When Quincy Jones passed in October 2024, a rich chapter in music history closed, and it led many of us to take a beat and reflect on the far-reaching impact one man had on music, on other musicians, on Culture.  Perhaps he was the most respected Musician among Musicians?  Probably.  Justly.  He has more Grammy nominations and awards than anyone on the planet, and when you look at his monumental body of work, it’s easy to understand why he’s touched such a broad audience of music lovers.  He’s done it all.  He’s even done stuff you know but didn’t know he’d done it.

With over 400 album credits, assembling anything even near-complete a discography of QJ would be an impossible task, but this deluxe 20CD set releasing on Decca Records France in November to mark the anniversary, is a pretty good representation: exploring all facets of his genius, from arranging and scoring to conducting and producing.  It brings together his bebop, pop, soul, funk, and hip-hop albums, and gives special focus to his iconic film and television scores (9 discs, including the first CD releases of ‘For Love of Ivy’, ‘The Hot Rock’, ‘The Boy in the Tree’, and the rare ‘Dollars’). The box set also includes covers or original recordings never reissued since their first release (the alternate arrangement of ‘Numéro 13’ by Q, ‘Maybe Tomorrow’ by the Electronic Concept Orchestra, and ‘Ironside’ by Ray Martin). The 44-page hardback artbook includes interviews with Quincy from 2016 and 2021, and testimonials from Toots Thielemans and Alexandre Desplat.  

For all his achievements, he never lost sight of his roots and always made sure to give serious ‘props’ to the giants on whose shoulders he stood, and he tirelessly lifted others who came into his orbit.  With love and respect, this anthology, presented in a beautiful ‘artbook format’ and produced by Stéphane Lerouge, furthers his legacy among musicians and music-lovers inspired by Q.