We remember renowned composer, arranger and producer Quincy Jones and listen back to Terry Gross's 2001 interview with him. He died Sunday at the age of 91. He got his start playing with Ray Charles when they were both in their teens. Jones became famous as an arranger and producer for musicians including Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, and Michael Jackson on his albums Bad, Off the Wall and Thriller.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
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This is Fresh Air. I'm Terry Gross. Today, we remember Quincy Jones. He died Sunday at the age of 91. In his New York Times obit, music critic Ben Ratliff described Jones as one of the most powerful forces in American popular music for more than a century. Jones started his career as a trumpeter in Lionel Hampton's big band in the early 50s, but he never became a noted instrumentalist.
What made him famous and wealthy was his work as an arranger, composer, and record producer, work that spans from the big bands through bebop, pop, movie soundtracks, TV themes, and hip-hop.
He arranged or produced recordings for Sinatra, Ray Charles, Aretha, Dinah Washington, George Benson, and Ice-T, and he produced the Michael Jackson albums Off the Wall, Bad, and the best-selling album of all time, Thriller. His music has been sampled in many hip-hop recordings, and his 1962 recording, Soul Bossa Nova, was used as the theme to the Austin Powers films.
The multimedia company Quincy Jones Entertainment produced the sitcoms The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, In the House, and the sketch show Mad TV. I spoke with him in 2001, after the release of his memoir, Q, and a four-CD box set by the same name of music featuring him as a trumpeter, arranger, composer, or producer. We started with a sampling of tracks from that collection.
Another bride, another June, another sunny honeymoon. Another season, another reason for making whoopee. Look at me. I'm as helpless as a kitten up a tree. And I feel like I'm clinging to a cloud. I can't understand. I get misty just holding your hand.
I never cared much for moonlit skies I never winked back at fireflies But now that the stars are in your eyes I'm beginning to see the light I never went in
fly me to the moon let me play among the stars let me see what spring is like on jupiter and mars in other words hold my hand In other words, baby kiss me.
That's a sampling of music from the four-CD box set Q that was released at the same time as his memoir Q. That was back in 2001, when I spoke with him. One of the first musicians he became good friends with was Ray Charles. They met when Charles was 16 and Jones was 14. I asked Quincy Jones how they met.
I think it was at the Elks Club, Terry, where we used to, after we played two jobs, we'd work from 7 to 10 in the white tennis clubs where we'd play cup music of the popular music of the day, To Each His Own and Room Full of Roses. And then at 10 o'clock, we'd go play the black clubs, the Black and Tan, the Rock and Chair, and the Washington Educational and Social Club.
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