Saleem's Top Favorite Instrumentals

As the title of the article suggests, this list archives my all time favorite instrumentals from various songs that I've heard over the many years of my music-loving history. Some of these song date back to my early childhood while others are fairly recent. However, all of them have one singular thing in common. Production-wise from an instrumental perspective, separate from the vocals, these songs immediately won me over and ended up becoming personal favorites. Way before I was doing editorials and reviews for movies, television, comics, and video games, music production (specifically beats) was a huge passion of mines dating back to the 90s-early 2000s. 

So to celebrate that side of my life, I've decided to finally take a trip down memory lane from my youthful years of MTV, BET, and late night FM radio song discoveries all the way to the present days of YouTube music video hopping. A well thought out list highlighting those special tracks that left me with the same nagging thought..."Where can I find that song without the vocals? How do I get ahold of that beat?". So without further ado, I give you my collection of favorite instrumentals that stood out to me the most for whatever unique reasons that they did at the time

Side Note: This list will be updated whenever something new comes around or an oldie pops back up in my memory banks, so keep an eye out for new entries down the road. Actually, better yet, I'd love for you guys to send me some recommendations in the comments section with some of your favorite instrumentals. I'm always open to new music. 

Rap/Hip-Hop

1. A Tribe Called Quest - Electric Relaxation

2. A Tribe Called Quest - Lyrics To Go

3. A Tribe Called Quest - Find A Way

4. A Tribe Called Quest - Stressed Out

5. MF Doom - Hooks Is Extra

6. Madvillain - Monkey Suite

7. Madvillain - Money Folder

8. Raekwon - Icecream

9. Kurious - I’m Kurious

10. J-Dilla - Flyy

11. Cam’ron - What Means The World To You

12. Three 6 Mafia - Stay Fly

13. Clipse Featuring Slim Thug - Wamp Wamp (What It Do)

14. Kanye West - Welcome To Heartbreak

15. Theophilus London - Why Even Try ft. Sara Quin

Honorable Mentions:

1. The Fugees - Ready Or Not

2. T.I. - Why You Wanna

3. Tip - The Look (Descry’s Remix)

4. Mac Miller - S.D.S.

5. Madvillain - Rhinestone Cowboy

6. Jay-Z - Hey Papi 

7. Jim Jones - Summer Wit’ Miami

8. Mr. Cheeks - Lights Camera Action

9. Fat Joe - Flow Joe

10. Common - Come Close To Me

11. Common - Go! (Instrumental)

12. One Chance - Look At Her

13. Clipse - Mr. Me Too

14. JJ Doom - Banished

15. JJ Doom - Winter Blues

16. The Black Eyed Peas - Like That

17. Q-Tip - Gettin' Up

18. Consequence- Grammy Family

19. Busta Rhymes, M.O.P. - Czar

20. The Diplomats - Crunk Muzik

21. DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince - Summertime

22. Pete Rock & CL Smooth - They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.) 

R&B

1. Tweet - Oops (Oh My)

2. Donell Jones - Where I Wanna Be

3. LL Cool J - Luv U Better

4. Toni Braxton - Hit The Freeway

5. Faith Evans - I Love You

6. Jones - Around

7. Keisha Cole - Take Me Away

8. Tamia - So Into You

9. Mya - Fallen

Honorable Mentions

1. Destiny’s Child - Bills, Bills, Bills

2. The Commodores - Nightshift

3. Pharrell - Frontin

4. Mariah Carey Honey

-Pop/Trip-Hop/Electronic

1. Nelly Furtado - Promiscuous 

2. Nelly Furtado - All Good Things (Come To An End)

3. Gwen Stefani - 4 In The Morning

4. Cassie - Long Way 2 Go

5. Sting - Desert Rose 

6. Late Night Allumni - World Spins Around

7. Late Night Alumni - Ring A Bell

8. Absinthe - Starlight

9. Björk - Venus As A Boy

10. Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Music Gets The Best of Me

