Top 5 - Best Rock & Roll Instrumentals

Not needing words to convey the meaning and message of a song is an absolute challenge. Most are just fun dance or surf numbers, but there are some that can bring on much more emotional responses.

Here are my Top 5 Instrumentals:

5. Green Onions - Booker T and the M.G.’s (1962) Best R&B instrumental ever!

4. Rebel Rouser - Duane Eddy (1958) Folky, gritty early rock & roll, with great horns!

3. Wipeout - The Surfaris (1963) My first exposure to surf rock, even before the beach boys. Love the bongo like drumming and the prototypical sharp surf guitar.

2. Black Mountain Side - Led Zepplin (1969) Inspired by an Irish Folk song of a similar name, from the debut album that vacillated between folk and blues rock.

1. Samba Pa Ti - Santana at his best, mesmerizing guitar work, straining those notes but never breaking. Slow build, then the Hammond organ hits!

I left off a few honorable mentions, like: Edgar Winter Group’s Frankenstein, Jessica by the Allman Brothers Band and Eruption by Van Halen. What does your list look like?