A new year is bringing some ch-ch-ch-ch-changes. I hope you’re all off to a great start of 2024 and would like to welcome you to the inaugural post of a new feature I decided to call The Wizards of Vision and Sound. In a nutshell, the idea is to profile prominent music producers and sound engineers, with a focus on highlighting some of their actual work.
Producers and sound engineers is a topic I’ve had on my mind for some time. While the title implies a series, I’m not sure yet about frequency, given I already have multiple recurring features, and there’s only so much time I can devote to blogging – I’m thinking perhaps monthly or every other month.
First, I’d like to briefly address the roles of music producer and sound engineer. In general, a producer manages the process of recording music, which includes helping develop a record’s overall vision, identifying and booking studios and additional session musicians, assisting with song collection and order, and advising on musical arrangements. A sound engineer primarily focuses on the technical aspects of operating recording equipment and helping the artist realize and in some cases shape the sound they envision.
Oftentimes, the above roles become blurry, especially nowadays. Music artists frequently serve as their own producers and sound engineers. Much of that is enabled by technology, which has made home recording and production of music feasible. A dedicated producer may also take on sound engineering roles, while a sound engineer may go beyond operating recording equipment and take on a more active role in shaping an album. In some cases, functions may be further split, for example between an executive producer and a “regular” producer.
With that said, let’s get to our first wizard: George Martin. Of course, I had to kick off the series with somebody related to my all-time favorite band The Beatles! But while Martin undoubtedly is best known for his work with the four lads from Liverpool and wasn’t called “the fifth Beatle” for nothing, there’s more to the English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor and musician.
George Henry Martin, who became Sir George Martin in 1996 in recognition of his services to the music industry and popular culture, was born on January 3, 1926. His initial interest in music was sparked at the age of six when his family got a piano. While the lessons he started to take as an eight-year-old stopped after only six over a disagreement between his mother and the piano teacher, Martin continued exploring the instrument on his own and created his first composition the age of eight.
After a four-year career in the British navy, Martin studied piano, oboe, music composition and orchestration at London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Following his graduation in 1950, he started working for the BBC’s classical music department while playing oboe in local bands on the side. In November 1950, Martin joined EMI and became assistant to the head of EMI’s Parlophone label. His focus continued to be classical music. He signed English conductor and composer Ron Goodwin and produced his first record, an instrumental cover of Charlie Chaplin’s theme from Limelight.
When his boss retired in 1955, Martin took over the Parlophone label. Before he started working with The Beatles and other pop artists in the early ’60s, Martin produced novelty and comedy records. According to The Beatles Bible, artists included The Goons, Rolf Harris, Flanders and Swann and, most successfully, the Beyond the Fringe show, starring Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller.
In 1965, Martin left EMI over compensation disagreements and together with staffers from EMI and Decca formed his own production company, Associated Independent Recording (AIR). In addition to music, Martin’s more-than-six-decade career also included composing, arranging and production work for film and television. His final project, Soundbreaking: Stories from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music, was an eight-part documentary series for TV about sound recording and music production. Martin passed away on March 8, 2016 at the age of 90, six days prior to the premier of Soundbreaking at South by Southwest.
While it is impossible to give full justice to Martin’s bio in just four paragraphs, this shall suffice for the purposes of this post. As noted the outset, I’d like to focus this series on music the featured wizard touched. With that, let’s take a look at some examples for Martin.
Gerry And The Pacemakers/How Do You Do It? (1963)
How Do You Do It? was penned by British songwriter Mitch Murray. When his publisher Dick James presented the song to Martin, he initially wanted The Beatles to record it. They reluctantly did but insisted to go with their own Love Me Do – not a bad decision, in my completely unbiased opinion! :-) Martin agreed, but he continued to see the song’s hit potential and he was right. He gave it to Gerry And The Pacemakers, after the Liverpool group had been signed to EMI’s Columbia label. Produced by Martin and released in March 1963, the song became their debut single and ended up topping the UK charts for three weeks. The Beatles’ recording eventually appeared in 1995 on the Anthology 1 collection.
Shirley Bassey/Goldfinger (1964)
Martin, George Martin! Composed by John Barry and with lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, the magnificent title song of the 1964 James Bond film was performed by Shirley Bassey. According to the website of Abbey Road Studios, where the gem was recorded, The vocal session tape was created on 7 September 1964, with the engineers listed as Malcolm Addey and Ron Pender, with George Martin producing in Studio Two. Additional fun fact: Jimmy Page, then a session musician, played on Goldfinger as part of the John Barry Orchestra.
