Obituaries
Joseph Thomas
April 12, 1959 - April 28, 2024
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Burial Location
Private
Beloved father, husband, and friend, Joseph Thomas, passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife and children on April 28, 2024. He left behind a legacy of unparalleled creativity, countless accomplishments, tremendous passion for life, impressive athletic ability, a competitive golf-game, and significant contributions to the music, television, and film industries.
Joe was born on April 12, 1956, to Edmund and Margaret Grzyb, and is survived by his loving wife, Kris, his son, Mike, and his daughters, Blakely (Mike) Major, Morgan, and Shaine.
Joe’s career spanned over four decades, during which he served as President and Co-Founder of River North Records. While president, he was instrumental in signing and producing many iconic artists. He also served as President of Platinum Entertainment. Joe later founded HD Ready, and began co-producing the PBS series, Soundstage. To date, Joe has produced and directed over 150 episodes, multiple films, and has co-written and/or produced a number of noteworthy albums for various artists. Later in his life, Joe also served as the SVP of Audio/Visual at BMG Rights Management. Even after he retired, he continued to work, create, and innovate up until his passing. His leadership and creative genius left an indelible mark on the industry. Joe was revered not only for his professional accomplishments, but also for the deep love he had for his family and friends, his gregarious personality, incredible storytelling ability, and his remarkable capacity to overcome challenges with faith, ease, and confidence. His extraordinary spirit will live on through the music, shows, and films that he created and the many lives that he touched.
To leave an online condolence or remembrance to the family, please click on “Guest Book.”
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Condolences
Dan Stellato from Peoria, AZ
"What a warm and generous soul. Joe, you will be missed dearly my good friend. I will always treasure the adventures we shared. Deepest condolences, sympathy and love to Kris and your beautiful family. Rest in peace my brother!"
Jackie Bertone from Winchester, CA
"Shocked to hear the passing of Joe Thomas Joe was an absolute incredible producer that I had the pleasure of playing percussion on his recordings with The Beach Boys Brian Wilson, Henry Kapono among others. My condolences to Kris And the kids and the whole Thomas family may you rest in the arms of God for an eternity and please produce your best shows ever up in heaven!"
Kevin Skogsberg from Sugar Grove, IL
"To Kris and your family: Joe was the example of a wonderful, kind human being. He shall be missed by all of those he considered friends and especially his family."
Robert Harrington from Geneva, IL
"As one of his many golf buddies I will miss him dearly. Easy to love and I did. Rest in peace my friend."
John McDowell from Geneva , IL
"Kris, Our deepest condolences to you and the kids, we are so sorry for your loss. Joe was a wonderful, intelligent, interesting and humble friend to us all and we are going to miss him greatly."
Bob Frank from Manhattan, NY
"So sorry for your loss. Joe was an amazing friend and many times business partner for over 30 years. Just a wonderful human being! I will miss him calling me to tell me he misses me."
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"I dearly miss the hearty laughs we shared. He possessed a captivating spirit with a comforting look that I often reminisce about, especially when he listened to my compositions. I wish I had the chance to enhance them with his signature sound, back when only he believed in me. God bless you, Joe."
Bob Caruso from Scottsdale/Chicago, AZ
"I’ve known Joe for over 2 decades and am shocked and saddened that he is no longer with us. Kris, from the first time I met Joe initially through golf and as I got to learn more about his career and incredible musical and production acumen, he has stayed true to form as a humble, caring and warm person who was a true friend and a high quality individual. He always spoke of how lucky he was to have you in his life and adored his children and family. I will deeply miss him and will always cherish witnessing his incredible talent playing piano among friends as we tried to keep up with the vocals to a rendition of Bad Bad Leroy Brown. RIP Joe. Miss you partner and will miss golfing and discussing life’s successes and challenges with you."
Bob Maynard from Geneva, IL
"Kris, my thoughts and prayers go out to you, Joe and family. Having known Joe for many enjoyable years through golf, it was a true honor to be with him. He was a great gentleman and I will miss him. God bless all of you."
