Quincy Jones, the American music producer, songwriter and film and TV producer, has died aged 91. Jones “passed away peacefully” at his home in B
Quincy Jones, the American music producer, songwriter and film and TV producer, has died aged 91.
Jones “passed away peacefully” at his home in Bel Air, Los Angeles, according to his publicist Arnold Robinson, as reported by Associated Press.
“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” read a statement from his family. “And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.”
Jones was known for producing music for 20th century icons, including Michael Jackson and Frank Sinatra. Jones met Jackson while the former was playing an uncredited role as a pianist on Sidney Lumet’s 1978 The Wiz. Their collaboration produced three of the best-selling music albums of all time: 1979’s Off The Wall, 1982’s Thriller and 1987’s Bad.
He had previously arranged and conducted albums for Sinatra, working with him for 40 years between 1958 and Sinatra’s death in 1998.
Born Quincy Delight Jones Jr. in Chicago, Illinois in 1933, Jones left studies at Boston’s Berklee College of Music to tour as a musician and arranger with Lionel Hampton’s band in 1953.
He became vice-president of Mercury Records in 1961, where Lumet brought him into composing for film on The Pawnbroker. This began a prolific period of film composing for Jones, on titles including Mirage, The Italian Job, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice and In The Heat Of The Night.
Jones also received his first Academy Award nomination in this period, for best original score in 1968 for Richard Brooks’ Truman Capote adaptation In Cold Blood.
It was the first of seven competitive Oscar nominations Jones received across an 18-year period, culminating in three nominations for Steven Spielberg’s The Color Purple in 1986: best picture, as a producer of the film; best original score; and best original song, for ‘Miss Celie’s Blues (Sister)’. He received the honorary Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the Academy in 1996, given for “outstanding contribution to humanitarian causes”.
Jones also received 80 Grammy nominations – the fourth-most of any person, after Beyoncé and Jay-Z (88 each) and Paul McCartney (82). He won 28 – the third-most, after Beyoncé (32) and composer Georg Solti (31). His Grammy nods included recognition for his film work, such as his 1968 nomination for Best Score for In The Heat Of The Night, and his 1984 Best Recording for Children win for E.T. The Extra Terrestrial.
He also worked on several television shows, producing 90s hit The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air starring Will Smith and composing the music for the eminent theme song ‘Yo Home To Bel Air’.
Jones was married three times – to Jeri Caldwell from 1957 to 1966; to Ulla Andersson from 1967 to 1974; and to Peggy Lipton from 1974 to 1990. He had seven children with five different partners: Jolie, Rachel, Martina, Quincy, Kidada, Rashida, and Kenya. Kidada and Rashida both became actresses.
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