Born March 14, 1933, on Chicago’s South Side, his family moved to a suburb of Seattle when he was ten years of age. Quincy Delight Jones, Jr’s love affair with musical expression began when he was in elementary school, and his choice to play the trumpet evolved only after he had tried every single instrument available to him in high school band. While barely in his teens, he befriended a local singer-pianist who was a bit older. His name was Ray Charles. The two worked together, forming a combo and performing at small clubs and local weddings. Known as “Q” to his friends, at eighteen years of age he won a scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston, but dropped out when he received an offer to go on the road with bandleader, Lionel Hampton. This marked the beginning of his career as a freelance arranger. In the 1950s, he settled in New York where he charted for the best, including the likes of Sarah Vaughan, Tommy Dorsey, Gene Krupa, Count Basie, Dinah Washington and his old friend, Ray Charles.
In 1956, he recorded his first albums as a bandleader in his own right for Paramount Records. He moved to Paris in 1957, and toured throughout Europe. Despite enthusiastic reviews, his concert earnings could not support his large entourage, which was comprised of 18 musicians and their families. The band dissolved, leaving its leader heavily in debt. He retuned to New York to recoup his losses, and in 1964 became the vice-president of Mercury records, becoming the first African-American to hold such an executive position in a white-owned record company. At this time he was asked by director Sidney Lumet to write the musical score for the film, “The Pawnbroker.” This would mark the first of thirty-three scores (to date) that he has written for major motion pictures or television shows. Some notables include, “In Cold Blood,” “In the Heat of the Night,” and “Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice.”
His achievements are far too numerous to enumerate here. Suffice it to say that Quincy Jones is the owner of Qwest records, which is one of the largest minority-owned broadcasting companies in the United States. He continues to produce hit records and it seems as if his magic touch will never die. He has received one Emmy, seven Oscar nominations and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences “Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.”
Quincy, you’re A-Okay! There’s no keeping a good man down!
What DO you think about the unique talent of Quincy Jones? Please share.
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