Instrumental Rock is a style of music which emphasizes the instruments and will feature very little, or better yet, no singing at all. I especially like to listen to an accomplished guitar player getting the space to express themselves without having to worry about stepping on a vocalists toes. That's why I'm a huge fan of Instrumental Rock and these are my ten best Instrumental Rock songs.
These are the Instrumental Rock songs that have had the biggest impact on me over the years:
1. "Freeway Jam"- Jeff Beck: Written by keyboard player Jan Hammer and recorded for the 1975 "Blow By Blow" album, this tune features a lot of improve jamming and shows off Beck's signature style.
2. "YYZ" - Rush: This tune is off what was probably Rush's most successful album "Moving Pictures." Featuring the crazy bass playing of Geddy Lee, the intricate yet pounding drum work of Neil Peart and the melodic/textural guitar work of Alex Lifeson. Still a classic today!
3. "Mr. Scary" - George Lynch/Dokken: On Dokkens best selling album "Back for the Attack," George Lynch finally got the opportunity to show off those awesome guitar skills without Don Dokken's vocals getting in the way. Full of dark riffs as well as some sweet legato guitar leads.
4. "Hocus Pocus" - Focus: This rock classic consists of Jan Akkerman's on guitar with other instruments such as alto flute, accordion, and drum solos - along with Van Leer's whistling, nonsensical vocals, falsetto singing, and yodeling. Very eccentric sounding but it works!
5. "Satch Boogie" - Joe Satriani: He made Instrumental Guitar Rock popular in the 80's and this is probably Satriani's signature song. It's on his breakthrough album "Surfing with the Alien" and features plenty of catchy riffs and leads from the master!
6. "Blue Powder" - Steve Vai: On Vai's "Passion and Warfare" album, this song seems to just keep evolving. Besides Steve's virtuoso playing there's also a pretty awesome bass solo by Stuart Hamm that's worth note on this tune.
7. "Scarified" - Racer-X: This song really did scare me! The Guitar combo of Paul Gilbert and Bruce Bouillet playing fast harmonized scales and arpeggios is what really stands out on this tune.
8. "Cliffs of Dover" - Eric Johnson: This song is easily Eric Johnson's greatest hit and with good reason. He mixes masterful guitar playing with memorable melodies that instantly lifts the listener to a much happier place.
9. "Trilogy Suite Op:5" - Yngwie Malmsteen: This song was the only Instrumental on Yngwie's third album with his band Rising Force. He had lots of great Instrumentals on his previous albums but I think his chops were at their peak for this song. This song also had some very nice movements from part to part.
10. "Tumeni Notes" - Steve Morse: I just can't get over how precise Steve's technique is and this song is a prime example of it. With a tongue in cheek tittle he really does go over the top but with awesome results!
So this is my list as of today. I love this genre so much that tomorrow I could have a whole other set of best Instrumental Rock songs.
These are the Instrumental Rock songs that have had the biggest impact on me over the years:
1. "Freeway Jam"- Jeff Beck: Written by keyboard player Jan Hammer and recorded for the 1975 "Blow By Blow" album, this tune features a lot of improve jamming and shows off Beck's signature style.
2. "YYZ" - Rush: This tune is off what was probably Rush's most successful album "Moving Pictures." Featuring the crazy bass playing of Geddy Lee, the intricate yet pounding drum work of Neil Peart and the melodic/textural guitar work of Alex Lifeson. Still a classic today!
3. "Mr. Scary" - George Lynch/Dokken: On Dokkens best selling album "Back for the Attack," George Lynch finally got the opportunity to show off those awesome guitar skills without Don Dokken's vocals getting in the way. Full of dark riffs as well as some sweet legato guitar leads.
4. "Hocus Pocus" - Focus: This rock classic consists of Jan Akkerman's on guitar with other instruments such as alto flute, accordion, and drum solos - along with Van Leer's whistling, nonsensical vocals, falsetto singing, and yodeling. Very eccentric sounding but it works!
5. "Satch Boogie" - Joe Satriani: He made Instrumental Guitar Rock popular in the 80's and this is probably Satriani's signature song. It's on his breakthrough album "Surfing with the Alien" and features plenty of catchy riffs and leads from the master!
6. "Blue Powder" - Steve Vai: On Vai's "Passion and Warfare" album, this song seems to just keep evolving. Besides Steve's virtuoso playing there's also a pretty awesome bass solo by Stuart Hamm that's worth note on this tune.
7. "Scarified" - Racer-X: This song really did scare me! The Guitar combo of Paul Gilbert and Bruce Bouillet playing fast harmonized scales and arpeggios is what really stands out on this tune.
8. "Cliffs of Dover" - Eric Johnson: This song is easily Eric Johnson's greatest hit and with good reason. He mixes masterful guitar playing with memorable melodies that instantly lifts the listener to a much happier place.
9. "Trilogy Suite Op:5" - Yngwie Malmsteen: This song was the only Instrumental on Yngwie's third album with his band Rising Force. He had lots of great Instrumentals on his previous albums but I think his chops were at their peak for this song. This song also had some very nice movements from part to part.
10. "Tumeni Notes" - Steve Morse: I just can't get over how precise Steve's technique is and this song is a prime example of it. With a tongue in cheek tittle he really does go over the top but with awesome results!
So this is my list as of today. I love this genre so much that tomorrow I could have a whole other set of best Instrumental Rock songs.
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