Quincy Jones’ 10 Best Scores for Film & Television

When Quincy Jones died on Sunday (Nov. 3) night at age 91, the entertainment world lost ones of its most prolific, impactful and talented icons.

After gigging as a bandleader in the 1950s (and working with everyone from Dizzy Gillespie to Frank Sinatra), Jones’ truly legendary contributions to culture began in the 1960s as a producer, composer and arranger. Jones produced Lesley Gore’s Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single “It’s My Party” in 1963, helmed several classics for the Brothers Johnson and helped change the direction of pop music itself alongside Michael Jackson, serving as the King of Pop’s righthand man on the smash albums Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad.

But Jones was more than just a behind-the-boards pop star whisperer – he was also an imposing musical talent in his own right, capable of composing everything from jazz to bossa nova to soul to pop. And while Jones’ biggest Billboard chart hits span several genres, there’s arguably no better place to experience the breadth of his musical palette than his body of work for film and television.

In honor of his remarkable life, we’ve put together a list of Quincy Jones’ 10 best scores for film and TV. (This list contains scores and soundtracks composed by Jones – which means his work on the beloved 1978 big screen version of The Wiz isn’t here, since Jones served as an arranger of Charlie Smalls’ songs on that project. Also, shout-out to his wonderful arrangements of Antônio Carlos Jobim songs on the 1970 film The Adventurers.)