Adiós a Martin Birch, bastión del sonido clásico del hard rock y el heavy

Machine Head de Deep Purple, Rising de Rainbow, Heaven And Hell de Black Sabbath, Ready An’ Willing de Whitesnake, The Number Of The Beast de Iron Maiden, Assault Attack de MSG… Solo una pequeña selección del trabajo de Martin Birch como productor o ingeniero de sonido. Pero una representación que da idea de la enorme magnitud que ha tenido Birch en la historia del hard rock y el heavy.

Su nombre siempre irá ligado a grandes titanes como Fleetwood Mac, Deep Purple, Rainbow, Whitesnake, Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Iron Maiden, MSG…

Ayer se conoció su fallecimiento a los 71 años. Fue David Coverdale, vocalista y líder de Whitesnake, quien dio la noticia a través de las redes sociales. El cantante se despedía de uno de los grandes artífices del éxito de la primera etapa de Whitesnake.

“Gloriosamente talentoso, adorable, lo echaremos tristemente de menos… D.E.P. Martin Birch”, definió el propio Coverdale a su antiguo colaborador. “Realmente triste al conocer el fallecimiento de Martin Birch. Productor brillante. Tuve el placer de trabajar con él en los discos de Black Sabbath ‘Heaven And Hell’ y ‘Mob Rules’. Condolencias a Vera y a la familia”, ha escrito Geezer Butler de Black Sabbath.

“Mis pensamientos y oraciones son para su mujer, Vera, y para su hija Haley. Fue un productor genial y un muy querido amigo de Ronnie”, ha destacado Wendy Dio. “Ha fallecido una verdadera leyenda. Este hombre produjo algunos de mis discos favoritos desde Iron Maiden a Black Sabbath”, ha detallado David Ellefson de Megadeth.

También Ritchie Blackmore ha recordado a quien trabajó tanto con Deep Purple como con Rainbow. «Siento mucho conocer el fallecimiento de Martin Birch. Tantos grandes momentos y grandes canciones. Lo echaremos de menos». 

MARTIN BIRCH:

Fleetwood Mac

1969 – Then Play On (engineer)
1970 – Kiln House (engineer)
1972 – Bare Trees (engineer)
1973 – Penguin (producer, engineer, mixing)
1973 – Mystery to Me (producer, engineer, guitar)

Deep Purple

1969 – Concerto for Group and Orchestra (engineer)
1970 – Deep Purple in Rock (engineer)
1971 – Fireball (engineer)
1972 – Machine Head (engineer)
1972 – Made in Japan (engineer)
1973 – Who Do We Think We Are (engineer)
1974 – Burn (engineer, mixing)
1974 – Stormbringer (co-producer, engineer, mixing)
1975 – Come Taste the Band (co-producer, engineer, mixing)
1976 – Made in Europe (co-producer, engineer, mixing)- recorded live in April 1975
1977 – Last Concert in Japan (co-producer, engineer) – recorded live in December 1975

Jon Lord

1971 – Jon Lord – Gemini Suite (engineer)
1976 – Jon Lord – Sarabande (producer, engineer, remixing)
1974 – Tony Ashton & Jon Lord – First of the Big Bands (engineer)
1977 – Paice Ashton Lord – Malice in Wonderland (engineer)

Wishbone Ash

1970 – Wishbone Ash (engineer)
1971 – Pilgrimage (engineer)
1972 – Argus (engineer)

Rainbow

1975 – Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow (co-producer, engineer, mixing)
1976 – Rising (producer, engineer, mixing)
1977 – On Stage (producer, engineer, mixing) – recorded live in 1976
1978 – Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll (producer, engineer, mixing)
1986 – Finyl Vinyl (producer) – collection

Whitesnake

1978 – Snakebite (producer)
1978 – Trouble (producer)
1978 – Live at Hammersmith (producer)
1979 – Lovehunter (producer, engineer)
1980 – Ready an’ Willing (producer, engineer, mixing)
1980 – Live… in the Heart of the City (producer, engineer) – recorded live in 1978 and 1980
1981 – Come an’ Get It (producer, engineer, mixing)
1982 – Saints & Sinners (producer, engineer, mixing)
1984 – Slide It In (producer)

Black Sabbath

1980 – Heaven and Hell (producer, engineer)
1981 – Mob Rules (producer, engineer)

Blue Öyster Cult

1980 – Cultösaurus Erectus (producer, engineer)
1981 – Fire of Unknown Origin (producer, engineer)

Iron Maiden

1981 – Killers (producer, engineer)
1982 – The Number of the Beast (producer, engineer)
1983 – Piece of Mind (producer, engineer, mixing)
1984 – Powerslave (producer, engineer, mixing)
1985 – Live After Death (producer, engineer, mixing)[6]
1986 – Somewhere in Time (producer, engineer, mixing)
1988 – Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (producer, engineer, mixing)
1989 – Maiden England (producer, engineer, mixing)
1990 – No Prayer for the Dying (producer, engineer, mixing)
1992 – Fear of the Dark (producer, engineer, mixing)

Other artists

1969 – Jeff Beck – Beck-Ola (engineer)
1970 – Peter Green – The End of the Game (engineer)
1970 – The Groundhogs – Thank Christ for the Bomb (engineer)
1971 – Stackridge – Stackridge (engineer)
1971 – Canned Heat and John Lee Hooker – Hooker ‘N’ Heat (Mixdown Engineer) – recorded in
1970
1971 – Skid Row – 34 Hours (engineer)
1971 – Toad – Toad (engineer)
1971 – Faces – Long Player (engineer)
1971 – Rock Workshop – The Very Last Time (engineer)
1971 – Jodo «Guts» LP (engineer)
1972 – Silverhead – Silverhead (producer)
1972 – Toad – Tomorrow Blue (engineer)
1972 – Flash – Flash (engineer)
1972 – Flash – In the Can (engineer)
1973 – Gary Moore – Grinding Stone (producer, engineer)
1978 – The Electric Chairs-«The Electric Chairs»(producer)
1978 – Wayne County & the Electric Chairs – Storm The Gates Of Heaven (producer)
1978 – Wayne County & the Electric Chairs – Blatantly Offensive E.P. (producer)
1978 – Roger Glover – Elements (producer)
1979 – Cozy Powell – Over the Top (producer)
1982 – Michael Schenker Group – Assault Attack (producer, engineer)