Mark Ronson remembers legendary producer Quincy Jones. Last Thursday, the eight-time Grammy winner shared a tribute to Jones via the Guardiancalling Jones a “benevolent supporter of the wonder of music.”
“Losing Quincy is like a black hole swallowing part of the musical universe,” Ronson wrote. “But his work will live on forever, as will his lessons. Continue to strive for deeper knowledge. Always leave room for something bigger than yourself. Because sometimes the magic happens when we step aside.”
In his touching tribute, Ronson recalled reading the producer's autobiography, Qand that he felt connected to the story of Jones, who abandoned his arrangements with Ray Charles to study music theory in Paris and focus on his craft.
“Imagine reaching the pinnacle of success, especially as a young black musician in segregated America in the 1950s, and saying thank you, but starting over for the love of chords and harmony,” Ronson wrote. “It's great to have that kind of courage.”
“But that's the risk of using Quincy as a yardstick,” Ronson continued. “It's an impossible standard. For producers and arrangers like me, he didn't just raise the bar, he hid it where no one could reach.”
Ronson said he was “lucky” to spend time with Quincy while he was engaged to his daughter Rashida, who he says he is “still close to.”
“Over the years, he sent me kind notes – he had a particular fondness for Amy [Winehouse] – and we often hung out whenever I played at the Montreux jazz festival, a place he loved,” Ronson wrote. “Seeing him there, stage right, sitting in his conductor's chair – looking like a godfather of music smiling at you – brought up a mix of emotions in me.”
“The greatest producer and arranger of all time, watching your every move, it was absolutely terrifying. Yet he only radiated generosity. All he wanted was for you to win, for you to shine,” he added. “He had already achieved the unimaginable. Now he existed as something rare and beautiful: a kind of benevolent supporter of the wonder of music itself.”
Jones died Nov. 3 at his home in Los Angeles. Stars across the arts, including Stevie Wonder, Colman Domingo, Nile Rodgers, The Weeknd, Victoria Monét and Flea, shared touching tributes to the late musician.
In an Instagram post shortly after his death, Jones' daughter Rashida remembered her father as a loving “icon.”
“My father was a nocturnal animal his entire adult life. He spent his 'jazz hours' starting in high school, and never looked back. When I was little, I would wake up in the middle of the night looking for him,” she wrote in early November. “No doubt he was somewhere in the house composing – the old fashioned way, with a pen and sheet music. He never sent me back to bed. He smiled at me and carried me in his arms as he continued to work… There was no safer place in the world for me.”
From Rolling Stone US
