Photo: Jerry Moss | By Chris Morris | Jerry Moss, who turned A&M Records into one of America’s leading independent record labels with his business partner Herb Alpert, died Wednesday in Los Angeles. He was 88.
“They truly don’t make them like him anymore and we will miss conversations with him about everything under the sun. The twinkle in his eyes as he approached every moment ready for the next adventure,” his family said in a statement to the Associated Press.
In recent years, Moss had focused his efforts on philanthropy, including a 2020 gift of $25 million from the mogul and his wife Tina Morse to L.A.’s Music Center that resulted in the complex’s outdoor plaza being renamed after him. His last public event, in January of this year, found him being feted by the Music Center with a tribute concert at the Mark Taper Forum, where Alpert spoke, David Foster hosted and Peter Frampton, Amy Grant and Dionne Warwick all serenaded the guest of honor.
“Jerry was dedicated to giving back to the community by supporting arts experiences that resonate in the hearts and minds of all Angelenos and meaningfully impact their lives,” said Rachel S. Moore, president-CEO of the Music Center. “His artistic influence and business savvy, along with the opportunities he provided for numerous extraordinarily talented artists, changed the course of music forever. That was his gift to us all. We offer our heartfelt sympathies to Tina and the entire Moss family.”
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Moss and Alpert were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as non-performers in 2006.
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Other areas of philanthropy included establishing the Moss Scholars program at UCLA, which since 2004 has provided full scholarships to dozens of graduate and undergraduate students in art, architecture and music. Also at UCLA, in the area of health care, he endowed the Moss Foundation Chair in Gastrointestinal and Personalized Surgery and supported the Voice Center for Medicine and Department of Neurosurgery. He was a major donor to California CareForce, providing no-cost treatment and healthcare clinics throughout California. And he was a supporter of the Geffen Playhouse (of which he was a founding trustee), the ACLU, the Exceptional Children’s Foundation, the Hammer Museum, KCRW, Painted Turtle Camp, People for the American Way and Young Eisner Scholars.
Moss’ survivors include Tina Morse, his third wife, and three children he adopted with his first wife, Helen Sandra Rusetos.
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Read the rest of this very nice article here:
https://variety.com/2023/music/news/jerry-moss-dead-a-and-m-records-1235698242/
Additional reporting by Chris Willman.
Photo: Jerry Moss & Herb Alpert – A&M Records | https://www.facebook.com/AandMRecords/
Jerry Moss, co-Founder of A&M Records, and Talent Buyer, Dies at 88
