Top 10 Instrumental Songs – Without Words!

Any attempt at such a list is bound to fail, as so many songs that deserve to be mentioned will inevitably be left out. But we’ll give it a shot anyway! Here’s our list of ten of the most famous instrumental songs. Without words – in the true sense of the word!

1. Meco: Star Wars Theme / Cantina Band

Fans just couldn’t get enough of the Star Wars theme. The American music producer and trombone player Domenico “Meco” Monardo rose to the top of instrumental stardom by selling a mind-blowing two million copies of his disco version of “Star Wars Theme / Canitina Band”. This feat even secured him an entry in the Guinness Book of Records.

Meco – Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk: Star Wars

2. Hans Zimmer: Pirates of the Caribbean – He’s a Pirate

When we’re talking about instrumental hits, film scoring legend Hans Zimmer must be mentioned. Oscars, Golden Globes, Grammys: he is undoubtedly the most successful German film composer of our time. He earned his first Oscar nomination for the 1989 film “Rain Main”, which also marked his breakthrough in Hollywood.  Like many of his compositions, his track “He’s a Pirate”, written with Klaus Badelt for “Pirates of the Caribbean”, became a cult hit.

Hans Zimmer – Pirates Of The Caribbean Medley

3. The Allman Brothers Band – Jessica

The 1973 track “Jessica” by American rock band The Allman Brothers has long become a legendary classic among instrumental hits. Guitarist Dickey Betts named the song after his daughter, while at the same time paying homage to Gypsy Jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt: the song can be played with just two fingers of the left hand. It’s been a staple of classic rock stations ever since. By the way: If you google the lyrics to “Jessica”, Google says that there aren’t any. You can’t make this stuff up.

The Allman Brothers Band – Jessica

4. Jean-Michel Jarre – Oxygene IV

Jean-Michel Jarre helped to establish synthesizer sounds in popular and dance music. Now widely considered an icon of electronic music, he had to overcome some obstacles and misunderstandings in the beginning of his career. After he released his album “Oxygène”, some buyers sent their copies back to the label. They believed that they had received a misprint because they couldn’t hear anything but noise in the beginning. However, Jarre claims that this was intentional. He had simply used the synthesized wind noise to cover up the crackling noises of his aging tape recorder.

Jean-Michel Jarre – Oxygene, Pt. 4

5. Vangelis – 1492 Conquest of Paradise & Chariots Of Fire

The Greek composer Vangelis is another pioneer of electronic music who explored a wide variety of genres from new age to rock, pop, and more. In 2008, he received an honourary doctorate from National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. His track “Chariots of Fire” was the first synthesized film score to win an Oscar. And “Conquest of Paradise” became the ring walk song for German boxer Henry Maske.

Vangelis – Chariots Of Fire

6. Gershon Kingsley / Hot Butter – Popcorn

The composer and band leader Gershon Kingsley was one of the first to experiment with the Moog synthesizer and use electronic sounds in his songs. After the instrumental track “Popcorn” climbed to the top of the French charts in 1972 and became the biggest hit of the year, it spread to the whole world and topped the charts for weeks in several countries. To follow up on the success, Hot Butter recorded a whole album with synth covers of songs like “Telstar” and “Amazing Grace”.

Popcorn Original Song

7. the Ventures – Walk-Don’t Run

With more than 100 million records sold, “the Ventures” can lay claim to being the best-selling instrumental band. In the 1960s, this instrumental rock band helped popularize the electric guitar across the world. In the USA alone, nearly 40 of their albums entered the charts, with 17 reaching the top 40. To pay tribute to the band, Fender released a series of Ventures limited edition instruments in the mid-90s – a Jazzmaster, a Stratocaster, and a Fender Jazz Bass designed to the musicians’ specifications. Aria Guitars and Wilson Brothers Guitars followed suit. The Wilson Brothers guitar in particular is closely modelled on the original Mosrite design.

The Ventures – Walk Don’t Run

8. Carlos Santana – Samba Pa Ti

To this day, the opening notes of this classic are the cue for everyone to get real close at a party. With “Samba Pa Ti”, guitar icon Carlos Santana created an instrumental hit that everyone knew by heart, even though it contains no lyrics. Generations of upcoming guitarists flocked to the guitar shops to practise its expressive melody. Once you’ve heard the intro, it’ll be stuck in your head forever. A bit of trivia: Carlos Santana wrote the song after listening to a jazz saxophone player in front of his apartment. So he played his guitar with the expression of a saxophone – a perfect symbiosis.

Carlos Santana – Samba Pa Ti

9. Safri Duo – Played-A-Live (The Bongo Song)

This bongo-crushing hit by the Danish percussion band Safri Duo always gets the party going. „Played-A-Live“ combines driving drums with electronic sounds and massive bass lines. You simply can’t help but dance and twitch like the young chemist in the video. Good luck singing along, as there aren’t any lyrics. But like many other hits by this unique band, this song inevitably sets the dance floor on fire.

Safri Duo – Played-A-Live (The Bongo Song)

10. Fleetwood Mac – Albatross

Last but not least, let’s sit back and relax with this unforgettable instrumental masterpiece by Fleetwood Mac. The iconic band with members Mick Fleetwood, Peter Green, and John and Christine McVie made music history with many of its songs. In “Albatross”, Peter Green delivers an impressive demonstration of just how laid-back you can play the guitar ­– a true master of his craft.

Fleetwood Mac – Albatross

Instrumental Songs: Your Feedback

Of course, this list can only be incomplete. We’d like to apologize in advance if we missed your personal favourites. What are your favourite instrumental songs? Let us know in a comment!