Roy Thomas Baker, the hitmaking record producer behind some of the biggest and most proudly polished songs and albums of the rock era — including Queen’s chart-topping, multipart “Bohemian Rhapsody” — died April 12 at his home in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. He was 78.

Among the most successful music producers in the 1970s and ’80s, he helped churn out hits for acts like Queen, the Cars, Journey and Foreigner.

Roy Thomas Baker, whose work with Queen — including “Bohemian Rhapsody” — the Cars and more made him one of the major producers of his era, has died.