Steve Haynie 12,205 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 Martin Birch died yesterday at the age of 71. He engineered or produced a lot of the albums in my collection. He was definitely a part of Iron Maiden's success. A selected discography from Wikipedia 7 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Devnor 388 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 RIP Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DaveL 2,240 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 Yes, he had quite the resume. I don’t think anything was going to stop maiden but I think had they not gone with Birch on killers their trajectory could have been much different. Perfect balance of major label polish with maiden’s rawness. And then the rainbow, purple, sabbath heaven and hell... even some of the early fleetwood Mac, Iconic. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jakeboy 6,715 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 I knew he had quite the resume, but I had no idea it was THAT extensive, Dude recorded some of the greatest hard rock ever put to wax. A body of work. RIP . 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Steve Haynie 12,205 Posted August 10, 2020 Author Share Posted August 10, 2020 The Black Sabbath album Heaven and Hell is perfect. 5 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
scottcald 3,140 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 Birch did more than I'd realized and some are albums I have. Heaven and Hell, to me was Sabbath's best album overall, great songs, great riffs, great singing, great tones, mix, the whole ball of wax. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sixesandsevens 2,291 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 RIP Quote Link to post Share on other sites
princeofdarkness56 654 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 The man certainly made his mark in the rock world. Anyone would be proud to have that kind of resume. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Biz Prof 4,943 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 9 hours ago, DaveL said: Yes, he had quite the resume. I don’t think anything was going to stop maiden but I think had they not gone with Birch on killers their trajectory could have been much different. Perfect balance of major label polish with maiden’s rawness. Verily, verily. That record still kills some 39 years after its release. Many bands see their production quality improve over a rookie effort, but there was a stark difference between Maiden's first two platters. Nearly 100% of that result was due to Martin Birch. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
it's me HHB 3,268 Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 Aww man, so many great rock records he made Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Brooks 1,848 Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 Yeah, Sabs H&H and Mob Rules, and Maidens Killers are all faves of mine (as is Maidens raw 1st album, which Martin didn't produce). RIP. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DBraz 4,110 Posted August 15, 2020 Share Posted August 15, 2020 RIP What a producer. Really got the best out of Maiden in their best years. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamer_SS_guy 336 Posted August 15, 2020 Share Posted August 15, 2020 To me, he was the definitive producer for Deep Purple and Rainbow. Also liked Sabbath' two albums produced by him ans MSG's Assault Attack. He even did produce a Roger Glover album (Elements) who was an established producer himself by then. Strangely enough, I was listening to Black Sabbath' Mob Rules and asked myself if Birch was still active and then just read the news of his death a few minutes later. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Biz Prof 4,943 Posted August 15, 2020 Share Posted August 15, 2020 14 hours ago, DBraz said: RIP What a producer. Really got the best out of Maiden in their best years. He certainly did. I never bought what Kevin Shirley was selling and lost any interest in their newer stuff, especially when Bruce and Adrian each took a hiatus. But this is a great example of the band's songwriting and playing abilities, the impact of their influences on the early records, and Birch's production prowess. A highly underrated Maiden song... 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gorch 5,477 Posted August 16, 2020 Share Posted August 16, 2020 On 8/14/2020 at 2:05 AM, Brooks said: Maidens Killers are all faves of mine (as is Maidens raw 1st album, which Martin didn't produce) Actually, the first two Maiden albums are the only two I listen to. What Deep Purple concerns, I love the Concerto for Group and Orchestra album. Instead of Rainbow, I‘m trending to Whitesnake phase I. He‘d been the hidden band member with them though. Obviously, it‘s worth following the techs noted in the foot notes of the records and follow them too. These guys make and create the sound. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MCChris 10,339 Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 Martin Birch tribute episode, out today: 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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