# What is the most famous instrumental song of the 20th century? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 21, 2017, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914 "2017-09-21T21:46:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/141 "2017-10-12T21:52:30Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > The Top 100 list has a number of pieces with lyrics: “Exodus,” “Route 66,” and “A Time for Us (Love Theme from _ **Romeo and Juliet** _),” f’rinstance. Even “Hawaii Five-O” had at least two sets of lyrics the last time I looked. Actually “A Time for Us (Love Theme from _ **Romeo and Juliet** _)” was initially an instrumental. By Tchaikovsky. ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/142 "2017-10-12T21:59:33Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > The most famous instrumental no one can name? Might be [Powerhouse](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEro3PXShp4). Just because it’s in a zillion cartoons? Along with the third movement of the “William Tell Overture”? (“Lone Ranger” is the fourth movement.) :dubious: If you don’t recognize the reference, visualize a cartoon of dawn breaking over a farm. The music in your head is the third movement of the overture. ---
**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:** [October 12, 2017, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/143 "2017-10-12T22:02:57Z")
> [@MacLir](#): > > Just because it’s in a zillion cartoons? Along with the third movement of the “William Tell Overture”? (“Lone Ranger” is the fourth movement.) :dubious: > > If you don’t recognize the reference, visualize a cartoon of dawn breaking over a farm. The music in your head is the third movement of the overture. [Well, this actually was the one I thought of visualizing that scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAu4TajHYLk). ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/144 "2017-10-12T22:24:33Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > [Well, this actually was the one I thought of visualizing that scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAu4TajHYLk). Point taken - that one too! But this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJTIMlwQT\_A](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJTIMlwQT_A) is what I meant. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2017, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/145 "2017-10-13T20:54:55Z")
It’s amazing how much of our knowledge of things is based on cartoons, especially Warner Brothers. I was trying to explain some music choices for an upcoming gig to one of the ensembles I play in. I said stuff like “semi-comic take on classical music” and “Wagnerian leifmotif” and they kinda looked sideways at me. I said, “Kill the wabbit!” and people said, “I’M SO IN!” ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2017, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/146 "2017-10-13T21:13:31Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > [Well, this actually was the one I thought of visualizing that scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAu4TajHYLk). You have to watch this “[Flash mob in the Copenhagen Metro. Copenhagen Phil playing Peer Gynt.](https://youtu.be/gww9_S4PNV0)” The glorious moment when the train comes out the tunnel into the Sun just as the music swells. ---
**Author:** ![C.Montgomery\_Burns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecd19e/32.png) [@C.Montgomery\_Burns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C.Montgomery_Burns)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2017, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/147 "2017-10-15T02:02:14Z")
How could it not be Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer? Everybody knows that. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2017, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/148 "2017-10-15T02:33:13Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I understood “instrumentals” to mean tunes that never had lyrics. A lot of the ones mentioned do, whether they are well known or not. > > The first thing that came to my mind was “Classical Gas” (which, so far as I know, is indeed lyric-less). That was my first thought, although I was thinking more along the lines of “one of the best” rather than most famous. > [@Chronos](#): > > Out of all of the works mentioned in this thread, “Green Onions” is the only one I’ve never heard of. I find it hard to say that it’s the most famous. I’m glad to see I’m not the only one! 🙂_Green Onions_? 😕😕 ---
**Author:** ![Some\_Call\_Me.Tim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Some\_Call\_Me.Tim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Some_Call_Me.Tim)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2017, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/149 "2017-10-15T07:39:06Z")
I’m rather surprised that as far as I can tell no one has mentioned [Axel F](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx2gvHjNhQ0) yet. Unambiguously pop, got a lot of radio airplay at the time on top-40 stations. Perhaps you have to be about the right age to remember that one. ---
**Author:** ![LukeOwens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/46a35a/32.png) [@LukeOwens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LukeOwens)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/150 "2017-10-15T21:10:31Z")
The first popular instrumental i thought of was “The Overture to ‘Tommy’” by the Who. This may say more about my taste in music, though, as I despise most instrumental music. IF it doesn’t have lyrics, I just don’t want to know about it. ---
**Author:** ![SigMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@SigMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SigMan)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2017, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/151 "2017-10-15T21:28:35Z")
> [@Some\_Call\_Me.Tim](#): > > I’m rather surprised that as far as I can tell no one has mentioned [Axel F](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx2gvHjNhQ0) yet. Unambiguously pop, got a lot of radio airplay at the time on top-40 stations. > > Perhaps you have to be about the right age to remember that one. I remember it very well and for a long time I thought it was a Herbie Hancock piece but I was wrong Speaking of Herbie, remember this one? [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/UbkqE4fpvdI/hqdefault.jpg "Herbie Hancock - Chameleon (FULL VERSION)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbkqE4fpvdI) ---
**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:** [October 16, 2017, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914/152 "2017-10-16T00:17:10Z")
[quote=“SigMan, post:151, topic:796914”] I remember it very well and for a long time I thought it was a Herbie Hancock piece but I was wrong Speaking of Herbie, remember this one? [/QUOTE] Yeah, Harold Faltermeyer. Your brain is probably conflating it with [Herbie’s “Rock It”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHhD4PD75zY), which was the same year and shares some general melodic similarities. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-famous-instrumental-song-of-the-20th-century/796914.md?page=7)