Leon Monachos from Naples, FL
"Kris and family, my heart goes out to you. Joe was a great, kind and generous man. Joe will be missed. God Bless!!"
Matt Herman from Sugar Grove , IL
"Kris and family , Joe and I shared the same birthday and many laughs together while golfing over the past 20 years. He was liked by all who had the pleasure of meeting him. His ability to tell an awe inspiring story, or take a phone call during a round from a music legend, with such a sense of humility and humbleness was unparalleled. As many before me have said, he was true gentleman, loved, and will be missed."
Jim Romano from Fort Myers, FL
"Kris the news of Joes passing is truly heartbreaking 💔. He was a wonderful friend to Michelle and I. We lost a beloved friend. Our sincere condolences. He’ll live on through his contributions to music"
Heather Wyer from Montreal, Canada, AK
"I had the pleasure of working with Joe for many years and I can't believe he is no longer with us. He leaves a massive legacy behind and his creative genius doesn't go unnoticed. I loved working with Joe. His candour, unapologetic way and his zest for life was apparent with every project and every deal that we worked on. His greatest passion and achievement in life though was his family. There wasn't one conversation that we had, that didn't involve his family. His wife Kris and his kids were mentioned on every phone call and he always spoke about them with tenderness and love. He was brilliant in his profession and I always admired his casual and humble mentions of all the great artists he knew and worked with. I will miss Joe immensely. I already do. But I will think about him always and how he navigated life, his career, artistry and most importantly his family with wonderful harmony. My heartfelt condolences to the entire family."
Brad Luecke from Downers Grove, IL
"My heart breaks for Kris and the family. Joe was such an original individual with so many varied talents. I have so many memories over the years and often laugh at some of our experiences. Joe will be missed by so many and leave us with a blessing to have known him, Rest in Peace, buddy"
Jim Milano from Bettendorf Iowa/Ft Myers, FL
"My deepest sympathy Kris to you and your family. Joe and I attended the same middle school and renewed our friendship on the golf course. He was a true gentleman and will always remember his laughter and stories from our younger days. God Bless."
Gianna Crescenzo from St. Charles, IL
"Mr. Thomas will never be forgotten. While my many interactions with him were brief, he never failed to make me feel good and put a smile on my face in those short moments. Mr. Thomas was always so inspiring to me because of the amazing things he has accomplished but a stranger would never know because of his profound humility. I hope carry with me a little bit of what Mr. Thomas showed in remembrance of him. I pray that the Thomas’ would recognize the wonderful legacy he has left behind. He will never be forgotten."
Marc, Alberta and the Crescenzo Family from St. Charles, IL
"Kris and the Thomas family. Wishing you guys peace and continued in these difficult days. Please remember that those who live in our memories are never truly gone."
Kent stian haugland from Røros Norway, AK
"So sad to hear about Joe's passing. You did great things with Brian Wilson and you will not be forgotten. Rest in peace."
Vince Bellendir from Charlotte , NC
"Sorry for you loss. My name is Vince and I was a close friend with Joe in our younger days. We went to FL, CA, Hawaii and I have many stories to tell. Along with some pictures that will bring the memories to life. If you'd like, please reach out to me at 630-854-7943"
Patrick Lee from Bolingbrook , IL
"Joe was a childhood friend. We played rod hockey, street hockey, football and basketball together. There was never a hint of musical talent, that we saw!! Obviously Joe had many facets to his life! He is part of my childhood and I truly admired what he became! God bless."
Kelly Brizzolara from North Aurora, IL
"Kris and family, I am so sorry for your loss. Joe was such a pleasure to know! Always had a smile on his face and a great story to tell. He will be missed."
Michael Zafran from Shorewood, IL
"Joe recorded my groups CD, Caroling, Caroling, as a favor at River North studios. He was my delivery man before he started that recording studio. He even borrowed my sports car to meet with the persons who invested in that venture. May he rest in peace."