Sound Pictures: The Life of Beatles Producer George Martin, The Later Years, 1966–2016

This is the promised ending to Womack's (English, Monmouth Univ.; Maximum Impact) two-volume biography of producer-musician George Martin, best known for his innovative work recording the Beatles. The first volume, Maximum Impact, was enjoyable enough, exploring the chemistry between the Fab Four and Martin, as well as the nitty-gritty details of recording, but this volume, which chronicles the glory years of the combo, from Yesterday and Today and Rubber Soul (1966) through 1970's Let It Be, is out-and-out fascinating. The Beatles were growing steadily more sophisticated musically, and for every demand they put on him, Martin responded in spades. (John Lennon's remark: "Well, George, I'm sure you can fix it, can't you?") With Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), Martin and the Beatles created a masterpiece that stretched the limits of what could be done on a recording. The final hundred pages of the work discuss Martin's prolific post-Beatles life and his retirement.