Behind the Glass By Howard Massey - Page 2

Massey has fascinating back-to-back interviews with George Martin and his engineer, Geoff Emerick (who later became an accomplished producer in his own right), the production team behind the Beatles. Martin notes the tensions in the band between McCartney, who agreed with Martin on creating a fusion between rock and classical music, and Lennon, who railed against it. Between Martin and Emerick, there's an amazing technical peak behind the scenes of the Beatles' most revolutionary albums, Revolver and Sgt. Pepper, where the Beatles' most groundbreaking music was recorded on equipment that would seem laughably primitive compared to today's. And yet, those albums still stand up astonishingly well.

If there's a drawback to the interviews, it's that most of Massey's questions are geared toward technique and equipment. And while not all producers know music theory, or indeed are even musicians themselves, so many of the top recording musicians are first class musicians in their own right: George Martin is an excellent arranger, Glenn Ballard co-wrote and shaped Morisette's songs, and of course Quincy Jones is an extremely talented all-around musician.

I wouldn't recommend this book to the layman who has no basic knowledge of the producer's role. However, sophisticated music fans looking for more insight on how their favorite albums were recorded, and especially home recordists, who could learn much about the varied, and critical art of production, and apply it to their tunes.

Article Author: Ed Driscoll

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