Russell Ferrante

• Name — Yellowjackets • Landscape — yes • Origin — Los Angeles, California, U.S. • Genre — Jazz fusion • Years Active — 1977–present • Label — * MCA • GRP • Heads Up • Mack Avenue Records • Warner Bros. • Website — yellowjackets.com • Current Members — Russell Ferrante Bob Mintzer Will Kennedy Dane Alderson • Past Members — Robben Ford Jimmy Haslip Ricky Lawson Michael Landau Mike Miller Marc Russo Peter Erskine Terri Lyne Carrington Marcus Baylor Felix Pastorius

• Illustration — Jimmy Haslip performs at the Liri Blues Festival, Italy, in 2000. In 1977, guitarist Robben Ford, for his first solo album, recruited keyboardist Russell Ferrante, electric bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer Ricky Lawson. They continued as a group and were signed to Warner Bros. Records by producer Tommy LiPuma, 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 for Best Fusion Performance. Ford played on only 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, 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 for Mack Avenue. When Haslip took an extended hiatus, he was replaced by Felix Pastorius (son of bassist Jaco Pastorius). 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.

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

• Jimmy Haslip – bass (1977–2012) • Ricky Lawson – drums (1977–1987; died 2013) • Robben Ford – guitar (1977–1983) • Mike Miller – guitar (1983; died 2025) • Michael Landau – guitar (1985) • Marc Russo – saxophones (1985–1989) • Peter Erskine – drums (1999–2000) • Terri Lyne Carrington – drums (2000) • Marcus Baylor – drums (2000–2010) • Felix Pastorius – bass (2012–2015)