George Martin Dead At 90

[AB Editor]

Strange when those pulling the strings pop their clogs. We like to pretend those at the front had all the talent, all the ideas and so on. But really all artistic stuff id collaboration on some level, right?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTNitq77Utg

[andy-hughes]

I am not sure that anyone who knows anything about The Beatles and the genius of their producer would really think that it was all 'them' Ed.

I know that the band, and a large number of fans, appreciated the input of the genial gentleman, whose steady attitude and gentlemanly demeanour concealed a serious rocker - just check out any of his piano on any of the early songs.

Artistic output is often collaboration, and anyone who knows The Beatles will be sad at his passing, but rejoice in the way he helped to change the world he lived in.

[VHG]

If you listen the the Decca audition tape (made months before the Beatles became famous) it is pretty poor. Decca turned them down (much to everyone else's later amusement) but based on that tape most people would have also turned them down.

Yet a few months later George Martin was helping to create stunning singles and album tracks (great songs by Lennon / McCartney of course), and George Martin takes a HUGE credit for doing that.

While the Beatles may have been a good band even without George Martin I think his work on their tracks lifted them up to world superstars.

His influence on the Beatles cannot be exaggerated.

The only album he did NOT work on was Let It Be and to be honest it is pretty dire.

Yet they then went on to record Abbey Road (a great album) showing that George Martin's influence was huge.

Note even though Let it Be came out AFTER Abbey Road it was in fact recorded before it but left on the shelf (where it should have stayed!)

George Martin realy was the Fifth Beatle.

[Hypognosis]

A true Great and a genuine innovator. Some might quibble that it is easy to be the innovator when you are the first to arrive on new ground (anyone else putting strings on a pop song gets accused of being a copycat etc) but, to break that ground, with a back-catalogue to draw on much smaller than we have today is an indication of genius at work. The willingness to break convention, 'rules' about how songs should be done and the power to override the wishes of more senior record executives made it all possible.

Some of the most successful modern companies are the ones which foster flexible thinking, experimentation and 'rule breaking'. I wonder to what extent they borrow that internal structure from the Beatles-Martin collaborative setup?

[TTG]

Also produced by George Martin. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Place_to_Run