All You Need Is Ears: The Inside Personal Story of the Genius who Created The Beatles

Front Cover
Macmillan, Oct 15, 1994 - Biography & Autobiography - 285 pages

"George," he said, "I don't know if you'd be interested, but there's a chap who's come in with a tape of a group he runs. They haven't got a recording contract, and I wonder if you'd like to see him and listen to what he's got?"

"Certainly," I said, "I'm willing to listen to anything. Ask him to come and see me."

"O.K., I will. His name's Brian Epstein..."

All You Need Is Ears is the story of George Martin, the man who spotted the Beatles' talent, who recorded and produced them from the start, and who brought their musical ideas to life. In this witty and charming autobiography, he describes exactly what it was like to work in the studio with the Beatles--from the first audition (and his decision to scrap Pete Best on drums) to the wild experimentation of Sgt. Pepper (complete with sound effects, animal noises and full orchestras in evening dress at the direct request of Paul McCartney).

This is a singular look at the most important musical group of all time, and how they made the music that changed the world: No other book can provide George Martin's inside look at their creative process, at the play of genius and practical improvisation that gave them their sound; it is an indispensable read for Beatle lovers and anyone interested in the music world.

 

Contents

List of Illustrations 79
7
Prelude
9
Classical Primer
11
Palates and Palettes
30
Abbey Road
37
All You Need Is Ears
64
Comic Cuts
82
Two Heads Are Better Than One
104
America Falls
158
Calling My Own Tune
179
A Dash of Pepper
199
Write in the Picture
220
The Recording Angel
240
Building on AIR
261
Tomorrow Never Knows
270
Index
274

Hard Days and Nights
120
Layering the Cake
141

Common terms and phrases

About the author (1994)

Sir George Martin (1926-2016) was a legendary record producer, arranger and audio engineer. He is best known for working with the Beatles, among many other famous recording artists of the 20th Century. He was made a Commander of the British Empire in 1988 and was awarded a knighthood in 1996.

Bibliographic information