According to the Los Angeles Times, George Martin, the record producer and label executive who signed the Beatles and became their indispensable mentor and collaborator throughout their career, has died.<br />He was 90.<br />Martin produced nearly all of the Beatles’ recordings, advising them on songwriting and arranging and capturing the vitality of their early performances in the studio.<br />As arranger, orchestrator and occasional player later in their career, Martin was responsible for some of the landmark moments of ’60s rock: the swelling symphonic buildup and the lingering last chord of “A Day in the Life,” the delicate, harpsichord-like piano on “In My Life,” the string arrangement for “Yesterday” that signaled the group’s expanding ambitions.<br />In his 50-year career, Sir George, or “The Fifth Beatle,” as he was affectionately known, signed the Beatles and produced more than 700 records.
