Yellowjackets at Kuumbwa Jazz Center

The Yellowjackets’ roots go well back into the final wave of the 1970s jazz/rock fusion movement. In the early 1980s, after many well-established fusion mavericks had fallen by the wayside, the upstart Yellowjackets soldiered on to become the standard-bearer of electric jazz/r&b for the digital age. Originally begun as the rhythm section for the Robben Ford Band in 1977, they officially adopted the name Yellowjackets after their eponymous-titled 1980 album. The group has undergone occasional personnel changes through the decades, for a time enlisting the talents of Marc Russo and Michael Landau as well as replacing original members Ricky Lawson and Jimmy Haslip...

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The Yellowjackets’ roots go well back into the final wave of the 1970s jazz/rock fusion movement. In the early 1980s, after many well-established fusion mavericks had fallen by the wayside, the upstart Yellowjackets soldiered on to become the standard-bearer of electric jazz/r&b for the digital age. Originally begun as the rhythm section for the Robben Ford Band in 1977, they officially adopted the name Yellowjackets after their eponymous-titled 1980 album. The group has undergone occasional personnel changes through the decades, for a time enlisting the talents of Marc Russo and Michael Landau as well as replacing original members Ricky Lawson and Jimmy Haslip. The current lineup features founding member keyboardist Russell Ferrante with longtime members reedman Bob Mintzer, drummer William Kennedy, and newcomer Dane Alderson on bass. The group’s albums have earned fourteen Grammy nominations and two awards. Their most recent recording, A Rise in the Road, debuted at #1 on the iTunes Jazz Chart. In thirty-six years as a performing unit, with over twenty albums to their credit, the Yellowjackets have risen from young upstarts to highly respected veteran musicians. Their compositions rely on disparate influences drawn from Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia, South America, and the Caribbean, reflecting an inclusive world-view of music – truly a “fusion” band.

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