To respectfully correct the first post, the hit version of "Rumble" was an original by the late great Link Wray (and his Ray Men), although I'm guessing Duane Eddy performed it as well. I believe Eddy's biggest hit was "Rebel Rouser." Off-topic but worth mentioning: saw Link Wray perform in the late '90s at the Khyber in Philly with a young bassist and drummer, and he absolutely tore it up. He must have been nearing 70 at the time, and cranked out some of the dirtiest, heaviest guitar I've ever heard. They opened (and closed) with "Rumble," and I was just astonished by the overwhelming raw power. Totally inspirational from a "you don't have to get lamer as you get older" perspective, which is not out-of-the-ordinary in jazz and blues but seemingly less so in rock.
Switching gears, how about Percy Faith's "Theme from 'A Summer Place'"?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mERbQIvgJXs
I can't think of any recent instrumental hits, and that's a shame. Not sure why, but some of the reasons mentioned in this thread make sense. I think one reason could be that there are far fewer instrumental bands than there were in the heyday of instrumental rock, but I guess that's a chicken-or-the-egg situation. Are there fewer instrumental bands because there isn't a market for it, or isn't there a market for it because there are fewer instrumental bands?
