Jazz
United States
Michael Cuscuna
Producer | Reissue Producer | Executive Producer
About Michael Cuscuna
Michael Cuscuna was one of the key figures in the reissue boom of the 1980s and '90s. When he produced a reissue, the emphasis was on coherent packaging, the reissuance of complete sessions, and consistent high quality. Cuscuna played drums, saxophone, and flute early on, but his goal from the start was founding his own record label. He broadcast a jazz program on WXPN, worked for the ESP company in the late '60s, and wrote for Jazz and Pop Magazine and Downbeat. Cuscuna left radio in the early '70s and became a producer for Atlantic (he had earlier produced a George Freeman date for Delmark), working with Dave Brubeck and the Art Ensemble of Chicago. Other jobs included a brief stint at Motown, reissuing Impulse records for the ABC label, producing sets for Arista and Muse and working on the five-LP Wildflowers sessions for Alan Douglas. Cuscuna was involved in the Freedom and Novus labels with Steve Backer in the late '70s. From 1975 to 1981, he ran an extensive program in which he unearthed scores of important sessions for Blue Note. In 1983 Cuscuna and Charlie Lourie founded Mosaic, which was recognized as the number one jazz reissue label, reissuing complete sessions in lavish limited-edition box sets. In addition to Mosaic, Cuscuna continued making major contributions to other reissue programs (including GRP's Impulse series and Blue Note's ongoing program), and he was often voted Producer of the Year in Downbeat's Critics Poll. Cuscuna died on April 20, 2024, at the age of 75. ~ Scott Yanow
