Favorite Yellowjackets CD

[Bassist4Life]

What is your favorite Yellowjackets CD?

Which tracks stand out as your favorites?

I got 25 when it came out. I love the energy in this live recording. I tend to go for the more upbeat numers like "Jacketown" and "RunFerYerLife". Jimmy has some great solo work in Jacketown. I love how he articulates the notes in his runs. His playing is so clean.

I'm looking for another upbeat CD. I've heard that Mint Jam is pretty good. Any thoughts on this CD?

Joe

[geoffkhan]

My favorites are:

Yellowjackets (debut album w/ Robben Ford)
The Spin
Dreamland
Greenhouse

Don't like their newest stuff as much. Ever since Will Kennedy left...

[Christopher]

I like Greenhouse - the string arrangements are great and Bob Mintzer's playing was great. Too bad it's out of print.

[Bassist4Life]

Originally Posted by geoffkhan

My favorites are:

Yellowjackets (debut album w/ Robben Ford)
The Spin
Dreamland
Greenhouse

Don't like their newest stuff as much. Ever since Will Kennedy left...

I checked out "The Spin" on iTunes. Nice! It was a live recording from 1991 at the Roxy. Thanks.

Joe

[Bassist4Life]

Originally Posted by Christopher

I like Greenhouse - the string arrangements are great and Bob Mintzer's playing was great. Too bad it's out of print.

Was Greenhouse the name of an album? The tune "Greenhouse" is on 25. It's an easy goin' number.

Joe

[narud]

mint jam, greenhouse and mirage a tois are all very, very good.

[jerry]

Originally Posted by Christopher

I like Greenhouse - the string arrangements are great and Bob Mintzer's playing was great. Too bad it's out of print.

Yeah, Greenhouse was a standout for me too! I was stoked when Mintzer joined the band. I didn't know it was out of print though.

[peteroberts]

My favorite stuff of theirs is Four Corners (surprised no one mentioned that one - it won a grammy!), Politics, and The Spin.

[Blake Bass]

Four Corners, Politics and The Spin, Mint Jam

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Peace Round. I just love Christmas

[Richard Lindsey]

Originally Posted by Blake Bass

Four Corners, Politics and The Spin, Mint Jam

That's right around the period I started getting into them. I like those, plus Greenhouse. All the subsequent records have had some good-to-great stuff, but they haven't always stood out from each other, to me. I didn't really like that one live album they did with singers; forget what it's called ... Live Wires, maybe? I did like Time Squared quite a bit, which was fairly recent. I'm enjoying 25 right now.

[JimK]

Richard-
Yes, it's Live Wires...I've got 4 of its tunes on the 'pod(the ones without vocals). I also seem to recall a video of Live Wires, I think on PBS(I'm pretty sure I taped it, too...just can't find it!).

I was into the Yellowjackets since Robben Ford's The Inside Story...possibly their 1st album.
For me, William Kennedy was a huge step forward...Four Corners, Politics, The Spin just sounded/felt a lot better than the Ricky Lawson era. Kennedy & Haslip are able to 'bend' time thru their ability to play cross rhythms.
Bob Mintzer was another step ahead...BTW, there is a Bob Mintzer album called One Music; this is essentially a Yellowjackets' album under Mintzer's name. It's pretty decent.

There are two 'pieces' on Blue Hats that just kill me: "Capetown" & "Savanna".
There's also a couple of Miles-esque tuneage I find to be cool: "Dewey" from Like A River & "Blacktop" from Dreamland.

Club Nocturne? Personally, I thought it stink, stank, stunk.

Their newer stuff I find to be very good.
Wish I had Mint Jam...I think that & 25 are the only ones I'm missing.

[DrMWP]

I've been a big Yellowjackets fan since I first saw them in the late 80s.

My fav albums have to be
Politics
Run for your life
Mint Jam

I also really like the Bob Mintzer Big Band (w/ Lincoln Goines on Bass) and Jimmy Haslip's solo albums.

[Dbassmon]

Many Great Recordings but Politics and the Spin are outstanding bodies of work.
Haslip is one of my favorites and the band with Mark Russo and Tom Kennedy was just superb. All do respect to Minzer, Mark Russo was really special.

[jerry]

One of the cool things about following the Yellowjackets from the beginning, is watching how Jimmy Haslip devoloped. He started as a bad-mofo and has grown into a super bad-mofo, he's one of the best!!!!!!!

[Richard Lindsey]

Originally Posted by jerry

One of the cool things about following the Yellowjackets from the beginning, is watching how Jimmy Haslip devoloped. He started as a bad-mofo and has grown into a super bad-mofo, he's one of the best!!!!!!!

+1. Possibly my favorite electric bass guitarist at the moment.

[SteveC]

Jimmy is awesome. He even played a request of mine at their Minneapolis concert last summer - Motet. It's off Mint Jam which is my favorite CD.

[KJung]

Greenhouse and Mint Jam for me, but they are all good. The production on the early recordings (pre Mintzer) is hard for me to listen to at this point, but they are still very good IMO.

[Carlo Tanori]

This may not be what exactly what the discussion is about but I'm a big YellowJackets fan and Jimmy H. is THE MAN! The first time I saw him play was in 1983 at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles, CA playing bass for Al Jarreau. Ricky Lawson was on drums too......WOW! I once approached him in the parking lot of the Bass Centre in L.A. (remember that place?) as he was in a hurry to leave for a session after doing a clinic. He signed my CD, gave me a big pat on the back and gave me smile from ear to ear. He is the coolest cat.

You should have seen the sports car he left in.......sweeeet!

[Bassist4Life]

I did a Haslip search and found this album:

Structure
Musicians: Adam Rogers, Greg Osby, Jimmy Haslip, and Terry Lyne Carrington. I found it to be funky/jazzy/groovy. A good listening experience.

I've been checking out some of your favorite Yellowjackets picks. I forgot all about Haslip's solo albums. They are not on iTunes .

Also, I couldn't find any of Bob Mintzer Big Band albums w/Lincoln Goines on bass on iTunes. Do you have any specific titles that I can look up?

Joe