The Beatles/Eleanor Rigby (1966)
While I purposely chose to highlight Martin’s work beyond The Beatles, I couldn’t leave out Eleanor Rigby, which I think features one of his finest moments with them: The writing of the string score for Eleanor Rigby. The Beatles Bible notes this gem was inspired by the music written by Bernard Herrmann for the Truffaut film Farenheit 451. The string octet was recorded in 14 takes. Paul McCartney subsequently overdubbed his lead vocals. None of The Beatles played on the recording. Apart from appearing on the Revolver album, Eleanor Rigby was released in August 1966 as a double A-side single with Yellow Submarine.
Mahavishnu Orchestra/Wings of Karma (1974)
In March 1974, Martin worked with Mahavishnu Orchestra at his AIR Studios in London to record their third studio album Apocalypse, which came out the following month. It also featured the London Symphony Orchestra, which to me made Martin look like a perfect man for the job. In his cleverly titled 1979 memoir All You Need Is Ears, he called Apocalypse “one of the best records ever made.” Here’s Wings of Karma composed by John McLaughlin.
America/Sister Golden Hair (1975)
In 1974, folk rock trio America started working with Martin who ended up producing their next five albums. Sister Golden Hair was included on the second of the series, Hearts, which came out in March 1975. Written by Gerry Beckley, the song also became the album’s first single and one of America’s biggest hits, topping the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. Songfacts points out it marked Martin’s 20th no.1 U.S. single as a producer, and his first post-Beatles.
UFO/Lettin’ Go (1980)
That one came as a surprise! Martin produced UFO’s eighth studio album No Place to Run, though he later regretted his decision. Released in January 1980, it was recorded at Martin’s studio on Montserrat, known as AIR Montserrat, which had been built on the Caribbean island in 1979. In a 2016 interview with Louder, then-former UFO bassist Pete Way noted friction between the band and Martin over different work and life styles. While calling No Place to Run not bad and “well put together”, he said the group felt Martin’s mix was “a bit low-key.” The same story quotes a 1994 interview with Martin during which he said, “I once had a flirtation with heavy metal, and I regretted it very much. It [the genre] didn’t seem to have any sense.” Here’s the perhaps ironically titled Lettin’ Go, co-written by Way and UFO vocalist Phil Mogg.
Little River Band/The Night Owls (1981)
Martin’s production work wasn’t limited to British and American artists. In 1981, he worked with Aussie pop rock group Little River Band, who recorded their sixth studio album Time Exposure at AIR Montserrat. Released in September that year, it peaked at no. 9 in Australia and reached no. 21 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200. The first single The Night Owls, written by LRB co-founder and guitarist Graeham Goble, climbed to no. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it one of the group’s highest charting songs on the U.S. pop chart. In an April 2021 YouTube interview with Rock History Music, Goble and LBR’s second guitarist Beeb Birtles spoke very highly of Martin and working with him.
Andy Leek/Say Something (1988)
The last example of Martin’s work I’d like to call out is his production of Say Something, a 1988 album by Andy Leek. The British singer-songwriter, musician and poet first gained prominence as an early member of Dexys Midnight Runners before launching a solo career in 1980. Say Something was recorded at AIR Studios in London with impressive guest musicians, such as Steve Howe (Yes), Clem Clempson (Colosseum, Humble Pie) and Alan Murphy (Level 42). Martin said Leek “was one of the greatest artists he had ever produced”.
Over his long career, Martin produced 30 no. 1 singles in the UK and 23 no. 1 hits in the U.S. He won six Grammy Awards, including two in 1967 for Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Best Contemporary Album and Album of the Year); 1973 for arranging the soundtrack of Bond movie Live and Let Die (Best Arrangement, Accompanying Vocalist(s)); 1993 for Best Musical Show Album (as producer of The Who’s Tommy); and 2007 as producer for The Beatles’ Love soundtrack remix album for the Cirque du Soleil show Love (Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media), together with his son Giles Martin. Martin also contributed to numerous charitable causes, including The Prince’s Trust and Montserrat.
Following is a Spotify playlist of the above and select other songs produced by George Martin.
Note: The post was updated on January 13, 2024 with the above Spotify playlist
Sources: Wikipedia; Abbey Road Studios website; The Beatles Bible; Songfacts; Louder; Rock History Music; YouTube; Spotify
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