Backbeat

There he is, drumming on “Tutti Frutti,” “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” and thousands of other songs. As a studio player in New Orleans and Los Angeles from the 1940s through the 1970s, Earl Palmer co-created hundreds of hits and transformed the lope of rhythm and blues into full-tilt rock and roll. He was, as a result, one of the first session men to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Palmer’s distinctive voice alternates with the insights of music journalist and historian Tony Scherman in an unforgettable trip through the social and musical cultures of mid-century New Orleans and the feverish world of early rock.