Indispensable drummers, drum machines, and record production

Abstract This chapter explores attempts to replace drummers with new technologies, but also the gradual move of the drum kit—both acoustic and synthesized—from the margins to the center of pop record production from the 1970s to the present. It examines the development of recording the drum kit through the multi-tracking era and into the digital production era. It also discusses the important role the drum kit played in the creation of reggae, Afrobeat, hip-hop, disco, and dance music. It charts the rise of drum machines, digital samplers, augmenting the drum kit, and drumming without drummers.