Instrumental Hits

Blue is Blue

A Taste of Honey

Midnight Cowboy

Classical Gas

Soul Coaxing by Raymond Lefevre

Released about the same time as 'Love is Blue' in '68 but didn't chart very high. In any case, it's my favourite instrumental.

A Summer Place

Popcorn!

Theme from “Route 66”. With bonus ass pics and homoerotica provided by George Maharis and Martin Milner.

Sing! Sing! Sing!

Even without the haunting melodies of Claudine "IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!" Longet,

the instrumental of 'Nothing To Lose' by Henry Mancini from the '68 movie, 'The Party' soothes the savage beast

Widor's Toccata (from his 5th Symphony), probably the most obscenely sexual piece ever written for organ. The organist is Olivier Latry. Definitely the best rendition - there is no way to top this.

theme from Elvira Madigan

r1 That song was a #1 hit in the US, but its name is LOVE IS BLUE. (Original French title: "L'amour est bleu")

Here's what Santa's bringing OP this year.

I own this thread.

Laura

Big in 1981

The beautiful Chariots of Fire theme. I can't imagine things like this even being on young peoples' radar now. I was a child when this came out and I loved it.

r18 see r15

r19 Oops, damnit. Sorry I swear i looked! I will step away in humiliation now.

Picnic

Sun Treader

This thread is nothing without Kenny G's "Songbird"...

a far cry

sequneza V

Moulin Rouge

They do an awesome job with this tune that's been a favorite of mine since the film was released!

R27 Morricone was so imaginative and his music is such a great pleasure to hear, and even more so to see it performed live. It must be a huge undertaking. I even enjoy is played on ukuleles.

tick-tock

Telstar

Feels so Good

Baby Elephant Walk - another Mancini

A Man and a Woman

Herb Alpert, Rise

A Man and a Woman (from R32).

The Godfather Suite, Thanks for R27.

The Third Man Theme

It's still an instrumental with "la-las" right?

Anyway, from my parents' era - Lawrence Welk's "Calcutta"

Another one from that same era - "Mexico"

One more and then I'm leaving . . .

Bert Kaempfert's "Wonderland by Night"

🎵. 📦., 💃

1968 the year of Love is Blue AND Classical Gas both big hits. That baroque-pop sound is so thrilling. The Mason Williams clip is pure class. Most likely The Smothers Brothers Show. So great to listen to them again.

Some nice instrumentals posted here, but this one puts them all to shame:

My man Mangione makes me feel so good.

r20, please ignore horse's ass r19. If the Chariots of Fire theme is your favorite instrumental, it's perfectly okay for you to say so, even if someone else has posted it previously. Don't give in to such OCD bullying tactics. There is no reason to feel humiliated.

Chariots of Fire is one of my favorite instrumentals, too. Fuck r19. Fuck him right in the ass with a tire iron wrapped in a pair of those white shorts.

Here's some more Chariots of Fire for control queen r19 to wrap his wasted, withered mind around.

And some more from Chariots of Fire, something I've turned to more than once in these increasingly anti-Semitic weeks.

Orange Blossom Special by Roy Clark

Vince Guaraldi, Christmas Time is Here

^ Brilliant

One of my favorites: "Stranger on the Shore," by Mr. Acker Bilk.

Nadia's Theme

R51, Thanks

Love's Theme (yes, I know it's a Barry White production, but no vocals).

Nadia's Theme is one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written anytime anywhere

r54 = Katherine Chancellor Sterling Murphy

I say fuck R19 as well.

This is to compliment R48's post.

Lily Was Here by Candy Dulfer and Dave Stewart

I love the Mission Impossible theme remix Larry Mullen and Adam Clayton of U2 did back in 1996.

The original is awesome, as well.

[quote]Nadia's Theme is one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written anytime anywhere.

Unfortunately, its being so closely identified with "The Young and the Restless" that it immediately calls up images of Brendad Ixon spoils it for me.

