Grammy-winning producer Michael Cuscuna, who also worked as a writer and historian, died at the age of 75.
WRTI and The Hollywood Reporter cited Cuscuna's wife and his longtime friend Billy Vera, respectively, who both confirmed the Mosaic Records co-founder's death. Blue Note also posted messages on its website and Instagram page.
Michael Cuscuna Dead at 75
Vera, a Grammy-winning recording artist who worked with Cuscuna, said the late music artist died at his home in Stamford, Conn., on Saturday, April 20. The jazz record producer reportedly battled cancer for six months.
"Michael and I were close friends for nearly 60 years," Vera added. "When back east, I stayed at his home, annoying Lisa, who put up with our often-sarcastic sense of humor. Our many lunches with [producer-discographer] Bob Porter were legendary for our obscurest dives into musical esoterica. The three of us adamantly refused to accept any dividing line between blues and jazz."
Looking back at the "greatest fun" they ever had, Vera revealed it happened when they revived Lou Rawls' career with the No. 1 jazz album At Last and two more projects.
Blue Note Records wrote on Instagram, "It would be impossible to overstate Michael's importance to the Blue Note legacy, which he worked tirelessly to fortify for nearly 50 years going back to the mid-1970s when he began a series of reissues & archival discoveries that brought to light numerous treasures from the Blue Note vaults."
With his decades of work in the company, Blue Note Records declared it would not exist without Cuscuna's passion and dedication.
Cuscuna is survived by his wife, Lisa, their children Max and Lauren and their grandchildren.
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A Look Back at Michael Cuscuna's Career
As an award-winning producer, Cuscuna expanded his empire by having nine nominations from the Grammy Awards and winning three in 1993, 1999 and 2002.
He also worked as a radio DJ before culling the Blue Note vaults and helping uncover Lester Young, Art Pepper and Sonny Criss' masterpieces.
He co-founded Mosaic in 1982 and used the platform to share never-before-seen recordings. Among his productions included The Complete Blue Note Recordings of Thelonious Monk (1983), The Complete Dean Benedetti Recordings of Charlie Parker (1990) and The Complete Nat 'King' Cole Capitol Trio Recordings (1993).
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