Legendary Beatles producer George Martin passed away at the age of 90 on Wednesday. He auditioned the band at Abbey Road back in 1962 and produced almost all of their albums after that, including Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Abbey Road, Help, Revolver, and more. He was often referred to as “the fifth Beatle,” influencing their distinctive sound and changing the face of rock and roll.

Before he died, he and his son Giles were working on an eight-part documentary series for PBS, called Soundbreaking: Songs from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music. Part of that tribute was used as a celebration of his life and uploaded to The Beatles YouTube page.

In the tribute, we hear from Ringo Starr, who explained that, without Martin, they might never have become the music icons they are today. He took a chance on a band with a strange name and some kids from Liverpool, and the rest is music history.  There is also a clip where Martin himself talks about what he can do with recorded music, like adding things backwards and slowing down and speeding up the tape. He’s the one responsible for adding the strings to Yesterday. Can you imagine the song without them? Nigel Godrich actually refers to Martin as “the guy who invented the job.”

The eight-part series Soundbreaking: Songs from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music will air on PBS in November. Take a look at this beautiful tribute and let us know what you think. It’s going to make you want to break out all your old Beatles albums immediately and give them another listen to hear his work. Tweet me/us @JennaBusch/@Nerdist and tell us about your favorite Beatles song. Will you be watching the docuseries?

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HT: Vulture, The Beatles
Image credit: The Beatles