Pop Instrumental Covers
tagStarted 1964Peak 1965–1976Last big hit still active
Located in 1 route
Pop instrumental covers focus on contemporary chart songs rather than older standards, translating vocal hooks into strings, electric piano, nylon guitar, or polished studio orchestra. The mood is cleaner and more current than classic easy listening, but the basic aim remains the same: make the hit hum-able without the singer.
History
The British Invasion and late-1960s pop explosion gave easy-listening arrangers a vast new songbook, leading the Hollyridge Strings, 101 Strings, James Last, and similar acts to build whole albums around Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, and soft-rock material; that commercial logic later resurfaced in modern string-quartet and piano-cover catalogs built for cafés, weddings, and algorithm-friendly playlisting.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- Smithsonian Libraries, "Popular instrumental music"
- Library of Congress, "Elevator Music"
- Joseph Lanza, *Elevator Music*. citeturn7search11turn7search21