"Rumble" is an influential rock instrumental by Link Wray & His Ray Men. Or… Read Full Bio ↴"Rumble" is an influential rock instrumental by Link Wray & His Ray Men. Originally released in 1958, "Rumble" utilized then-unexplored techniques like distortion and feedback. It is also described as the first song to use the power chord, the major modus operandi of the modern rock guitarist.
The song is a 12-bar blues instrumental played by a combination of two electric guitars, an electric bass guitar, and drum set.
"Rumble" is melodically characterized by a descending e-minor pentatonic scale played in triplets against the straight eights chords. The scale is played in first position on the guitar and while not original to "Rumble", is a staple of blues and rock guitar playing.
At a live gig in Fredericksburg, Virginia, attempting to work up a backing for The Diamonds' "The Stroll," Link Wray and his Ray Men came up with the stately, powerful blues instrumental "Rumble," which they originally called "Oddball." The song was an instant hit with the live audience, which demanded four repeats that night.
Eventually the song came to the attention of record producer Archie Bleyer of Cadence Records, who hated it, particularly after Wray poked holes in his amplifier's speakers to make the recording sound more like the live version; however, Bleyer's stepdaughter loved it and it was released despite his protest. Phil Everly heard it and suggested the title Rumble, as it had a rough sound and said it sounded like a street fight.
It was banned in several radio markets because the term rumble was a slang term for a gang fight, and it was feared that the song's harsh sound glorified "juvenile delinquency." Nevertheless it became a huge hit, not only in the United States where it climbed to number sixteen on the charts in the summer of 1958, but also in Great Britain, where it has been cited as an influence on The Kinks and The Who, among others. Bob Dylan once even referred to it as "the best instrumental ever." Instrumentals were far more common on the Top 40 in the 1950s than in later years.
The 1980 Adam and the Ants song "Killer in the Home" (from their Kings of the Wild Frontier album) is based on the same ominous, descending three-chord glissando riff that is featured in "Rumble" (Ants' guitarist Marco Pirroni has cited Link Wray as a major influence).
The song is heard in the films The Warriors (In the deleted opening scene) Pulp Fiction, Independence Day, Blow, and It Might Get Loud.
The song is a 12-bar blues instrumental played by a combination of two electric guitars, an electric bass guitar, and drum set.
"Rumble" is melodically characterized by a descending e-minor pentatonic scale played in triplets against the straight eights chords. The scale is played in first position on the guitar and while not original to "Rumble", is a staple of blues and rock guitar playing.
At a live gig in Fredericksburg, Virginia, attempting to work up a backing for The Diamonds' "The Stroll," Link Wray and his Ray Men came up with the stately, powerful blues instrumental "Rumble," which they originally called "Oddball." The song was an instant hit with the live audience, which demanded four repeats that night.
Eventually the song came to the attention of record producer Archie Bleyer of Cadence Records, who hated it, particularly after Wray poked holes in his amplifier's speakers to make the recording sound more like the live version; however, Bleyer's stepdaughter loved it and it was released despite his protest. Phil Everly heard it and suggested the title Rumble, as it had a rough sound and said it sounded like a street fight.
It was banned in several radio markets because the term rumble was a slang term for a gang fight, and it was feared that the song's harsh sound glorified "juvenile delinquency." Nevertheless it became a huge hit, not only in the United States where it climbed to number sixteen on the charts in the summer of 1958, but also in Great Britain, where it has been cited as an influence on The Kinks and The Who, among others. Bob Dylan once even referred to it as "the best instrumental ever." Instrumentals were far more common on the Top 40 in the 1950s than in later years.
The 1980 Adam and the Ants song "Killer in the Home" (from their Kings of the Wild Frontier album) is based on the same ominous, descending three-chord glissando riff that is featured in "Rumble" (Ants' guitarist Marco Pirroni has cited Link Wray as a major influence).
The song is heard in the films The Warriors (In the deleted opening scene) Pulp Fiction, Independence Day, Blow, and It Might Get Loud.
Rumble
Link Wray & His Ray Men Lyrics
Instrumental
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@joemadden4160
How important, how meaningful, how impactful is this?
I heard this song for the first time at 18 off a cassette of 50's hits in 1985.
About 25 years+ after it was first recorded.
It changed my life.
It shouldn't have. I had heard reverb before.
What gives?
It's the soul of the song that grabs you. Wray had linked (pun intended) NATURE to his guitar in a way that was NEVER done before.
Pure mojo and he had the power.
@lgd1974
"Rumble" is an instrumental by American group Link Wray & His Ray Men. Released in the United States on March 31, 1958, as a single (with "The Swag" as a B-side), "Rumble" utilized the techniques of distortion and tremolo, then largely unexplored in rock and roll. The single is the only instrumental ever banned from radio in the United States.
In 2018, the song was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in a new category for singles.
At a live gig in Fredericksburg, Virginia, in early 1958, attempting to work up a backing for The Diamonds' "The Stroll", Link Wray & His Ray Men came up with the instrumental "Rumble", which they originally called "Oddball". It was an instant hit with the live audience, which demanded four repeats that night.
Eventually the instrumental came to the attention of record producer Archie Bleyer of Cadence Records, who hated it, particularly after Wray poked a pencil through the cone of his amplifier to make the recording sound more like the live version. But Bleyer's stepdaughter loved it, so he released it despite his misgivings. Phil Everly heard it and suggested the title "Rumble", as it had a rough sound and said it sounded like a street fight.
It was banned in several US radio markets, because the term 'rumble' was a slang term for a gang fight, and it was feared that the piece's harsh sound glorified juvenile delinquency.
@collinsnider4179
The only known instrumental that was banned from radio, how badass is that
@paperboy-2100
I know!! 😁
@robertstucky1506
@Marc MARTIN yep.
@steamstream7776
Actually, the insturmental "Space guitar" by Johnny Watson from 1954 which Is much more ferocious than this was banned.
@backbaconnbeer
Due to Frank Zappa's reputation his album Jazz From Hell was stickered in the 1980's with a parental warning. The entire album is instrumental music
@ernestinemaloy8680
Colin snider wait...what...???? And I cannot stress this enough...in the actual fuck now...???
@NadaCero
Every punk, grunge, shoegaze and metal band owes their career to this song
@roachcuca3190
you are a joke, not a joker
@yudiutama3233
@@roachcuca3190 ??
@karldyke5029
Apart from the fact that Black Sabbath took their influences from Jazz and Classical.
Listen to Holst the Planets Mars Suite. Then listen to Iron Man