Sandy Nelson

Sandy Nelson was a rarity in early rock music; a popular Los Angeles session drummer with a punchy Gene Krupa-inspired style, he also managed to become a star in his own right thanks to the instrumental solo hits "Teen Beat" (1959) and "Let There Be Drums" (1961). Combining cool, sometimes splashy drum patterns with low, rumbling electric guitar licks, his songs were forerunners to the West Coast surf sound that emerged in the early '60s. After surviving a serious 1963 motorcycle accident that resulted in a partial amputation of his right leg, Nelson readjusted his technique and carried on making instrumental rock albums well into the '70s. He later settled down near Las Vegas and made one more original album, 2008's Nelsonized, prior to his death in 2022.