George Marino, who mastered hundreds of albums in a career of nearly 40 years at New York's famed Sterling Sound studio, passed away today. Marino died following a year-long bout with lung cancer.

“Today Sterling Sound and the music industry as a whole has suffered a tremendous loss," Sterling Sound issued via statement. "Senior Mastering Engineer George Marino lost his battle with cancer this morning. Words cannot express the sorrow we feel. George was family to us all and we will miss him dearly.”

Although not a household name, Marino worked on albums that should be a part of everybody's music collection. Metallica's 'Black Album,' Stevie Wonder's 'Innervisions,' AC/DC's 'Back In Black,' Guns N' Roses' 'Appetite for Destruction,' Bon Jovi’s 'Slippery When Wet,' Journey's 'Frontiers,' Motley Crue's 'Dr. Feelgood,' Kansas' 'Point of Know Return' and many others benefited from his expertise in the mastering stage.

Marino joined Sterling Sound in 1973 after a few years at the Record Plant. He began his career in 1967 as a librarian and assistant at Capitol Studios before moving on to the mastering department. He won three Grammy awards, most recently in 2011 for Arcade Fire's 'The Suburbs,' which won Album of the Year.