11. Sophie B. Hawkins - Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover 

12. Suzanne Vega - Pornographer’s Dream

13. Primitive Radio Gods - Standing Outside An Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand

14. Mono - Life In Mono

15. Massive Attack - Protection

16. Massive Attack - Safe From Harm (7” Version)

17. Massive Attack - Risingson

18. Dryve & Hunz - Synth on Fire

19. Immortal Girlfriend - Daybreak

20. Sunglasses Kid - Come Back To Me

21. Yota - Matters of the Heart

22. Yota - Moonboy

23. Minus Blue - Too Far To Speak

24. Phantogram - Fall In Love

25. Dua Lipa - Houdini

26. The Veronicas - Untouched

Honorable Mentions

1. Say Lou Lou - Games For Girls

2. Jo Jo - Leave (Get Out)

3. Björk - Hyper-Ballad

4. Sneaker Pimps - 6 Underground

5. Jennifer Lopez - Waiting For Tonight

6. Chvrches - It’s Not Right But It’s Okay

7. Don Henley - Boys of Summer

8. Cameo - Candy

9. Shura - Touch

10. Youssou N 'Dour - 7 Seconds

11. Michael Oakley - Turn Back Time

12. Madonna - Sorry

13. CHVRCHES - The Mother We Share

14. Jennifer Lopez - Waiting for Tonight

-Dance/Techno/Trance/House/Electronic

1. Faithless - Insomnia (Monster Mix) 

2. Tiesto - Walking On Clouds

3. Jask - Dreams (Nikos Diamantopoulos Remix) 

4. Neve - Supernatural

5. Neve - Supernatural (Ambient Mix)

6. Phonique - One Step 2010

7. Phonique - Feel What You Want

8. Coastline - Alone With You (Chillout Remix)

9. Ku You - 40 Degrees

10. Wamdue Project - Like Me

11. Wamdue Project - Walk With Me

12. Andy Moor - Trespass (Album Mix)

13. Opus III - I Talk To The Wind

14. Markus Schulz - Perception (Super8 & Tab Remix - Edit)

15. Jjos - Night Colors

16. Astrid Suryanto - Distant Bar (Original Mix)

17. Alcazar - Crying At The Discoteque

Honorable Mentions

1. Afterlife - Suddenly

2. Andre Sobota - Coda

3. Avoure - Aura

4. Chicane - Saltwater (7" Edit)

5. Chicane feat. Mason - Strong In Love (Radio Edit)

6. Lulu James - Tear My Heart

7. Milky - Just The Way You Are (Album Version)

8. Anada Project - Cascades of Colour

9. Ian Van Dahl feat Marsha - Castles In The Sky (Radio Mix)

Rock

1. Dishwalla - Counting Blue Cars

2. Silversun Pickups - Ragamuffin

3. Silversun Pickups - Rusted Wheel

4. Silversun Pickups - Simmer

5. Silversun Pickups - Dream At Tempo 050

6. Dutch Uncles - In Salvia

7. Dutch Uncles - Damascenes

8. The Cranberries - Ode To My Family

9. Vertical Horizon - Everything You Want

10. Tired Pony - All Things All At Once

11. Coldplay - Clocks

12. Marilyn Mason - If I Was Your Vampire

13. Alice In Chains - Would?

14. Deftones - Digital Bath

15. A Perfect Circle - Outsider (Apocalypse Remix)

Honorable Mentions

1. Linkin Park - In The End

2. Linkin Park - Somewhere I Belong

3. Linkin Park - Breaking The Habbit

4. The Notwist - Consequence

5. 311 - Amber

6. Lostprophets - Last Train Home

7. Lenny Kravitz - Again

8. Interpol - Try It On

9. Charlie Brown Jr - Céu Azul

10. Him - Wings of A Butterfly 

Reggae/Dancehall

1. Barrington Levy - Here I Come

2. Wayne Marshall - Overcome

3. Wayne Wonder - No Letting Go

4. Beenie Man - Dude

5. Musical Youth - Pass The Dutchie