ARTICLE: ROCK INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
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Early History
Instrumental rock was most popular during rock and roll's first decade (mid-1950s to mid-1960s), before the British Invasion.
One notable early instrumental was "Honky Tonk" by the Bill Doggett Combo, with its slinky beat and sinuous saxophone-organ lead. And bluesman Jimmy Reed charted with "Boogie in the Dark" and "Roll and Rhumba".
Jazz saxophonist Earl Bostic revived his career with instrumentals like "Harlem Nocturne" and "Earl's Rhumboogie". (Other jazz musicians who scored pop hits include Tab Smith and Arnett Cobb). Several rhythm and blues sax players had hit instrumental songs, including Big Jay McNeeley, Red Prysock, and Lee Allen, whose "Walking with Mr. Lee" was quite popular.
There were several notable blues instrumental songs during the 1950s; Little Walter's rollicking "Juke" was a major hit.
Instrumental hit songs could emphasize electronic organ (The Tornados' "Telstar", Dave "Baby" Cortez's "The Happy Organ", Johnny & the Hurricanes' "Red River Rock"), or the saxophone (The Champs' "Tequila", Bill Black's Combo's "Don't Be Cruel", The Piltdown Men's "McDonald's Cave"), but the guitar was most prominent. Duane Eddy scored several hits (his best known probably being "Rebel 'Rouser"). Eddy was the first rock & roll artist to release an album in stereo.
The Fireballs, featuring the distinctive guitar work of George Tomsco, began their career in the late 50's with instrumental hits such as "Torquay" and "Bulldog." The band pioneered the guitar/guitar/bass/drums configuration, paving the way for The Ventures, The Shadows, and the surf music scene. The Fireballs were one of a few instrumental bands that successfully transitioned into vocal music, going as far as having the biggest hit record of 1963 ("Sugar Shack").
The Shadows from the UK, with American Fender Stratocaster guitars with British Vox amplifiers using a (lead guitar) reverb and echo unit from 1960 onwards recorded their major European hit-singles e.g. Apache; Wonderful land; FBI; etc. The Shadows (with Cliff Richard) dominated the UK charts from 1959-1963 until Beatle-mania arrived combined with DJ indifference to non-vocal singles.
The Ventures' precise guitar work was a major influence on many later rock guitarists; they also helped shape surf music, which at this stage consisted almost entirely of heavily reverbed guitar instrumentals.
Surf music was quite popular in the early 1960s, and was generally rather simple and melodic—one exception being Dick Dale, who gained fame for his quick playing, often influenced by the music of the Middle East, and frequently using exotic scales.
Following the British Invasion, rock changed appreciably, and instrumental hits came mostly from the R&B world. Notable artists include Booker T. & the MG's and saxophonist Junior Walker.
The early incarnation of Fleetwood Mac with band leader Peter Green achieved number one chart positions with guitar-based instrumental Albatross (composition) in February 1969.
Steve Cropper of the MG's asserts:
In August 1964, Checker Records released the album Two Great Guitars recorded by rock and roll pioneers Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley which is one of rock music's first recorded guitar jam sessions.
1970'S
Funk and disco produced several instrumental hit singles during the 1970s.
The jazz fusion of the 1970s often had considerable stylistic cross-over with rock, and groups like Return to Forever, Mahavishnu Orchestra and Weather Report had sizable followings among rock fans.
The Allman Brothers Band is often not considered an instrumental rock band but they have many instrumentals and make longer versions of their songs. A good example is the 22-minute version of Whipping Post in At Fillmore East LP. Their instrumentals, "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" and "Jessica" are popular, with "Jessica" being featured as theme for both the 1977 and 2002 formats of Top Gear.
Jeff Beck also recorded two entirely instrumental albums in the '70s: Blow by Blow and Wired. Successful among mainstream audiences, both have strong jazz influences, the latter featuring a cover of Charles Mingus' jazz standard "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat".
