Remembering Joel Moss: Grammy Winner, Mentor, Caffè Lena Supporter.
It is with the heaviest of hearts that we mourn the passing of Joel Moss (1946–2025), beloved friend, producer, mentor, and tireless champion of Caffè Lena.
Joel believed that the Caffe is a national treasure. A seven-time Grammy Award-winning producer who worked with legends such as Johnny Cash, Tony Bennett, The Talking Heads, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Joel still spent his evenings at the Caffe running livestream cameras, capturing the shows for posterity, and helping us dream big. We invite you to learn how you can help Caffe Lena preserve Joel’s legacy.
His presence and faith elevated Caffè Lena, and we are forever richer because of him.
A Visionary at the Soundboard
Joel’s final recording session, just two days before his passing, was with our Jazz Pebbles — a group of 10–13 year-old students from the School of Music. Together they recorded three songs on September 13, and Joel was thrilled about what he saw in these young artists. It was our very first recording session for our students. He was truly excited about their future, and about the future of the School itself.
Joel loved our School of Music, where kids fall in love with making music together, form bands, learn to jam, discover American roots music, and even begin writing and arranging their own songs. This was how he started Joel own journey in music, joining Detroit’s Hebrew folk band The Hi-Liters at age 12, going on tour, and actually playing at Caffe Lena at the age of 14!
Joel was eager to help us take the next step: expanding the School into a dedicated space for classes and group music-making. He was part of early discussions about how to fund and plan this expansion.
The Joel Moss Fund: Securing the Future of Music
To carry forward Joel’s legacy and vision, we are establishing The Joel Moss Fund for the Caffè Lena School of Music.
Since our School began in 2020, our in-person classes have taken place in the performance space. While that setting has been inspiring and convenient for developing our teaching techniques and building a School community, it limits what we can offer and we are now bursting at the seams. We have no evening hours available for working adults and busy kids, and there’s constant setup and breakdown because of our hybrid concert/class space.
With your support, The Joel Moss Fund will create a permanent home for the Caffè Lena School of Music as well as launch The Joel Moss Recording Program, ensuring that our students will experience the satisfaction and discipline of creating high quality recordings of their own work, and those taking place on the Caffe stage.
About the Caffe Lena School of Music
With all instruction done in small, friendly groups, our students learn through mentorship, close listening and collaboration. There’s no sheet music–just a circle of people supporting and tuning into each other. Students join the program for all sorts of reasons: to develop new skills, to connect with a circle of friends, or to find musical collaborators. Whatever brings them, the benefits are the same. Music is the thread weaving together a productive, creative, healthy community.
Where the Music Never Dies
In 2017, Joel created this video to raise money for Caffè Lena’s renovation. He wrote the song, “Where The Music Never Dies.” We share it here in his memory.