They Were Very Instrumental Quiz | Music Mixture

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In the 1980 movie "Superman II" starring Christopher Reeve, what instrumental song was playing on the tavern jukebox when the three super villians came in?

Answer: "Pick Up The Pieces" by Average White Band

"Pick Up The Pieces" (1975) is mostly instrumental with the title words being shouted out by the band all through the song. Since it's less than 25% vocal, it counts as an instrumental. In 1975 it hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

2. In 1968 Mason Williams recorded an instrumental smash in which he played an acoustic guitar while being accompanied by a full orchestra. The song was called "Classical_____"?

Answer: Gas

"Classical Gas" remains one of my all-time favorite instrumentals. Williams was a head writer for the "Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour" (1967-1969) and the song was introduced on that show. In an interesting note, the song was at one point believed to have been redone by legendary rock guitarist Eric Clapton. But the fact is he never did a cover version of the song.

3. In 1973, the Edgar Winter Group recorded a haunting synthesizer/electric guitar rock instrumental which shared the name of what famous movie monster creator?

Answer: Frankenstein

The song was Edgar Winter's biggest hit peaking at number one for one week on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1973.

4. What famous orchestra conductor topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1962 with ""The Stripper"?

Answer: David Rose

David Rose spent several years after the success of "The Stripper" as the orchestra conductor and music producer on the "Red Skelton Show" (1951-1971). He also produced and orchestrated TV themes including "Bonanza". Paul Mariat also hit number one for five weeks with the song, "Love Is Blue" (1968). Percy Faith was another successful conductor who gave us the number one song "Theme from A Summer Place" (1960) and Henry Mancini was a very popular conductor and writer who wrote and recorded the themes for "Romeo and Juliet" (1968), "Love Story" (1970) and "The Pink Panther"(1963).

5. Which of the following bands from the 1960s became the biggest selling instrumental band of all time?

Answer: The Ventures

The Ventures gave us some of the best surfing and beach instrumentals including "Walk, Don't Run" (1964). They also became even more famous for the theme from the original "Hawaii Five-O" television series. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 2008.

6. In 1979 what artist became the first artist in history to hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart as a vocalist and an instrumentalist?

Answer: Herb Alpert

Herb Alpert first gained recognition in the 1960s as the trumpet playing leader of his band, The Tijuana Brass. The band had several classic hits such as "Lonely Bull" (1962), "A Taste of Honey (1965) and "Spanish Flea" (1966). In spite of their success those songs failed to hit number one.

It wasn't until 1968 when Herb put down his trumpet and gave the ladies the song, "This Guy's In Love With You" that he finally reached the top of the charts. Eleven years later in 1979 he finally topped the Billboard Hot 100 charts with the instrumental "Rise". Barry White hit number one with the vocal, "Can't Get Enough Of Your Love Babe"(1974) and even though he did hit number one in 1974 with "Love's Theme", it was as a conductor of the Love Unlimited Orchestra.

7. Which of the following instrumental songs were not part of a movie soundtrack?

Answer: I, Robot

"I, Robot" was a single from the album of the same name recorded by Alan Parsons Project in 1977. The instrumental was not a part of the movie, "I, Robot"(2004) starring Will Smith however, like the movie, the song was based on the Issac Asimov science fiction short stories (1950).

As for the other songs, "Dueling Banjos" (1972) by Eric Weisberg and Tony Mandell was featured in the film "Deliverance" (1972) starring Burt Reynolds and John Voight. "Tubular Bells" was the haunting theme song from "The Exorcist" (1973) and "The Entertainer" was Marvin Hamlisch's arrangement of Scott Joplin's rag which was the theme song for the 1973 Best Picture winner, "The Sting" starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford.

8. Which 1970s game show used to feature Herb Alpert's music as the guests entered?

Answer: The Dating Game

"Spanish Flea" and "Whipped Cream" were played when the bachelor or bachelorette would enter. The use of Alpert's songs gained him even more popularity at the time.

9. In 1976 Walter Murphy and the Big Apple Band released an instrumental hit that was a jazzed up version of a symphony by what famous classical composer?

Answer: Beethoven

"A Fifth Of Beethoven" used the classic symphony to create a new style for the disco era. The song was utilized a year later as part of the "Saturday Night Fever" soundtrack as well as the film. It was the band's only hit and topped the charts in 1976 for one week.

10. There have been several television shows which had instrumental theme songs that were popular enough to hit the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Of the following television shows, which one did not produce a number one theme song on the Billboard Hot 100 charts?

Answer: The Young and Restless

The opening theme for the number one soap opera was of course "Nadia's Theme" (1976) which was the music played on ABC's "Wild World Of Sports" during a montage of Romanian Olympic champion Nadia Comaneci and her Montreal Olympic performances when she scored the first perfect "10" in Olympic history.

The song written by Barry De Vorzon and Perry Botkin, Jr peaked at number eight. The other three shows had number one themes. The "Theme from S.W.A.T." (1975) performed by Rhythm Heritage topped the charts for one week.

The song that became the opening for the Don Cornelius musical R&B show, "Soul Train" was "TSOP (The Sound Of Philadelphia)" (1974) recorded by MFSB (Mother Father Sister Brother) and it peaked at number one for two weeks. The "Theme from Miami Vice" by Jay Hammer hit number one in September 1985 for one week.

Source: Author RAgamer51

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor ertrum before going online.
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They Were Very Instrumental Trivia Quiz

I guess because I played in the band all through high school I developed a healthy interest in instrumental music. See how much you know about these instrumental songs and artists.

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