# What are the great Instrumentals of the Classic Rock Era? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 22, 2017, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930 "2017-09-22T01:01:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/21 "2017-09-22T05:08:57Z")
That’s easy… Wipe Out -Surfaris Here’s a cover by the Ventures. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/XjiOtouyBOg/hqdefault.jpg "The Ventures - Wipe Out") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjiOtouyBOg) ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/22 "2017-09-22T10:02:38Z")
**Beck’s Bolero** : Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones (hmm, says Wiki - I thought it was Entwistle, but apparently JPJ subbed for him), ad Keith Moon. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/23 "2017-09-22T10:37:13Z")
Interesting: I have searched this thread, and, inconceivably, can’t find that anyone has stated **Van Halen’s Eruption**. That really is fascinating, given it’s utterly seismic impact on the world of rock and rock guitar, which was never the same in terms of how guitars were played, designed and built, DIY modified, let alone incorporated into commercial rock and pop for the next 15 years. I don’t expect folks to reply stating that Eruption’s stock has taken a nosedive and folks don’t respect it now or something. It’s fuckin’ _Eruption_. But it is curious - almost like people mentally group it with You Really Got Me or something. And while I am at it, the previous generation’s version of Eruption was **Eric Clapton’s cover of Freddie King’s Hideaway** , of the John Mayall “Beano” album. Let to the Clapton is God graffiti, etc. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/24 "2017-09-22T10:47:18Z")
No mention of “Hocus Pocus” by Focus yet? Inconceivable! ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/25 "2017-09-22T10:50:30Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Interesting: I have searched this thread, and, inconceivably, can’t find that anyone has stated **Van Halen’s Eruption**. > > That really is fascinating, given it’s utterly seismic impact on the world of rock and rock guitar, which was never the same in terms of how guitars were played, designed and built, DIY modified, let alone incorporated into commercial rock and pop for the next 15 years. > > I don’t expect folks to reply stating that Eruption’s stock has taken a nosedive and folks don’t respect it now or something. It’s fuckin’ _Eruption_. But it is curious - almost like people mentally group it with You Really Got Me or something. > > And while I am at it, the previous generation’s version of Eruption was **Eric Clapton’s cover of Freddie King’s Hideaway** , of the John Mayall “Beano” album. Let to the Clapton is God graffiti, etc. Post #19, although I appreciate your further discussion of it. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/26 "2017-09-22T11:05:58Z")
_Toad_ by **Cream** _Motorboat to Mars_ by **Chicago** 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/27 "2017-09-22T11:21:30Z")
[Music to Watch Girls By](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZWdGWFmbOQ) by The Bob Crewe Generation is one of my all-time favorite instrumentals. It was later retrofitted with vocals and sung by Andy Williams. Bob Crewe had a bunch of other great instrumentals as well. \*Apache \*by The Shadows (who also have a metric ton of other guitar-driven instrumentals) has already been mentioned; the version by [The Incredible Bongo Band](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY-Z6wm6TMQ) is a ton o’ fun and has been sampled by many, many rap artists. _Love Is All Right_ by Cliff Nobles had on its B side [The Horse](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwwyc_ZMPrI), which is an instrumental of the song on the A side. Speaking of instrumental versions of songs with lyrics, there are a lot of different artists who have recorded _Am I the Same Girl_ but Young-Holt Unlimited had a huge hit with the instrumental version called [Soulful Strut](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yX1XSOzDPik). [TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxLCIsbmnUU) by MFSB is undeniably disco rather than classic rock, but it’s also undeniably great (it has some lyrics near the end, but who can argue with their sentiment?) ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/28 "2017-09-22T11:32:45Z")
> [@Gordon\_Urquhart](#): > > Post #19, although I appreciate your further discussion of it. Well fuckity fuck fuck :smack: :smack: I _swear_ I searched the damn thread for “eruption” - twice. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/29 "2017-09-22T11:55:36Z")
I think my favorite is [Cliffs of Dover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15eu7ar5EKM) by Eric Johnson. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/30 "2017-09-22T13:31:00Z")
No mention of the Alan Parsons Project? They had one or two instrumentals on every album. (Example: [Sirius](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH7nVxWb9aU)) “[Pet Sounds](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYBlfpCVHBo)” (the title track of the highly-regarded Beach Boys album) is an instrumental. FWIW these are both studio creations, as opposed to a band rocking out. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/31 "2017-09-22T13:37:53Z")
What about the last two-thirds of the Rolling Stone’s “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking”, or last half of “Layla”, both of which are long enough to be pop songs by themselves? The “Overture” and “Underture” to The Who’s \*Tommy \* are technically instrumentals (but in practice really long instrumental sections of songs with vocals). (Is Ray Charles’ “One Mint Julep” too old for classic rock? Probably.) ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/32 "2017-09-22T13:43:24Z")
Funkadelic’s “Maggot Brain” ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/33 "2017-09-22T13:51:10Z")
Anything from Procol Harum ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/34 "2017-09-22T13:52:45Z")
> [@Crotalus](#): > > I think my favorite is [Cliffs of Dover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15eu7ar5EKM) by Eric Johnson. Good song, but a bit outside the classic rock era (at least as defined by the OP). The glaring omission to the OPs list, Frankenstein, was immediately added, so I’ll add one of my personal favorites from the era, “The Streetbeater” aka the Sanford and Son theme by Quincy Jones. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/35 "2017-09-22T13:57:50Z")
“[Quadraphenia](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXY5UWBmIFs&list=PL705A234F43DA0E34&index=3)” (the musical piece, not the album) 6 minutes of rock perfection. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/36 "2017-09-22T14:03:41Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > “One of These Days” by Pink Floyd Nitpick: it has one line of lyrics. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/37 "2017-09-22T14:07:37Z")
_ **Apostrophe’** _ by Frank Zappa. It’s on the album _Apostrophe (’)_. Great tune. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/38 "2017-09-22T14:22:41Z")
Earworm Time: The theme from the movie The Sting, anyone? (Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer). ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/39 "2017-09-22T14:45:39Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > “[Quadraphenia](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXY5UWBmIFs&list=PL705A234F43DA0E34&index=3)” (the musical piece, not the album) 6 minutes of rock perfection. “Quadrophenia” is great, but “The Rock” from the same album is even better. Also: “Los Endos” by Genesis “Peaches En Regalia” by Frank Zappa “Orion” by Metallica (a few years past the OP’s dates, but it’s over 30 years old so screw it) ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2017, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930/40 "2017-09-22T15:28:06Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > “Quadrophenia” is great, but “The Rock” from the same album is even better. Well we can certainly quibble over which is better whilst still agreeing that both are great. To be honest, there is a case to made to treat them together as a matching pair of instrumental book-ends. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-great-instrumentals-of-the-classic-rock-era/796930.md?page=3)