"I Heard The News Today."

There is probably nothing novel I can add to the stream of stories and tributes you'll see today.  But there is no way I could let the death of veteran record producer George Martin pass without acknowledgement.  Along with figures such as Sam Phillips and Berry Gordy it's fair to say the musical world would be a much different place, and my life with it, without him.  Without Martin's open mind and creativity the Beatles would likely have been a much lesser group than they became.

But Martin did more than produce the Beatles.  He produced numerous comedy records in the 1950s and '60s, including for British comedy greats such as Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan.  He worked with numerous pop and rock musicians, including the Beatles' Liverpool contemporaries Gerry and the Pacemakers, '70s soft rockers America, and jazz saxophonist Paul Winter.  He also had connections to the James Bond films, producing the theme song to Goldfinger, and scoring Live and Let Die. 

The past few months have not been good for the world of pop and rock music, with several prominent figures dying.  Hopefully this is the last such death we'll see for a long time to come.