Died On This Date (July 5, 2011) Alphonso “Fonce” Mizell / Motown Hit Maker
themusicsover Alphonzo Mizell
January 15, 1943 – July 5, 2011
Alphonzo “Fonce” Mizell was an American record producer and songwriter who, as part of the Corporation production team at Motown, penned and produced virtually every Jackson 5 hit between 1969 and 1971. That list includes “ABC,” “I Want You Back,” and “The Love You Save.” Mizell was also an accomplished musician dating back to his childhood when he, his brother, Larry Mizell and a school friend performed and recorded demos as a doo-wop group, the Nikons. After high school, Mizell attended Howard University where he studied the trumpet under the great Donald Byrd. Around this time, the Mizell brothers founded their own record label, Hog Records where they produced and released just one record, the Moments’ “Baby, I Want You,” which has been known to go for as much as $2500 to collectors. Fonce eventually went to work for Berry Gordy at Motown where, besides the Jackson 5, he worked on hits by the likes of Edwin Starr and Martha Reeves & The Vandellas. Following his tenure at Motown, Fonce and his brother Larry formed their own production team, known affectionately as the Mizell Brothers, but professionally as Sky High Productions. They went on to produce several classic jazz albums for Blue Note which were recognized for their influence on jazz fusion and acid jazz. Albums of note included Byrd’s Black Byrd and Bobbi Humphrey’s Blacks And Blues. They also scored several disco-era hits including A Taste Of Honey’s “Boogie-Oogie-Oogie,” and L.T.D.’s “Love Ballad.” The Mizell Brothers’ influence continued to reach a new generation of fans well into the 2000s thanks to samples popping up in songs by the likes of Guru, A Tribe Called Quest and J Dilla. Alphonso Mizell was 68 when he passed away on July 5, 2011. Cause of death was not immediately released.
What You Should Own
Mae Wheeler was a popular St. Louis singer who became affectionately known over the years as “Lady Jazz.” Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Wheeler began singing in church choirs as early as the age of 4, but soon moved to St. Louis with her family. As she got older, Wheeler began making a name for herself at the clubs throughout the city’s storied Gaslight Quarter of the 1960s. Over the course of her decades-long career, Wheeler shared the stage with such luminaries as 
Alan Rubin as an American trumpet player who was commonly referred to as Mr. Fabulous. A gifted musician since childhood, Rubin started at the esteemed Julliard School of Music on a scholarship at the age of 17. In 1975, he was hired on as the trumpet player in the original Saturday Night Live band. In 1980, he backed fellow cast members, 
Known primarily as a bop pianist, Ray Bryant was also recognized for his ability to bring elements of Gospel, blues, and boogie-woogie into his style. Launching his career in the late ’40s, Bryant soon found himself in the house band at The Blue Note in Philadelphia. Before long he was playing with the likes of 
Gil Scott-Heron was an American poet, musician, and author who has been called the “Godfather of Rap” due to the social and political commentary of his work as well as the vocal delivery with which he presented his songs. Had there been such a word during the early ’70s, his spoken word over a jazz backdrop would have been called “rap.” These early recordings were the foundation on which rap, hip-hop, and neo-soul were built. In 1970, he released a song/poem entitled “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” which many consider the exact moment at which hip-hop was born even though we wouldn’t know it for at least another 10 years. Throughout the late ’70s and ’80s, Scott-Heron lent his voice to political and social causes like the 1979 No Nukes Concert and 1985’s Artists United Against Apartheid’s Sun City benefit album. Scott-Heron spent a good part of the 2000s in jail due to various drug related charges, but in 2010, his career experienced a renaissance when he was signed to hip independent label, XL Recordings, home to such artists as Adele, the XX, Vampire Weekend, and Sigur Ros. His label debut, I’m New Here, which was his first album in 16 years, turned him on to a whole new generation of both hip-hop fans and hipsters alike. On May 27, 2011, it was announced that Gil Scott-Heron, age 62, passed away in a New York City hospital earlier that day. Cause of death was not immediately released.