Yellowjackets -

Yellowjackets are an American jazz-rock band from Los Angeles. The group developed from the backing unit of guitarist Robben Ford with keyboardist Russell Ferrante, bassist Jimmy Haslip, and drummer Ricky Lawson, then debuted in 1981 on Warner Bros. with Yellowjackets.

After Ford departed, saxophonist Marc Russo joined for the mid-Eighties albums Samurai Samba and Shades, followed by drummer Will Kennedy and a run that included Four Corners, Politics, and The Spin. Saxophonist Bob Mintzer joined for Greenhouse and remained through subsequent lineups as Yellowjackets extended their catalog across Timeline, Jackets XL, Parallel Motion, and Fasten Up.

Members: Bob Mintzer (saxophone, EWI), Jimmy Haslip (bass), Russell Ferrante (piano, keyboards), Marcus Baylor (drums, percussion), Marc Russo (horns), William Kennedy (drums, percussion), Ricky Lawson (drums, percussion)

Backgrounds

Yellowjackets formed in 1980 in Los Angeles when keyboardist Russell Ferrante, bassist Jimmy Haslip, and drummer Ricky Lawson developed an instrumental recording project from guitarist Robben Ford’s working band.

Ford was born Robben Lee Ford on December 16, 1951, in Woodlake, California, and grew up in Ukiah. He started saxophone at age ten and added guitar four years later. After high school, Ford formed the Charles Ford Band with drummer Patrick Ford and harmonica player Mark Ford, two brothers in a musical family. Work with harmonica player Charlie Musselwhite led to a jazz quartet with keyboardist Paul Nagel, bassist Stan Poplin, and drummer Jim Baum. Singer Jimmy Witherspoon hired that group and brought Ford into the Los Angeles circuit.

Ferrante was born in 1952 in San Jose, California, and started piano lessons at age nine. His father directed a church choir, which provided Ferrante with early ensemble experience. Ford heard Ferrante at a Half Moon Bay club and recruited him in 1973 as replacement for Witherspoon pianist Paul Nagel. Ferrante left college for tours of the United States and Europe with Witherspoon, then moved to San Francisco in 1975 and taught at Community Music Center. He relocated to Los Angeles two years later to resume work with Ford.

Haslip was born James Robert Haslip on December 31, 1951, in the Bronx and grew up in Huntington, Long Island. He started trumpet in elementary school and subsequently played flugelhorn, baritone horn, tenor horn, tuba, and bugle. Haslip adopted electric bass as a teenager and learned left-handed on a right-handed Zimgar without reversing the strings. Bassist and tuba player Ron Smith taught him theory and harmony. Haslip entered professional club work with Captain Cook, then worked across several American cities after leaving New York at seventeen. By 1975, he settled in Los Angeles.

Lawson grew up in Detroit and played with a five-member high-school jazz ensemble. He also belonged to the Sons of Soul, which appeared at the 1969 Michigan State Fair on a bill with the Jackson Five. Lawson entered professional recording work by the middle of the decade and played drums with Roy Ayers Ubiquity on Mystic Voyage.

Ford returned to Los Angeles after work with Tom Scott and the L.A. Express, Joni Mitchell, and George Harrison. Elektra executive Joe Smith offered Ford a recording contract after an encounter at a Joni Mitchell session. In 1977, Ford called Ferrante to assemble a band, and the pair added Haslip and Lawson. Elektra issued the Steve Cropper-produced The Inside Story in 1979 as a Robben Ford album.

The quartet continued as the Robben Ford Group and played several engagements at the Baked Potato in Los Angeles. Elektra pressed Ford toward a more vocal-oriented follow-up, while Ferrante, Haslip, and Lawson wanted to continue with instrumental material. Ford’s manager approached Ferrante after one Baked Potato performance and financed a demo by the four musicians.

Haslip brought a list of possible group names to the demo session, where the musicians selected Yellowjackets. The tape included “Imperial Strut,” “Flat Tire,” “Katy,” and the Ford composition “Blondie.” Producer Tommy LiPuma heard the demo and arranged a Warner Bros. contract for Ferrante, Haslip, and Lawson, while Ford remained under contract to Elektra. LiPuma then reunited all four musicians at Amigo Sound for the sessions that became Yellowjackets.

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