Ricky Lawson
Ricky Lawson (born 1954 in Detroit, Michigan, † 23 December 2013, Long Beach, California ) was an American drummer and songwriter. He worked as a session musician in particular, among others, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Whitney Houston, Steely Dan and many more. He co-founded the fusion band Yellowjackets - with her 1987, he won a Grammy in the category "Best R & B Instrumental Performance " for And You Know That from the album Shades.
Biography
At 16, Lawson began to drum. He played in high school jazz band. With the band "The Sons of Soul", he played the opening act of the Jackson Five on the Michigan State Fair in 1969. The college he dropped out after a year, when he was invited to drum for Stevie Wonder. In the 1980s and 1990s he played drums for Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston. So he can be heard for example on Whitney's world hit I Will Always Love You.
Lawson worked with numerous artists, including Michael Jackson, Eric Clapton, Steely Dan, Phil Collins, Babyface, Yellowjackets, Whitney Houston, Quincy Jones, Stevie Wonder, Bette Midler, Russell Ferrante, Toto, Al Jarreau, George Benson, Lionel Richie, George Duke and many more. In the field of jazz / fusion, where he was involved in 1975-2010 in 63 recording sessions, he also played with Roy Ayers et al, Flora Purim, David Sanborn, Earl Klugh, Kirk Whalum and Tom Scott. Lawson, co-founder of the Yellowjackets, received a Grammy co-wrote their hit And You Know That. He was also co-author of the song Uh- Uh of the Pointer Sisters from the album Seriously Slammin (1988 ), which he produced with, as well as the hit " Good News " (1987 ) of the fusion band Fattburger.
On December 13, 2013 Lawson collapsed during a performance. It was diagnosed with brain aneurysms, the consequences of which he died at the age of 59 years, 10 days later.