• Home
• /
• Music
• /
• Entertainment

Open letter to Quincy Jones

Let bygones be bygones. Let the dead RIP. That's a phrase that should right now be running in Quincy Jones' head. With all due respect to one of the greatest musicians and music producers of our times, I beg to differ with statements made by Quincy recently. In a conversation (with Vulture), Quincy has been ranting and raving about other legends from the musical fraternity. Mr Q (as he is fondly known in the industry) took pot shots at Michael Jackson, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles and some other celebs. In my honest opinion, Mr Q has 'lost it'.
Oh, Quincy, why are you raking up these issues now? Some of these artistes are not alive to defend themselves. So what's eating you? What is that you're not telling us? What's bothering you?
We already know that you have won a suit over royalties against Michael Jackson's estate last year when a jury in Los Angeles awarded you $9.4 million in  damages over an issue about being underpaid for a share of royalties for the use of music in the Jackson film This Is It as well as two Cirque du Soleil shows.
Now, your teaming up with MJ was one of the most fruitful relationships in the history of pop music, a partnership that set the bar high and changed the face of pop forever. So why are you giving this historic pairing a bad name? Mr Q, you have to be more transparent and explain to music lovers why you didn't spill the beans about MJ's Machiavellian ways when the King of Pop created history in 1984 by becoming the first artiste to sweep the Grammys with a record haul of eight wins for Thriller. Why then are you now accusing him of stealing Billie Jean which you say is ripped off from a Donna Summer song. Were you not part of the Thriller process and turning MJ into a legend?
If you didn't hold him in such high esteem, then why was this your statement after his death: "To this day, the music we created together on Off The Wall, Thriller and Bad is played in every corner of the world and the reason for that is because he had it all... talent, grace, professionalism and dedication. He was the consummate entertainer and his contributions and legacy will be felt upon the world forever. I've lost my little brother today, and part of my soul has gone with him."
Let me tell you about the very song you have a bone to pick with. MJ was so confident of Billie Jean that he even went on record to say that, "A musician knows hit material. Everything has to feel in place. It fulfils you and it makes you feel good. That's how I felt about Billie Jean. I knew it was going to be when I was writing it."
It doesn't matter what inspired his song. What's wrong with a little inspiration from somewhere? Even you perhaps drew inspiration from the greats of your times.
You also said nasty things about Jimi Hendrix's Woodstock performance. You can't take away the fact that Jimi is as important to rock music as Andy Warhol is to pop art. The Beatles you said are not musicians. Every dance hall, radio station has danced to The Beatles' tunes, and in their heyday, they packed stadiums.
At 84, with six decades of experience and perhaps a mansion full of trophies and awards and scholarships to show, why do you need to make such loose statements? Then again, showbiz is all about being in the news, and by habit, we guess that's what you are doing! You're just trying to stay relevant in the times...

michael@khaleejtimes.com