The music world lost its most versatile creator when Quincy Jones passed away on sunday at age 91. Known simply as “Q“ he shaped modern music history through his work as producer arranger and composer
His journey started in chicago where he learned trumpet at age 7 (during world war II) and met Ray Charles as a teen-ager in seattle. This meeting changed everything: Charles taught him music-writing basics which later helped create his unique style
In the early-60s Jones became one of the first black-executives at Mercury Records where he worked with many great artists. His break-through came when he produced “Its My Party“ for Lesley Gore; after that success he started scoring films and tv-shows
The most significant chapter of his career began in late-70s when he partnered with Michael Jackson. Together they created three ground-breaking albums:
- Off the Wall
- Thriller (which sold about 70-million copies)
- Bad
His talent for bringing people together showed when he co-organized “We Are the World“ about 40 years ago. The super-group recording (which included bob dylan and bruce springsteen) raised money for ethiopia famine relief
Jones worked with countless music legends — from Frank Sinatra to Amy Winehouse. He won 27 grammys and produced countless hits; his work on “Back on the Block“ earned him album-of-the-year recognition in the early-90s
Leave your ego at the door
Beyond music he launched qwest records and vibe magazine while maintaining close friendships with global figures like nelson mandela. Even in his mid-80s he kept working: “I never been this busy in my life‚“ he said during an interview about 6 years ago