George Martin

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  • Year:
    1999
  • Inducted by:
    Jimmy Iovine
  • Category:
    Ahmet Ertegun Award
George Martin

Introduction

All you need is George Martin.

He guided the Beatles’ career with generosity, wisdom and an unerring ear. George Martin produced nearly everything the Beatles made, truly earning himself the title of the fifth Beatle.

Hall of Fame Essay

1999

Ben Fong-Torres

In the nine years the Beatles were together, their music changed as they did, as the times did, as the world did. But through all the jumps in their sound, there were five common grounds: Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, Starr and the real fifth Beatle, George Martin.

From “Love Me Do” to “Let It Be,” it was Martin at the baton, arranging the music, producing the recordings, helping make John and Paul’s musical inventions and dreams come true and, when the four young men began to take the reins in the studio, knowing enough - well, to let them be. 

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Program Cover 1999
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he established the cardinal law of producing: don’t fuck it up.
Jimmy Iovine

Photography: Kevin Mazur, WireImage