"Hill St. Blues" theme.

Another one from Mancini ... theme from "Newhart."

"St. Elsewhere"

"Cast Your Fate to the Wind"

the coolest of the cool

Hugh Masekela, Grazing in the Grass

live and beautiful

R11, thanks for the link to Widor’s Toccata. The top comment says it should be the first piece played when Notre Dame reopens and I agree

St Elmo’s Fire theme

Michel Legrand's 'The Summer Knows' from 'The Summer of 42'.

Lara's Theme

Papillon by Jerry Goldsmith

Tequila! interpreted by Ann-Margret

From 1969 - "Quentin's Theme" from daytime soap opera "Dark Shadows."

Pop Chart Peaks: Record World 6, Cash Box 8, Billboard 13 - Easy Listening Peak: 3. It was also nominated for a Grammy.

DataLounge helped Lawrence Welk reach top of the charts for two weeks in 1961 with his big hit, "Calcutta."

Barber's Adagio from 'Platoon'.

Dueling Banjos

The theme to the film Peyton Place was pretty popular, and of course ....

... the one part of it was used for the popular prime time television serial drama of the same name.

Moon River.

79 replies and this is absent unless it is one of those posts that says "this" with a YouTube link.

Dave Brubeck-Take Five.

The lovely "Song From Moulin Rouge." A vocalist comes in about halfway through this version, but it's primarily remembered as an instrumental.

r79 "Moon River" was not an instrumental.

Herb Alpert, "Casino Royale."

Yes it was. Henry Mancini again.

Another beauty from Henry Mancini. The Wurlitzer organ sounds wonderful.

The beautiful opening theme to Twin Peaks composed by Angelo Badalamenti won a Grammy award in 1991.

Meco's disco version of the Star Wars theme was a big international hit. From wiki:

[quote] On the picture's opening day, Wednesday, May 25, 1977, Meco attended the 20th Century-Fox soon-to-be blockbuster hit Star Wars. By the following night, he had seen the film four more times, and attended several more screenings over the weekend. He then got the idea to make a disco version of the score by John Williams and contacted Neil Bogart at Casablanca Records to pitch the project. However, rather than greenlighting the project right away, Bogart chose to wait. Only after both the picture itself as well as the original score had become huge hits did Bogart agree to help Meco realize his idea.

"Follow Your Bliss" - the B-52's beautiful end-song to the band's "Cosmic Thing" album.

Telstar by The Tornados

Harlem Nocturne.

r89, see r30

"Take Five," Dave Brubeck

It wasn't a hit (wasn't even released as a single), but I've always loved Prince's Parade-era B-side "Alexa De Paris." It's gorgeous.

R91, see R44.

Stranger on the Shore by Mr. Acker Bilk

Paul Hardcastle RAINFOREST

The Last of th

Mike Oldfield. The premiere of Tubular Bells III. Live outdoors at the Horse Guards in the pouring rain to a packed house in ponchos. The band are absolutely loving it and the crowd is entranced. Richard Branson is soaked.

What a performance.

Now let me post it

[quote]R89, see R30

Combing a DL thread on favorite instrumental hits to root out possible redundant posts has to be the very definition of having nothing better to do.

Allman Brothers - Jessica

Even better: IN Memory of Elizabeth Reed

Or "Hot Lanta". The best piece of music ever written about an unworthy place

I always admired this performance by The Chieftains. There is so much happening in each part of the composition. I love it.

Opus One

Burt Bacharach - Nikki

Frank Zappa - Black Napkins (live 1977)

Another hit composed by Henry Mancini was the theme to Peter Gunn. An album of the television show's music was soon released. It was also recorded by trumpeter Ray Anthony and his Orchestra. But I believe the biggest hit with the song was the version done by Duane Eddy and the Rebels. Eddy was known as the guy with the "twangy" guitar sound.

