Russell Hastings is a British guitarist and vocalist primarily known for his work with From the Jam -- a punk outfit featuring former members of mod-pioneering act
the Jam. Growing up,
Hastings developed an untethered passion for
the Jam, attending many of their gigs in the U.K. Years later, after the band split, he developed a friendship with drummer Rick Buckler, and the two went on to form a new project -- the Gift -- in 2006, which became known for performing
Jam material. Later that year, the band performed a number of gigs around the U.K. with
Bruce Foxton (former bass player of
the Jam). This led to
Foxton remaining with the ensemble full-time and the group later renamed themselves "From the Jam."
Hastings and From the Jam went on to tour the U.K. in late 2007 with a live DVD of their Christmas performance released via Invisible Hands the following November.
Russell returned in 2012 with a performance credit on
Foxton's 2012 solo effort,
Back in the Room. From the Jam continued to perform up and down the U.K. for the next few years with several appearances in Australia in 2015. In December 2017, to celebrate ten years of performing together,
Hastings and
Foxton put out a live album entitled
From the Jam: Live! ~ Rob Wacey