Progressive rock and art rock performers of the 1960s and 1970s deserve some mention. Many of these musicians featured virtuosic instrumental performances (and occasional instrumental songs), but many of their compositions also featured vocals. King Crimson gained a massive cult following in the late 1960s and 1970s with their explosive instrumental output that merged rock, jazz, classical and heavy metal styles, though their albums also included songs with vocals. Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield, a progressive rock album released in 1973, was all instrumental (save for some brief spoken words) and is one of the best-selling instrumental albums ever, with 16 millions copies sold. The Dutch band Finch recorded three all-instrumental albums of progressive rock of continuing interest. One of the most acclaimed albums of the band Camel, 1975's The Snow Goose, was entirely instrumental.
Surf music's "2nd Wave" began in 1979 with the release of the first Jon & the Nightriders record.
1980'S
During the 1980s, the instrumental rock genre was dominated by several guitar soloists.
Swedish virtuoso Yngwie Malmsteen made a name for himself in 1984 by playing in the popular band Alcatrazz, and then by releasing his debut solo album Rising Force later that year, which made it to #60 on the Billboard Charts. Joe Satriani's 1987 album Surfing With The Alien was a surprise hit, containing the ever-popular instrumental ballad "Always With Me, Always With You", and the blues boogie infected "Satch Boogie"—both staples for guitarists learning their craft. Two years later came Satriani's follow-up album Flying in a Blue Dream.
After Malmsteen left Alcatrazz, he was replaced by the extravagant Steve Vai, who had previously been playing with the Frank Zappa band. Continuing the tradition (and following a brief stint in David Lee Roth's band from 1986 to 1988), Vai went on to release a number of highly acclaimed solo albums. Arguably the best-known of these was his 1990 release, Passion and Warfare.
Jason Becker was also considered by many to be a great player, who released two albums with Cacophony. Cacophony were a primarily instrumental group featuring Becker and Marty Friedman (the latter of whom went on to play with the legendary thrash metal band Megadeth). After the release of Cacophony's second album Go Off! in 1988, Becker released two solo albums before being diagnosed with ALS. He now uses a wheelchair and is completely unable to play.
Click Here for 1990'S Article
Early History
Instrumental rock was most popular during rock and roll's first decade (mid-1950s to mid-1960s), before the British Invasion.
One notable early instrumental was "Honky Tonk" by the Bill Doggett Combo, with its slinky beat and sinuous saxophone-organ lead. And bluesman Jimmy Reed charted with "Boogie in the Dark" and "Roll and Rhumba".
Jazz saxophonist Earl Bostic revived his career with instrumentals like "Harlem Nocturne" and "Earl's Rhumboogie". (Other jazz musicians who scored pop hits include Tab Smith and Arnett Cobb). Several rhythm and blues sax players had hit instrumental songs, including Big Jay McNeeley, Red Prysock, and Lee Allen, whose "Walking with Mr. Lee" was quite popular.
There were several notable blues instrumental songs during the 1950s; Little Walter's rollicking "Juke" was a major hit.
Instrumental hit songs could emphasize electronic organ (The Tornados' "Telstar", Dave "Baby" Cortez's "The Happy Organ", Johnny & the Hurricanes' "Red River Rock"), or the saxophone (The Champs' "Tequila", Bill Black's Combo's "Don't Be Cruel", The Piltdown Men's "McDonald's Cave"), but the guitar was most prominent. Duane Eddy scored several hits (his best known probably being "Rebel 'Rouser"). Eddy was the first rock & roll artist to release an album in stereo.
The Fireballs, featuring the distinctive guitar work of George Tomsco, began their career in the late 50's with instrumental hits such as "Torquay" and "Bulldog." The band pioneered the guitar/guitar/bass/drums configuration, paving the way for The Ventures, The Shadows, and the surf music scene. The Fireballs were one of a few instrumental bands that successfully transitioned into vocal music, going as far as having the biggest hit record of 1963 ("Sugar Shack").
The Shadows from the UK, with American Fender Stratocaster guitars with British Vox amplifiers using a (lead guitar) reverb and echo unit from 1960 onwards recorded their major European hit-singles e.g. Apache; Wonderful land; FBI; etc. The Shadows (with Cliff Richard) dominated the UK charts from 1959-1963 until Beatle-mania arrived combined with DJ indifference to non-vocal singles.
