2010 till:end color:Drums bar:erskine from:01/01/1999 till:01/01/2000 color:Drums bar:carrington from:01/01/2000 till:01/01/2001 color:Drums bar:baylor from:01/01/2000 till:01/01/2010 color:Drums bar:ford from:01/01/1981 till:01/01/1984 color:Guitar bar:russo from:01/01/1985 till:01/01/1990 color:Saxophone bar:mintzer from:01/01/1991 till:end color:Saxophone ImageSize = width:800 height:40 PlotArea = left:110 bottom:0 top:0 right:6 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1981 till:01/12/2013 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors= id:Lines value:black legend:Studio releases id:Lines2 value:yellow legend:Live album recordings (opt. also video) Legend = orientation:horizontal position:top

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control American jazz ensembles from California Jazz fusion ensembles Jazz musicians from California Musical groups established in 1977 Musical groups from Los Angeles Smooth jazz ensembles Grammy Award winners GRP Records artists MCA Records artists Warner Records artists Articles which contain graphical timelines Mack Avenue Records artists