Producer and Arranger Quincy Jones has Died, Aged 91

Jones produced for artists as diverse as Count Basie, Frank Sinatra, Donna Summer, and Michael Jackson

The producer, conductor, arranger, and record executive Quincy Jones, who worked at the heart of American popular music for the entire second half of the twentieth century, has passed away at the age of 91.

Born in Chicago in 1933, Jones moved with his family to Seattle following the Second World War. There, he began his musical life playing the trumpet and singing in a gospel quartet. An early encounter with the teenage Ray Charles set him on a professional course, with Charles encouraging him to pursue arranging — and Jones soon enrolled at the Berklee College of Music.

Afterward, Jones played for bandleader Lionel Hampton, as well as composing and arranging his own works, such as the early song "Kingfish". Then, in 1956, he was recruited for Dizzy Gillespie’s band, which undertook a three-month tour to Europe and the Middle East, and later to South America. Jones's first album, This is How I Feel About Jazz, followed later that year.

A period in France followed, where he studied composition with Nadia Boulanger. He formed his own band during this time, while also writing music for Count Basie — as well as vocalists such as Billy Eckstine, Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Washington, and Sarah Vaughan.

Throughout the 1960s, Jones collaborated closely with Frank Sinatra, resulting in albums including It Might As Well Be Swing (1964) and Sinatra at the Sands (1966). The 70s followed, during which Jones worked at the heart of disco, producing albums for Donna Summer — and most notably he began working with Michael Jackson. Throughout the 80s Jones produced the albums Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad, achieving enormous popular success.

His work crossed over into Hollywood, and in 1985 Jones co-produced Steven Spielberg’s film adaptation of The Color Purple, as well as producing its soundtrack.

Jones received countless honors for his work, including an Emmy, 28 Grammys, and three Special Grammy awards. In 1989 he was given the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2013.

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