George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the Beatles' original albums.[1] Martin's formal musical expertise and interest in novel recording practices facilitated the group's rudimentary musical education and desire for new musical sounds to record.[2] Most of their orchestral and string arrangements were written by Martin, and he played piano or keyboards on a number of their records.[3] Their collaborations resulted in popular, highly acclaimed records with innovative sounds, such as the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band—the first rock album to win a Grammy Award for Album of the Year.[4]
For other people named George Martin, see George Martin (disambiguation).
George Martin
8 March 2016 (aged 90)
- Record producer
- arranger
- composer
- conductor
- musician
-
Sheena Chisholm(m. 1948; div. 1965)
-
Judy Lockhart Smith(m. 1966)
- Keyboards
- oboe
- clarinet
1950–2006
Martin's career spanned more than six decades in music, film, television and live performance. Before working with the Beatles and other pop musicians, he produced comedy and novelty records in the 1950s and early 1960s as the head of EMI's Parlophone label, working with Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan and Bernard Cribbins, among others. His work with other Liverpool rock groups in the early mid-1960s helped popularize the Merseybeat sound.[5] In 1965, he left EMI and formed his own production company, Associated Independent Recording.
AllMusic has described Martin as the "world's most famous record producer".[6] In his career, Martin produced 30 number-one hit singles in the United Kingdom and 23 number-one hits in the United States, and won six Grammy Awards.[7] He also held a number of senior executive roles at media companies and contributed to a wide range of charitable causes, including his work for The Prince's Trust and the Caribbean island of Montserrat. In recognition of his services to the music industry and popular culture, he was made a Knight Bachelor in 1996.
Books and audio retrospective[edit]
In 1979, Martin published a memoir, All You Need is Ears (co-written with Jeremy Hornsby), that described his work with the Beatles and other artists (including Peter Sellers, Sophia Loren, Shirley Bassey, Flanders and Swann, Matt Monro, and Dudley Moore), and gave an informal introduction to the art and science of sound recording. In 1993, he published Summer of Love: The Making of Sgt Pepper (published in the U.S. as With a Little Help from My Friends: The Making of Sgt Pepper, co-authored with William Pearson),[378][379] which also included interview quotations from a 1992 South Bank Show episode discussing the album. Martin also edited a 1983 book called Making Music: The Guide to Writing, Performing and Recording.
In 2001, Martin released Produced by George Martin: 50 Years in Recording, a six-CD retrospective of his entire studio career, and in 2002, Martin launched Playback, his limited-edition illustrated autobiography, published by Genesis Publications.[380]
Television[edit]
The Rhythm of Life[edit]
In 1997–98, Martin hosted a three-part BBC co-produced documentary series titled The Rhythm of Life, in which he discussed various aspects of musical composition with professional musicians and singers, among them Brian Wilson, Billy Joel, and Celine Dion. The series aired on the Ovation television network in the United States.[381][382][383]
Produced by George Martin[edit]
On 25 April 2011, a 90-minute documentary feature film co-produced by the BBC Arena team, Produced by George Martin, aired to critical acclaim for the first time in the UK. It combines rare archive footage and new interviews with, among others, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Jeff Beck, Cilla Black, and Giles Martin, and tells the life story of how Martin, a schoolboy growing up in the Depression, grew up to become a legendary music producer.[384] The film, with over 50 minutes of extra footage, including interviews from Rick Rubin, T-Bone Burnett and Ken Scott, was released worldwide by Eagle Rock Entertainment on DVD and Blu-ray on 10 September 2012. Mark Lewisohn curated an accompanying six-volume musical box set.[384]
Soundbreaking: Stories from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music[edit]
Produced in association with Sir George Martin, Soundbreaking: Stories from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music charts a century's worth of music innovation and experimentation, and offers a behind-the-scenes look at recorded music. Soundbreaking features more than 160 original interviews with some of the most celebrated recording artists, producers, and music industry pioneers of all time. Soundbreaking became George Martin's last, and one of his most personal, projects when he died six days before its premiere.[385]
Personal life[edit]
In 1946, George met Jean ("Sheena") Chisholm, a fellow member of the Royal Navy's choir. They bonded over their mutual love of music.[386] Martin's mother strongly disapproved of Sheena as a partner for George, causing early strain in the relationship.[387] Against Bertha's wishes, Martin and Sheena married at the University of Aberdeen on 3 January 1948.[388] Bertha died three weeks later of a brain haemorrhage, and Martin felt responsible for his mother's death.[388] They had two children, Alexis (born 1953)[389] and Gregory Paul Martin (born 1957). Around 1955, the Martins moved from London and bought a home in the development town of Hatfield, Hertfordshire some 20 miles north.[389] By the early 1960s, George sought divorce, but Sheena refused, citing her childcare needs.[390] By this time, Martin had also moved out of Hatfield and rented a small flat in central London, which he shared with his widowed father for a time.[391] Their divorce was finalized in February 1965.[392]
Martin met Judy Lockhart Smith on his first day of work at EMI Studios in 1950, when she served as secretary to Parlophone director Oscar Preuss.[36] Martin chose to retain her as a secretary when he assumed the direction of Parlophone in 1955, and they commuted together from Hatfield each day.[44] Martin and Lockhart Smith began a discreet affair in the late 1950s.[390] They married on 24 June 1966 at the Marylebone Registry Office.[393] They had two children, Lucie (born 1967) and Giles Martin (born 1969).
George spent his later years with Judy at their home in Coleshill, Oxfordshire.[394]
Death[edit]
Martin died on 8 March 2016 at his home in Coleshill; he was 90.[395][396] His death was announced by Ringo Starr on his Twitter account,[397] and a spokesperson for Universal Music Group confirmed his death.[398] The cause of his death was not immediately disclosed,[399] though biographer Kenneth Womack subsequently wrote the cause was from complications associated with stomach cancer.[400] His funeral was held on 14 March at All Saints Church in Coleshill, and he was buried nearby. A memorial service was held on 11 May at St Martin-in-the-Fields, attended by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono, Olivia Harrison, Elton John, Bernard Cribbins and former colleagues.[400]
Martin was one of a handful of producers to have number-one records in three or more consecutive decades (1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s). Others in this group include Mariah Carey (1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s), Max Martin (1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s), Phil Spector (1950s, 1960s and 1970s), Quincy Jones (1960s, 1970s and 1980s), Michael Omartian (1970s, 1980s and 1990s), Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (1980s, 1990s and 2000s) and Dr. Luke (2000s, 2010s and 2020s)[414][415]
During his career, Martin produced 30 number-one singles and 16 number-one albums in the UK – plus a record-tying 23 number-one singles and 19 number-one albums in the US (most of which were by the Beatles).[416][417]