This meeting was much anticipated and was really quite an exciting event. It was fun to get Quincy's address in Bel Air and look it up on Google Maps. It was amazing to see this incredibly impressive piece of prime land right in the middle of some of the most prime real estate on the planet. I wasn't sure whether I should expect a dated house on a nice piece of land or what, to tell you the truth. I've driven through Bel Air before and some of the places look to have had their prime in the '70s. Quincy's estate is gated so Street View on Google didn't do any good.
In putting the book together, I had developed a table of contents that really provided the vision for what the finished product would look like. Quincy had received the TOC and was interested enough for us to move forward and meet. Although we had a pretty good idea of how this was all going to come together, everything really hinged on whether or not our team was able to work with his team and whether or not he thought that he could work with me on such an important project.
The night before our meeting, I flew from Seatte to meet my Executive Editor, Mike Lawson (from Nashville) and the Group Publisher for Hal Leonard Publishing, John Cerullo (from New York) in Hollywood. We agreed to meet earlier in the day before the meeting and make sure we knew where Quincy's place was located. Then we hung out at a Starbucks until it was time to head up to the top of Bel Air for the meeting.
Driving up to Quincy's gate, it became obvious that his place was new contruction and really very incredible. His view of Hollywood and LA is unparalleled and the house is full of some of the most incredible art from around the world and priceless historical music industry treasures. His house is an amazing musical and humanitarian ride. Pictures of Quincy with Nelson Mandela or Bill Clinton or Frank Sinatra or Bono or Michael Jackson or Miles Davis or Barbra Streisand or Colin Powell or ...the list goes on and on...are everywhere. Everything is tastefully framed and impecably displayed.
We were met by Quincy's security staff and escorted down to the pool room (as in swimming pool). This is actually a very comfortable room and is frequently seen in Quincy's interviews because it has a comfortable couch and chairs in front of a large plaque containing 50 Platinum Records for Thriller. It's a pretty impressive backdrop and immediately makes the statement, "You are in the home of an all-time musical giant!"
Hi I would like to ask you about that "Thriller" album award. Did Quincy told you when it was given to him? And what it is written on it? It would be interesting for me to know. It was possible to show a bigger photo where was possible to read all those yellow silver words? Are you sure it is 50 million? I was able to count the little "Thriller" album covers and there were 40 covers, which seems to imply 40 million. Thank you!
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