Kenneth Womack

When Sir George Martin died last year, reverberations were felt throughout the music industry and beyond. But the famed producer's work with The Beatles was only part of the story.  Now, author and Beatles historian Kenneth Womack has pulled back the curtain to reveal the man behind the music.  Maximum Volume: The Life of Beatles Producer George Martin - The Early Years 1926-1966, as the title indicates, acknowledges the importance of the Fab Four on the producer's life and career.  But this scrupulously-researched, detail-packed, long-overdue tome paints a fuller portrait of the man who was not only able to identify something special in four lads from Liverpool, but gave them the tools to turn their musical fantasies into powerful reality.  The lengthy, compelling volume follows Martin's personal life and career up until 1966, the year of Revolver, and leaves readers wanting more; indeed, a second volume is due in 2018.  Via his work with The Beatles, Martin was one of a select few individuals who turned record production into high art, and he gave his all to every project - whether recordings by Cilla Black, Matt Monro, Peter Sellers, an obscure comedy album, or a West End or Broadway musical cast album.  Womack's work is a fascinating and affectionate tribute, and an essential for any Beatles library - or indeed, for the library of any fan of the sound of popular music.