The Ventures' precise guitar work was a major influence on many later rock guitarists; they also helped shape surf music, which at this stage consisted almost entirely of heavily reverbed guitar instrumentals.
Surf music was quite popular in the early 1960s, and was generally rather simple and melodic—one exception being Dick Dale, who gained fame for his quick playing, often influenced by the music of the Middle East, and frequently using exotic scales.
Following the British Invasion, rock changed appreciably, and instrumental hits came mostly from the R&B world. Notable artists include Booker T. & the MG's and saxophonist Junior Walker.
The early incarnation of Fleetwood Mac with band leader Peter Green achieved number one chart positions with guitar-based instrumental Albatross (composition) in February 1969.
Steve Cropper of the MG's asserts:
- "We had trouble getting airplay because disc jockeys did not like playing songs without vocals on them. It got worse and worse and worse until they finally pushed every instrumental band in the country out of business."[citation needed]
In August 1964, Checker Records released the album Two Great Guitars recorded by rock and roll pioneers Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley which is one of rock music's first recorded guitar jam sessions.
1970'S
Funk and disco produced several instrumental hit singles during the 1970s.
The jazz fusion of the 1970s often had considerable stylistic cross-over with rock, and groups like Return to Forever, Mahavishnu Orchestra and Weather Report had sizable followings among rock fans.
The Allman Brothers Band is often not considered an instrumental rock band but they have many instrumentals and make longer versions of their songs. A good example is the 22-minute version of Whipping Post in At Fillmore East LP. Their instrumentals, "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" and "Jessica" are popular, with "Jessica" being featured as theme for both the 1977 and 2002 formats of Top Gear.
Jeff Beck also recorded two entirely instrumental albums in the '70s: Blow by Blow and Wired. Successful among mainstream audiences, both have strong jazz influences, the latter featuring a cover of Charles Mingus' jazz standard "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat".
Progressive rock and art rock performers of the 1960s and 1970s deserve some mention. Many of these musicians featured virtuosic instrumental performances (and occasional instrumental songs), but many of their compositions also featured vocals. King Crimson gained a massive cult following in the late 1960s and 1970s with their explosive instrumental output that merged rock, jazz, classical and heavy metal styles, though their albums also included songs with vocals. Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield, a progressive rock album released in 1973, was all instrumental (save for some brief spoken words) and is one of the best-selling instrumental albums ever, with 16 millions copies sold. The Dutch band Finch recorded three all-instrumental albums of progressive rock of continuing interest. One of the most acclaimed albums of the band Camel, 1975's The Snow Goose, was entirely instrumental.
Surf music's "2nd Wave" began in 1979 with the release of the first Jon & the Nightriders record.
1980'S
During the 1980s, the instrumental rock genre was dominated by several guitar soloists.
Swedish virtuoso Yngwie Malmsteen made a name for himself in 1984 by playing in the popular band Alcatrazz, and then by releasing his debut solo album Rising Force later that year, which made it to #60 on the Billboard Charts. Joe Satriani's 1987 album Surfing With The Alien was a surprise hit, containing the ever-popular instrumental ballad "Always With Me, Always With You", and the blues boogie infected "Satch Boogie"—both staples for guitarists learning their craft. Two years later came Satriani's follow-up album Flying in a Blue Dream.
After Malmsteen left Alcatrazz, he was replaced by the extravagant Steve Vai, who had previously been playing with the Frank Zappa band. Continuing the tradition (and following a brief stint in David Lee Roth's band from 1986 to 1988), Vai went on to release a number of highly acclaimed solo albums. Arguably the best-known of these was his 1990 release, Passion and Warfare.
Jason Becker was also considered by many to be a great player, who released two albums with Cacophony. Cacophony were a primarily instrumental group featuring Becker and Marty Friedman (the latter of whom went on to play with the legendary thrash metal band Megadeth). After the release of Cacophony's second album Go Off! in 1988, Becker released two solo albums before being diagnosed with ALS. He now uses a wheelchair and is completely unable to play.
Click Here for 1990'S Article
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