I hope this hasn't been covered, I haven't found it in another thread, at least recently. Being a musician myself, I tend to listen to the instrumentation of songs, and not just the lyrics. So few songs of the past 4 or 5 decades have been written that are just instrumental... but....

What is your favorite strictly instrumental song (few or no lyrics)? I would also accept a song that you like the instrumental part of it if it has a long instrumental passage.

I guess one of my favorites was from several (many several actually :lol: ) years ago. It was a song called "Classical Gas"- by Mason Williams (1968)

Classical Gas - Mason Williams
Jessica - the Allman Brothers Band
Sunny Side of Heaven - Fleetwood Mac
Crinkly Grin - Family
Bouree - Jethro Tull
Green Onion - Booker T. and the MG's
East St. Louis Toodle-Oo - Duke Ellington (covered by Steely Dan)
Breezin' - George Benson
Invocation and Ritual Dance of the Young Pumpkin - Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention

"Cliffs Of Dover" by Eric Johnson
"D.T." by AC/DC

Classical Gas-Mason Williams(released in 1968 the year I graduated. It takes me back!)
Love Is Blue- Paul Muriat(Same memories as Classical Gas)
Theme From A Summer Place- Percy Faith
The Good The Bad and The Ugly- Hugo Montenagro("68 again!)
Love's Theme- Barry White
Soul Coaxing- King Curtis(Another great ' 68 great!)

One Mint Julep - Ray Charles
Love Theme - Barry White
Summer Madness - Kool and the Gang
Sun Goddess - Earth, Wind and Fire with Ramsey Lewis
Europa - Santana
Jingo - Santana
Big Moon - Neal Schon
Soulful Strut - Young Holt Unlimited
Sleep Walk - Santo and Johnny
The In Crowd - Ramsey Lewis
My Favorite Things - Kenny Burrell
Moonlight Seranade - Glenn Miller
In The Mood - Glenn Miller
Theme from Love Story - Liberace
Forest Gump Theme - John Williams

Classical Gas-Mason Williams(released in 1968 the year I graduated. It takes me back!)
Love Is Blue- Paul Muriat(Same memories as Classical Gas)
Theme From A Summer Place- Percy Faith
The Good The Bad and The Ugly- Hugo Montenagro("68 again!)


All great ones!

The only one that comes to mind is Sandstorm by Darude.
I also liked Victory by Bond.

Electra- The Electras

Wipe Out- The Ventures (Well, it is an instrumental except for when they sing "Wipe out").

Rainforest - Paul Hardcastle
Express - B.T. Express
2 Nigs United 4 West Compton - Prince
Love's Theme - Love Unlimited Orchestra
Africano - Earth Wind & Fire
Machine Gun - Commodores
Claudine Theme - Curtis Mayfield
Summer Madness - Kool and the Gang

I'm sure there's many more, they'll come to me eventually.

Another one of my favs, and you have all named some of mine too, is "The Gates of Delirium" by Yes. There is some singing in it, but I love it more for the instrumental passages. Another one in that same vein is "Pictures at an Exhibition" by Emerson, Lake and Palmer... again there is some singing in it, but I love the instrumental parts of that one.

I had a friend in HS who could really play the drums and we loved to listen to her play Wipe Out by the Venturas.

Another one that I would classify as a mixture song is Inagodadavida by Iron Butterfly. The instrumental parts of that one, especially on the long version (there is no other in my book) are great to listen to.

I noticed that a few of you were pulling from a bit further back than I started. There was some great instrumental stuff before 68, that is for sure. One of my favs going back a way is George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. If you get a great pianist to play it, it will take you away!

beethoven's pathetique
bach's the well-tempered claviar

I love many of the ones that have already been mentioned. For long instrumental passages in a song that has words, my number one would have to be the closing of "Layla" by Eric Clapton. Talking about friends in HS who could PLAY, one of my secret crushes was a guy who played trumpet in the orchestra and could also play piano--he could sit and play the end theme of "Layla" for a half hour at a stretch LOL!

I have some jazz favorites to add to this list: "Blues for Del" by Kenny Burrell and Jimmy Smith, "Marianela" by Arturo Sandoval (as a trumpeter), "Marianela Says Goodbye" by Arturo Sandoval (as a pianist), "Night in Tunisia" by Dizzy Gillespie, and "Confirmation" by Charlie Parker.

