Legendary music producer and composer Quincy Jones died November 3, 2024 in his Bal Air home surrounded by family at the age of 91.  No official cause of death has been given.

Jones had an impressive list of artists with whom he collaborated including Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, Lionel Hampton, Count Basie, Lionel Richie, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, Snoop Dogg,  LL Cool J, Tony Bennett, Lesley Gore, Chaka Khan, Queen Latifah, Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughn, Nat King Cole, Dizzy Gillespie, Andy Williams, Peggy Lee, Lesley Gore, Aretha Franklin, Ringo Starr, Donna Sommers, George Benson, and Barbra Streisand.

 For Quincy Jones music was music no matter what the genre.  Dizzy Gillespie once spoke on Jones saying, “he’s Doctor Fixit.  People go to him because he knows what he’s doin’. He knows the sound you’ve got in you, and he’s got the experience and the know-how to get it out.”

His compositions include the music for “Roots”, “In the Heat of the Night”, “The Wiz”, “The Color Purple”, and the theme song for “Sanford and Son”.

He organized President Bill Clinton’s first inauguration, oversaw the star studded “We are the World” project, and worked with Michael Jackson on his “Off the Wall”, “Thriller”, and “Bad” albums.

He was one of the first successful executives of colour in Hollywood.

A Tony away from the EGOT, Jones has 28 Grammy Awards, an honourary Oscar – and is scheduled for another one next month -, and an Emmy for his work with “Roots.  His awards also include a Legion d’Honneur from France, a Rudolph Valentino Award from Italy, and is a Kennedy Center Honour, is a member of the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame, winner of the Swedish Polar Prize in 1994.  Jones earned his first Grammy Award in 1964.

The grandson of a Mississippi slave, he was born Quincy Delight Jones Jr on March 14, 1933 in Chicago. Born on the Southside of Chicago, a young Quincy spent most of his time on the streets; but discovering a piano at age 10 put him on a path that would lead to one of the greatest music moguls in American history.  It wasn’t long before he had added a trumpet to his list of accomplishments.

Performing professionally while still in his teens touring with Lionel Hampton and backing up Billie Holiday. By the time he was in his 20’s, he already had his own band.  Quincy began his career when vinyl albums were played at 78rpms.

It didn’t take long for his to learn that there was the music and there was the music business.  In 1971 Jones became the first man of colour to be the musical director for the annual Academy Awards.

In his early years, Jones was not inclined toward activism but after the funeral of the Dr. Rev Martin Luther King, Jones noted, “the best and only useful aspect of fame and celebrity is having a platform to help others.”  HIV, AIDS, educating children, and providing for the poor around the world were all causes that drew his attention.

Married and divorced three times, Jones is survived by his seven children Jolie, Quincy III, Martina, Kidada, Rachel, Kenya, and Rashida; and siblings Richar, Theresa, Frank, and Margie Jay.