An instrumental or instrumental song is music normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instrumentals. The music is primarily or exclusively produced using musical instruments. An instrumental can exist in music notation, after it is written by a composer; in the mind of the composer ; as a piece that is performed live by a single instrumentalist or a musical ensemble, which could range in components from a duo or trio to a large big band, concert band or orchestra.
Art of Noise were a British avant-garde synth-pop group formed in early 1983 by engineer/producer Gary Langan and programmer J. J. Jeczalik, along with keyboardist/arranger Anne Dudley, producer Trevor Horn, and music journalist Paul Morley. The group had international Top 20 hits with its interpretations of "Kiss", featuring Tom Jones, and the instrumental "Peter Gunn", which won a 1986 Grammy Award.
"Cars" is the first solo single by English musician Gary Numan. It was released on 24 August 1979 and is from his debut studio album The Pleasure Principle. The song reached the top of the charts in several countries, and is Numan's most successful single.
"We Will Rock You" is a song by the British rock band Queen from their 1977 album News of the World, written by guitarist Brian May. Rolling Stone ranked it number 330 of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004, and it placed at number 146 on the Songs of the Century list in 2001. In 2009, "We Will Rock You" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Ultravox were a British new wave band, formed in London in April 1974 as Tiger Lily. Between 1980 and 1986, they scored seven Top Ten albums and seventeen Top 40 singles in the UK, the most successful of which was their 1981 hit "Vienna".
William Lee Currie is a British multi-instrumentalist and songwriter from Huddersfield, England. He is best known as the keyboard and strings player with new wave band Ultravox, who achieved their greatest commercial success in the 1980s.
James "Midge" Ure is a Scottish musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. His stage name, Midge, is a phonetic reversal of Jim. Ure enjoyed particular success in the 1970s and 1980s in bands including Slik, Thin Lizzy, Rich Kids, Visage, and as the second frontman of Ultravox. In 1984, he co-wrote and produced the charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?", which has sold 3.7 million copies in the UK. The song is the second-highest-selling single in UK chart history. Ure co-organised Band Aid, Live Aid and Live 8 with Bob Geldof. He acts as a trustee for the charity and also serves as an ambassador for Save the Children.
"Tie Your Mother Down" is a song by the British rock band Queen, written by lead guitarist Brian May. It is the opening track and the second single from their 1976 album A Day at the Races. On its original release as a single in 1977 the song peaked at 31 in the UK Singles Chart. More than 20 years later, it was released as a double a-side to "No-One but You " where it reached 13 in UK Singles Chart. On the album the song is preceded by a one-minute instrumental intro featuring a Shepard tone melody, performed by Brian May, which is reprised in the ending of "Teo Torriatte": this was intended to create a "circle" within the album.
"Vienna" is a song by British new wave band Ultravox, released on 9 January 1981 by Chrysalis Records as the third single and the title track from their fourth studio album of the same name. Featuring Midge Ure on lead vocals, the new wave ballad is regarded as a staple of the synth-pop genre that was popularised in the early 1980s and remains both the band's signature song and their most commercially successful release.
"Rocket" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. It was the fourth and penultimate single from their second album, Siamese Dream, and was written by Billy Corgan. The song charted in Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, as well as on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. It was one of the few singles that did not appear on the Smashing Pumpkins' greatest hits album Rotten Apples.
The Alfee is a Japanese rock band formed in Tokyo in 1973. Originally a folk quartet, they became a trio of bassist Masaru Sakurai, acoustic guitarist Kohnosuke Sakazaki and electric guitarist Toshihiko Takamizawa in 1975. With all three performing vocal duties, they adopted a harder rock sound in the early 1980s. Beginning with their 16th single "Marie-Anne" in 1983, they have released 58 consecutive top 10 singles. The Alfee hold the record for most concerts performed by a Japanese band, with 2,888 as of December 2023. HMV Japan ranked them number 92 on their list of the top 100 Japanese pop acts.
Room to Roam is the fifth studio album by the Waterboys, released by Ensign Records on 2 October 1990. It continued the folk rock sound of 1988's Fisherman's Blues, but was less of a commercial success, reaching #180 on the Billboard Top 200 after its release in October 1990. Critical response continues to be mixed. AllMusic describes it both as "not quite as [musically] successful" as Fisherman's Blues, but also as a "Celtic rock classic". The front and back covers were designed by Simon Fowler based upon photography by Stefano Giovannini and Sean Jackson.
"I Have a Dream" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released in December 1979 as the sixth and final single from the group's sixth studio album, Voulez-Vous. Anni-Frid Lyngstad sang lead vocals. It was a major hit, topping the charts in many countries and peaking at No. 2 in the UK over the Christmas week of 1979. Twenty years later, Irish pop group Westlife released a version that reached No. 1 in the UK over the Christmas week of 1999.
"That's All" is a song by the English rock band Genesis. It is a group composition and appears as the second track on their 1983 album Genesis. It was the album's second single after "Mama". On June 17, 1993, MCA Records re-issued and re-released the song as a CD and "HiQ" cassette single.
"Star Girl" is the second single from English pop rock band McFly's third studio album, Motion in the Ocean (2006). Released in the UK on 23 October 2006, the song was the band's sixth number-one single in the UK, staying in the top 20 for two weeks. In 2009, the song was played in space to wake up the astronauts on the space station, with thanks to a successful Twitter campaign started by band member Tom Fletcher, asking NASA to play the song in space.
U-Vox is the eighth studio album by British new wave band Ultravox, released on 13 October 1986 by Chrysalis Records. It was the band's fifth album during the Midge Ure era, and the final one featuring the band's 1979 lineup, with the exception of Warren Cann, for nearly 26 years. The Ure-era lineup would eventually reform in 2008. It was also the last Ultravox album to reach the top 10 of the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number nine.
"All in One Day" is the final single from Ultravox's 1986 album, U-Vox, released on 8 June 1987. It was the last Ultravox release during their most popular 1980's incarnation with Midge Ure. The song was written as a tribute to the Live Aid event and the orchestra was arranged and conducted by George Martin.
Dancing with Tears in My Eyes is a 1995 compilation from British band Ultravox covering their output with Midge Ure, recorded from 1980 to 1986. The album was released by EMI in the label's "Music For Pleasure" series. It was re-released in 1996 by the Disky label with the same title, then in 1997 by EMI as The Best of Ultravox in the label's "Centenary Collection", and again in 2003, again with the latter title.
The Gift is the debut solo studio album by Scottish musician Midge Ure, released on 7 October 1985 by Chrysalis Records. It was released while his band Ultravox were taking a break; the band would go on to release U-Vox (1986) before breaking up. The album reached No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart partly due to the large attention drawn to it by the single "If I Was" which reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in September 1985. "That Certain Smile" was released as the second single in November 1985, and "Wastelands" was released as the third single in January 1986.
"Yellow Pearl" is a song recorded by Thin Lizzy frontman Phil Lynott, originally for his 1980 solo album, Solo in Soho. It was written by Lynott and Midge Ure, who was a temporary member of Thin Lizzy at the time, as well as frontman of Ultravox. It was subsequently remixed and released again on Lynott's second album, The Philip Lynott Album. The remixed version was used as the theme music to the British music chart television programme Top of the Pops from 1981 to 1986.