"Odyssey" Booker T. & the MG's
"Cebu" Commodores
"Runnin" Earth, Wind & Fire
"Chameleon" Herbie Hancock
"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" Cannonball Adderley
"City, Country, City" War
"H2 Overture" War
"Power" Earth, Wind & Fire
"Soulful Strut" Young Holt Unlimited
"Frankenstein" Edgar Winter Group
"Affirmation" George Benson
"Valdez In The Country" George Benson
"Sun Goddess" Ramsey Lewis
"Contusion" Stevie Wonder
"Teen Town" Weather Report
"Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquydalymistic" Isaac Hayes* (might not count)
"Hip Hug Her" Booker T. & the MG's
"Night of the Thumpasaurus Peoples" Parliament
"Adolescent Funk" Funkadelic
"Africano" Earth, Wind & Fire
"Outa Space" Billy Preston
"The Smurf" Tyrone Brunson
"Ashley's Roach Clip" Chuck Brown & the Soul Searchers


...are among the songs I can think of right now... :)

the call of ktulu - metallica
to live is to die - metallica
anesthesia - metallica
eternal - evanescence

Here are my favorite instrumental songs:

1. "Theme From 'A Summer Place'" - Percy Faith
2. "Music Box Dancer" - Frank Mills
3. "Exodus" - Ferrante & Teicher
4. "Love's Theme" - Love Unlimited Orchestra
5. "Sun Goddess" - Earth, Wind & Fire with Ramsey Lewis
6. "The In-Crowd" - Ramsey Lewis
7. "Linus & Lucy" - Vince Guarardi Trio
8. "The Pink Panther Theme" - Henry Mancini
9. "Moonlight Serenade" - Glenn Miller
10. "Sing, Sing, Sing" - Benny Goodman
11. "Song of India" - Tommy Dorsey
12. "So Rare" - Jimmy Dorsey
13. "Calcutta" - Lawrence Welk
14. "April in Paris" - Count Basie
15. "TSOP" - MFSB
16. "Holiday for Strings (Red Skelton Theme)" - David Rose
17. "The Stripper" - David Rose
18. "Rise" - Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass
19. "Our Winter Love" - Dave Pursell
20. "You Made Me Love You" - Harry James
21. "Begin the Beguine" - Artie Shaw
22. "Satin Soul" - Love Unlimited Orchestra
23. "Autumn Leaves" - Roger Williams
24. "Theme From 'Summer of '42'" - Peter Nero
25. "A Swingin' Safari (Theme from the original 'Match Game')" - Billy Vaughn

K-Jee by MFSB - from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. I love that one.

um. i cant think of any that i really like, but i did enjoy some of kenny g's work when i was younger.

I like listening to Carlos Santana play the guitar, so any of his instrumentals on any of his albums would be favs too.

"Murderers" - John Frusciante
"Ramparts" - John Frusciante
"Venus de Milo" - Prince
"North" - Prince
"East" - Prince
"West" - Prince
"South"- Prince
"God" - Prince
"Silver Wheels" - Heart
"Go On Cry" - Heart
"Rainy Day In Vancouver" - Christopher Cross
"Christmastime Is Here" - Vince Guaraldi
"Pretty Little Ditty" - Red Hot Chili Peppers
"Leghead's Lament" - Nancy Wilson

I just remembered another one I loved back in the day.... Frankenstein by the Edgar Winter Group. I had an old boyfriend who would play the parts of that on the guitar and drums when we got together down his basement. He was a cheap date, but he did take me to see the Edgar Winter Group in Madison Square Garden when I was in HS. That was a trip!

Summer Song - Joe Satriani

One of my favs going back a way is George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. If you get a great pianist to play it, it will take you away!

Rhapsody in Blue is one of my absolute faves, too!! When I was in high school, we performed it in band for our spring concert and there was this senior who was an amazing pianist, and he did the piano part. Blew everybody away.

My fave instrumentals--

"Flight of the Wounded Bumble Bee"--Extreme(it was actually just guitarist Nuno Bettencourt playing along with a drum machine, but it's on Extreme II:Pornograffitti).
"Fire on High"--ELO
"Anarchy-X"--Queensryche
"Erotomania"--Dream Theater
"Stream of Consciousness"--Dream Theater
"Overture 1928"--Dream Theater
"Funeral for a friend"--Elton John
"The Call of Ktulu"--Metallica
"Orion"--Metallica

K-Jee by MFSB - from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. I love that one.
Oh boy that takes me back to when I danced up a storm....

Robert Miles- Children. That song just takes me away! :D :)

Here's another one that recently returned to my memory LOL: "Dream Within a Dream" from Alan Parsons' "Tales of Mystery and Imagination"--a collection of songs based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe. I was a Poe fan long before this album, and I always found the whole concept and its execution absolutely brilliant!

Bassically--Black Sabbath
Rat Salad--Black Sabbath
Orchid--Black Sabbath
Laguna Sunrise--Black Sabbath
Fluff--Black Sabbath
Supertzar--Black Sabbath
Breakout--Black Sabbath
E5150--Black Sabbath
Stonehenge--Black Sabbath

Love Theme From Superman---John Williams
Leaving Home---John Williams
Title Theme---John Williams
Main Title/Overture---The Wiz (Movie Soundtrack)
Breezin' ---George Benson
Mr. Pink---Level 42
Foundation & Empire---Level 42
88---Level 42

Classical Gas- Mason Williams
Love Is Blue- Paul Muriat
Love's Theme- Barry White
Soul Coaxing- King Curtis
Anything by The Tijuana Brass :D