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Quincy Jones made history twice over at the 1968 Academy Awards. He was the first African-American composer to be nominated for \u2018Best Original Song\u2019 (for\u00a0Banning<\/em>\u2019s \u2018The Eyes of Love\u2019) and was nominated a second time that very same year for his original score for\u00a0In Cold Blood<\/em>. While he won neither statue, it was recognition of Jones\u2019s impact on screen. But Jones was so much more than a film composer.<\/p> Jazz captured Jones\u2019s heart (and soul) early on while growing up in Chicago, and while formal studies in Seattle and at the Berklee School of Music were underway Jones jumped ship to play trumpet and write arrangements. He never looked back, having made connections with artists like Ray Charles and Lionel Hampton. Though a regular on tour in Europe and further afield with various artists (including Dizzy Gillespie), New York became home and the city\u2019s clubs, stages and studios were regular working hangouts for Jones. He played with some of the biggest names in the business, and a few who were also on their way up \u2013 including a young Elvis Presley.<\/p> In the late \u201950s Jones returned to Europe. In Paris he spent time studying with Messiaen<\/a> and Nadia Boulanger, before heading on the road again as a music director. He also took his first steps as a record producer while in Europe, serving as music director for a French label and going on to work with Mercury Records back in New York, which he served as vice president in the early 1960s.<\/p> The 1960s and \u201970s were golden for Quincy Jones as a composer for film and for his own albums; his now classic piece \u2018Soul Bossa Nova\u2019 (later made famous by the\u00a0Austin Powers<\/em>\u00a0movies) was first released in 1962. He worked regularly as an arranger and producer for some of music\u2019s biggest stars in these years, too \u2013 Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Dinah Washington and Michael Jackson to name a few. Jackson and Jones would form a legendary creative partnership after the singer left The Jacksons to go solo. Jones produced his iconic albums\u00a0Off the Wall<\/em>,\u00a0Thriller<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Bad<\/em>.<\/p> Quincy Jones had dipped his toe into film music with 1961\u2019s\u00a0The Boy in the Tree<\/em>\u00a0while still in Europe, but he didn\u2019t embrace work as a film composer-proper until a few years later. 1964\u2019s\u00a0The Pawn Broker<\/em>\u00a0was the first in a long line of films featuring music by Jones. He wrote the music for the likes of\u00a0The Slender Thread<\/em>\u00a0(1965),\u00a0In the Heat of the Night<\/em>\u00a0(1967),\u00a0The Italian Job<\/em>\u00a0(1969),\u00a0They Call Me Mister Tibbs!<\/em>\u00a0(1970), two episodes of TV\u2019s\u00a0Roots<\/em>\u00a0(1977) and Steven Spielberg\u2019s\u00a0The Color Purple<\/em>\u00a0(1985).<\/p> Spielberg\u2019s beautiful film of Alice Walker\u2019s 1982 novel was produced by Quincy Jones. He worked with\u00a0Thriller<\/em>\u2019s co-writer Rod Temperton on the film\u2019s soundtrack, which included a slew of original songs \u2013 including the Oscar-nominated \u2018Miss Celie\u2019s Blues (Sister)\u2019. His contribution of the film\u2019s original score (also nominated for an Oscar in 1986) marked the first time Spielberg did not work with composer John Williams <\/a>on one of his feature films. Jones would go on to produce further film and television shows, including the hugely popular sitcome\u00a0The Fresh Prince of Bel Air<\/em>.<\/p> The Color Purple<\/em>\u00a0wasn\u2019t the only highlight of 1985 for Jones. It was also the year of \u2018We Are The World\u2019, the smash-hit charity single, devised and produced by Quincy Jones and featuring a who\u2019s who of American pop and rock talent. It raised millions for famine-stricken Ethiopia.<\/p> The decades that followed saw Jones continue to work much in the same way, producing artists, creating opportunities for up and coming talent, writing music and touring. He was also a 28-time Grammy winner. Jazz would always be an important part of Quincy Jones\u2019s musical life, and he enjoyed \u2018living legend\u2019 status. A celebratory \u2018Quincy Jones Prom\u2019 was a highlight of the 2016 BBC Proms programme. Featuring the Metropole Orkest, conducted by Jules Buckley, it included some of Jones\u2019s most iconic tunes and special guests \u2013 including Jacob Collier and Alfredo Rodriguez.<\/p>