Jim!

While listening to music the other day (which I do on a near-constant basis) it dawned on me that it’s been quite a while since there’s been a instrumental hit song (jazz, of course, notwithstanding). Of course I refer mainly to the stations/types of music I listen to the most. Looking at the musical charts of recent years and it’s nearly impossible to find instrumental songs on any Top 40 or even Top 100 chart that Billboard maintains. Is it just that artists don’t record them, that the labels don’t release them, or that the public just isn’t interested in them? It seems that the 50s and 60s produced a very high number of instrumental hits. I truly can’t remember a solid instrumental hit from the 90s or 20xxs…yet.

Here’s a short list of some instrumental hits that I could come up with in a few seconds. I’ll update this list as I think of more.

• Stranger on the Shore (Acker Bilk)
• Rise (Herb Alpert)
• Grazin in the Grass (Hugh Masekela)
• A Fifth of Beethoven (Walter Murphy)
• Classical Gas (Mason Williams)
• Pipeline (Chantays)
• Axel F (Harold Faltermeyer)
• Wipeout (The Surfaris)
• Popcorn (Hot Butter)
• Ode to Joy (Apollo 100)
• Soulful Strut (Young Holt Unlimited)
• Hooked on Classics
• Take Five (Dave Clark Trio)
• Sleepwalk (Santo & Johnny)

If you know of any please email me and I’ll include them.