It’s the middle of January and the days are short and the skies are grey so it’s time to hunker down and enjoy something a little easier to listen to.
I could be talking about Perry Como or Henry Mancini but no, I am talking about some great rock and roll instrumentals.
While every music aficionado believes that there is nothing as finely crafted as a classical piece from Bach or Brahms or Mozart. I can’t really argue about that. It is amazing what these guys did hundreds of years ago. They had no technology, no advanced computer programs to simulate different components of a piece. They wrote each part out and had the genius to make it all work. Bravo to them!
Not my thing though. The composers of the following pieces of music I contend are geniuses as well. Yes, they had 8 track (and eventually 16 track) recording systems but that was it. They wrote complex arrangements with little formal training and what came out was equally as beautiful.
If you look back over the last 50 years or so, there really are few bands that could blend rock with precision orchestration like the Moody Blues. Yes, there was ELO, Procol Harem and Emerson Lake and Palmer but I think that the Moody Blues were just a tad above their peers. What they did with their own music was very unique and that’s why I lead off with them. If you have any Moody Blues records you can go and listen to some great songs and then hear the same song with no lyrics. I am not sure if any other band had the confidence to produce two versions of the same song on almost every record. Take for example, “Lost In A Lost World”, great song with really deep meanings but drop the singing and it becomes a truly beautiful musical piece. Same thing with “Tuesday Afternoon” and “Lovely To See You”. Amazing that you could write songs that could stand alone both ways.
Going in a different direction, “Water Song” by Hot Tuna is a beautiful instrumental. Great acoustic guitar and it has a riff that once you hear it, it sticks with you. This is not a slick, overproduced piece of music. To me, it sounds like these guys practiced it a few times and went in with an 8 track recorder on and cut the song.
Another song on a very similar vein is “Flute Thing” by the Blues Project. A beautiful piece that winds through some great flute solos and considering it was recorded in 1966, was way ahead of it’s time. Sort of psychedelic before psychedelic even became a thing.
You want psychedelia, I have psychedelia. “Sex Machine” by Sly and The Family Stone is a 13+ minute trip. Never sure where it’s going but who cares. Sly was a master at mixing funk with rock (George Clinton, whos that?) and this is a perfect example of his skills. Again, not over-produced and it sounds like the band just had a fresh delivery and went into the studio. There might be some vocals in the song but this is an instrumental through and through. Another song, I have never tired of.
I’m going old school here and I think the Link Wray version of “Rumble” is worth listening to. I like Wray’s guitar playing immensely and while he is not Eddie Van Halen clean, he has a definite style that is unique.
Another song of that ilk is “Hide Away” by Freddie King. This song has been done by 3,870 different guitarists and I have heard about 6 versions so far and this is the one I like the best. You would think this is a fairly easy song to play on the guitar but from what I hear, it is not. If Freddie King isn’t your speed, try Stevie Ray Vaughn’s take on it. Equally as stupendous.
Speaking of Stevie Ray, “Little Wing” has to be included. His guitar playing is other worldly and I will not listen to anyone who disagrees. This song is the Holy Grail of guitar solos and may be one of the best instrumental rock records ever recorded. We can argue that if you like.
Other than The Who, legendary bands rarely did instrumental works. Beatles? Rolling Stones? Led Zeppelin had a couple and one of them I will include here more for historical reasons than anything else. “Moby Dick” from Led Zeppelin II is a great instrumental and it was one of the highlights of the Zeppelin concert my friends and I went to in 1973 at Madison Square Garden (yes, that was the concert filmed for The Song Remains The Same concert film). One of my friends, after we got the tickets, couldn’t wait to see John Bonham on drums for the solo in “Moby Dick”. That was all he could talk about, yet, when they played it, he was passed out on in his seat, for the whole 23 minute drum solo! We tried reviving him to no avail. As long as he had a pulse, we knew he was ok. Anyway, it is a great song and it segues right into “Bring it On Home”. I liked them after their debut album but loved them after hearing this record.
Speaking of The Who. They have several pieces that could be included on this list but I will have to say that the title track from Quadrophenia would be my top pick. The album, as you know by now, is a rock opera staged in four parts. This song comprises elements of those four parts and it really is beautiful in it’s own way. The production quality and the complexity just adds to greatness of this song. The other instrumental from the album is a song called “The Rock” and it is worth a listen as well.
A lot of people would want me to include something by Genesis, or Rush and while I do agree they were great groups, what I have found over the years, I just can’t get into their instrumentals. I give them credit for writing such complicated pieces of music but I like simple and these guys were anything but simple.
My last pick is a short one by Traffic, “Glad” from John Barleycorn Must Die. Steve Winwood’s piano is incredible. Having seen this song played live in an extended version was one of the best songs I have every seen played live.
Day in the life, Jeff Beck!