All my favorites are already on here. But for some reason I have the entire soundtrack of the original “Lolita” and I like this part.

Jan Hammer's theme for Miami Vice reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1985 and charted in many foreign countries as well.

Jeff Beck's Grammy winning version of Puccini's "Nessun Dorma" off his album "Emotion & Commotion".

Thought one of the biggest, most complex, popular instrumental hits would have been mentioned already. Sing ,Sing, Sing. It will always lift you mood.

Theme to Exodus.

Sorry this is the instrumental. It went to #2 in 1960.

Tangential, but the theme to Gomorrah is absolutely beautiful.

Billboard #1 in 1976

Music Box Dancer - Frank Mills

Thanksgiving by George Winston

Green Onions always makes me want to get up and shimmy.

Coolest of Cool

R112 It was. R9

boogie...

And it is again, r121.

Artie Shaw - Begin The Beguine. Artie made a hit of this unusual Cole Porter Broadway ballad in 1938. This is a 1945 live recording, with completely different solos - it’s a beauty.

Sorry, that was a bad link...

[quote]Music Box Dancer - Frank Mills

I met a boy called Frank Mills on September 12th right here, in front of the Waverly.

The Colonel Bogey March - theme song to "Bridge on the River Kwai."

R6 — I agree. I also love the 1976 version.

So many great tunes on this list.

I always really loved Bill Conti’s theme for The Colbys.

Like the show, the theme was a spinoff of Dynasty’s theme.

I think Bill Conti also wrote the theme to Falcon Crest.

The original is great, but I also really liked the season 9 update — lots of synth. Mark Snow may’ve been responsible for the updated version.

Axel F.

Herbie Hancock ROCKIT - mostly instrumental but with a few robotic utterances of the word “rockit.”

It Can't Be Wrong from Now Voyager.

Edgar Winter – Frankenstein

And speaking of Bill Conti – Gonna Fly Now

Quincey Jones's Soul Bossa Nova

If we're talking Bill Conti, we're talking An Unmarried Woman.

Benny Goodman had huge cock face.

So cool..... The vocal version by Astrid Giberto is called "So Nice"

David Foster's "Elizabeth" wasn't a hit but it's a great tune.

Bert Kaempfert:

"This Happy Feeling" - became famous as the theme song of "The Sandy Becker Show" on channel 5 early mornings

R129 How was that a hit tune?

More Kaempfert: "Afrikaan Beat" - also used on the Sandy Becker Show as Exit Music.

R133 The song made from theme - called “Wrong” - was a big hit. But not as an instrumental.

The Entertainer - theme from The Sting, by Scott Joplin - was a big hit.

r141, where did you live? The Sandy Becker show was on in the late afternoon in New York, also on channel 5.

r146: Valley Stream, NY. Sandy was broadcast TWICE a day! Morning and afternoon!

From the disco era ...

Also from the disco era ... a Barry White original.

Spanish Flea

The entire oeuvre of Hooked on Classics.

Play "Misty" for Me

The Stripper, by David Rose. (Also Holiday For Strings, if not already mentioned).

String of Pearls

Yakety Sax

Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White - Perez Prado.

The Poor People Of Paris - big hit. You’ll know it when you hear it.

Ruby (theme from the film, Ruby Gentry, with Jennifer Jones, Charlton Heston, Karl Malden). Harmonica hit.

The Orange Blossom Special

Santo & Johnny - And I Love Her

Henry Mancini: Lujon

I don’t think I’d ever heard it before today (in an Instagram video) and seeing this thread prompted me to track it down.

I grew up hearing a lot of these and I almost never knew the title or artist til this thread.

Dave Brubeck et al. look like low level accountants.

Laura Palmer's Theme and Twin Peaks have had me stifling tears all day.

My R4 no longer works. Here's a replacement.

Slow dancing to this great song at school dances and "hops" all over the place. Still can get me emotional.

Sleep Walk by brothers Santo and Johnny.