20 best instrumental songs

[LennG]

So we have done several lists and I saw these on a link and thought it might be interesting.

Nice list and many really good instrumentals. But one thing sure stands out, they just don't do many of these anymore. If you look at the dates, most are from the last decade and more from the earlier years of R&R.

Why has this genre not held up?


https://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/the-20-best-instrumental-songs-of-all-time/ss-BB1biaf4?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=1acc160ae40a4ee4b1d7033bdc59da51

[Jolly Blue Giant]

The first thought that came to my mind was "Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass". Loved those guys. Spanish Flea, Taste of Honey, etc. But my favorite was "Lonely Bull". And they were a regular on the radio and among pop music fans often having their records hit No. 1 on the charts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uqPBZncL5Q

I also loved Al Hirt as a kid and used to whistle the song "Java" while I worked and people would ask, "what is that song you're whistling

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqwIpH6phJs

Edgar Winter was mentioned in the article and "Frankenstein" was tops, but my favorite of his is "Jazzing the Blues"

There are still a few bands that play instrumentals - I suppose because they can't sing...LOL A good example is Chris Ulrey and Dallen Jimenez rocking the Munsters' theme song. Ulrey started in a garage band, but never got well known...but he is good, as his Jimenez

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWkqAZ485F4&t=93s

[LennG]

 NOw that you started me, I really started thinking of instrumentals that I've liked over the eyars.

Since I go way back and have always been a fan of the 'big band sound', most were instrumentals. Probably my favorite is '"In The Mood' with the Glenn Miller orchestra

https://youtu.be/6vOUYry_5Nw

Moving on there are several that were not `mentioned especially themes from movies, that became hits on their own
Theme from The Good Bad and Ugly
Gonna Fly Now (Rocky)


Theme From a Summer Place

https://youtu.be/tSsiS-v6_6M

A real oldie--Yakity Sax

https://youtu.be/Zcq_xLi2NGo


Telstar

https://youtu.be/WPDvsLSnUGc

Walk, Don't Run

https://youtu.be/WW21rcHiVU0

And don't forget Pipeline


https://youtu.be/w7c2ZKamzS4


Give me time, I'll think of more

[GIANTS1]

Camellia from the rose movie with bette midlerhttps://www.youtube.com

Blues Theme Hells Angels song    David Allan & The Arrows

[Jolly Blue Giant]

I only heard "In the Mood" by Glenn Miller about a thousand times...and I like it. It was my parent's dance song. My mom and dad did the swing really well. When we were kids, my parents would put it on and dance in the living room, and of course every wedding the song was played for them to strut their stuff. I was starting to get worried when my dad no longer had good balance a few years ago at one of my kid's wedding in Chicago. At the wedding I had to stand next to him in case he fell, but he didn't. He still shuffled his feet and twisted my mom around, but not with the precision they had 30-70 years ago. I will always remember that song and have the fondest memories of watching my parents swing around like they were kids

[Sem]

Interesting list. The inclusion of Sirius brought a smile to my face. As did One of These Days, (although that's not technically an instrumental). Did I miss seeing Dave Brubeck's Take Five? If Cliffs of Dove makes the list but not Take Five, well....pftftf.

[Jolly Blue Giant]

As a pianist, I have followed the careers of many great ones. But one of my favorites is Floyd Cramer (considered a country music artist). His song, "Last Date" was a song I spent many hours trying to master. It's different because of the way he plays chords. Typically, a chord is played with all keys pushed down simultaneously, or they can be rolled. But Cramer uses a technique in which the chord roll is kind of an "staccato outside in" roll - difficult to master and a very unique sound. Anyway, "Last Date" was a great song mastered by the composer himself

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KJR-4QJBJU

[LennG]

I only heard "In the Mood" by Glenn Miller about a thousand times...and I like it. It was my parent's dance song. My mom and dad did the swing really well. When we were kids, my parents would put it on and dance in the living room, and of course every wedding the song was played for them to strut their stuff. I was starting to get worried when my dad no longer had good balance a few years ago at one of my kid's wedding in Chicago. At the wedding I had to stand next to him in case he fell, but he didn't. He still shuffled his feet and twisted my mom around, but not with the precision they had 30-70 years ago. I will always remember that song and have the fondest memories of watching my parents swing around like they were kids

I was also going to write a silly story about this song. We have 3 grandchildren, the first two being girls. When they were younger, my wife and I saw this sort of dancing flower in a pot that when you pressed the button, then danced and twirled around to music. What music, "In The Mood". Since we have 3 grandchildren, we bought each one, one of these dancing flowers and they simply loved them. We used to pick them up, dance around with them and when the song was over, press the button and do it all over again. I used to kid everyone saying we had the only 3 and 5-year-olds that LOVED In The Mood.

[PSUBeirut]

My favorite for awhile in this category has been rhapsody in blue.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk

[Jolly Blue Giant]

I was also going to write a silly story about this song. We have 3 grandchildren, the first two being girls. When they were younger, my wife and I saw this sort of dancing flower in a pot that when you pressed the button, then danced and twirled around to music. What music, "In The Mood". Since we have 3 grandchildren, we bought each one, one of these dancing flowers and they simply loved them. We used to pick them up, dance around with them and when the song was over, press the button and do it all over again. I used to kid everyone saying we had the only 3 and 5-year-olds that LOVED In The Mood.

Great story. Love it. My son used to swing dance and I watched him and his cousin Alysha (both top notch dancers) go wild on the floor at his going away party when he was being shipped to Iraq as a combat medic a few days later. The difference between him and my parents is my parents danced to Glenn Miller's version and my son would swing to the Brian Setzer version. Personally, I prefer Miller's. But I always loved watching the family swing away to "In the Mood"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUWP8d930mg

[Jolly Blue Giant]

Must add Henry Mancini to the list..."Peter Gunn", "Pink Panther", "Baby Elephant Walk", "Moon River", etc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G50jixUB91g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz3WMFEC9Gs&t=27s

[LennG]

Having given this some serious thought, I came up with a few more and quite alarmed none of these made the original list

More--Kai Winding

https://youtu.be/yBj9KMQ2BNs


Theme from Exodus

https://youtu.be/z_TfM0SwdJE


One of my favorite music pieces when I was in the service
The In Crowd--Ramsy Lewis


https://youtu.be/et8bJy9CSzk

[LennG]

Gosh I almost forgot maybe all guys all time favorite

The Stripper

https://youtu.be/_WClvK15gkk

[Jolly Blue Giant]

Having given this some serious thought, I came up with a few more and quite alarmed none of these made the original list

More--Kai Winding

Theme from Exodus

One of my favorite music pieces when I was in the service
The In Crowd--Ramsy Lewis

I remember the Kai Winding song from my parent's music

Always loved "Theme from Exodus" - very powerful song

I've heard "The In Crowd" on the radio on the oldies stations quite a bit. Just never knew what it was called.

My father watched "The Lawrence Welk Show" religiously every Saturday night (and Jeopardy every weekday night). And now that he's gone, my mother saves it on the DVR and plays it a lot. My dad loved Benny Goodman. Got acclimated to a lot of older stuff while watching it along with him. I used to make fun of him for his music to pay back all the years he made fun of my music. He used to call my music "Jethro Funk" (for Jethro Tull and Grand Funk Railroad)...LOL and I'd say, "your a good one to talk, you listen to Englebert Humperdink." We'd both laugh and laugh

[LennG]

Your Dad had excellent taste in music.