Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance


The Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance was an honor presented to recording artists for quality instrumental rock performances at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position".
The award was first presented at the 22nd Grammy Awards in 1980 to Paul McCartney and the band Wings for "Rockestra Theme". From 1986 to 1989, the category was known as Best Rock Instrumental Performance . According to the category description guide for the 52nd Grammy Awards, the award is presented to artists "for newly recorded rock, hard rock or metal instrumental performances".
As of 2011, Jeff Beck holds the records for the most wins, with six. Sting has received three awards, twice as a member of The Police—although he had no part in the band's "Behind My Camel", the 1982 award winner which he did not write and refused to play on.
Two-time recipients include Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, The Flaming Lips, Steve Vai, and brothers Jimmie Vaughan and Stevie Ray Vaughan. At the 51st Grammy Awards, the tribute act Zappa Plays Zappa earned an award for their performance of Frank's instrumental song "Peaches en Regalia". Dweezil and Frank have both received multiple nominations and even competed against one another in 1988. Joe Satriani holds the record for the most nominations, with fourteen.
The award was discontinued before the 2012 awards due to a major overhaul of Grammy categories. All instrumental performances in the rock category were shifted to either the newly formed Best Rock Performance or Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance categories.

Recipients

YearPerforming artistWorkNomineesRef.
1980 and Wings
1981The Police
  • Dixie Dregs – Dregs of the Earth
  • Emerson, Lake & Palmer – "Peter Gunn"
  • Jean-Luc Ponty – "Beach Girl"
  • The Pretenders – "Space Invader"
    • 1982The Police
  • Dixie Dregs – Unsung Heroes
  • Robert Fripp – The League of Gentlemen
  • Kraftwerk – "Computer World"
  • Rush – "YYZ"
    • 1983A Flock of Seagulls
  • Dixie Dregs – Industry Standard
  • Maynard Ferguson – "Don't Stop"
  • King Crimson – "Requiem"
  • Van Morrison – "Scandinavia"
    • 1984Sting
  • Allan Holdsworth – "Road Games"
  • Rainbow – "Anybody There"
  • Pete Townshend – "Unused Piano"
  • Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble – "Rude Mood"
    • 1985Yes
  • Lionel Hampton – "Vibramatic"
  • Genesis – "Second Home by the Sea"
  • Edward Van Halen – "Donut City"
  • Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble – "Voodoo Child "
    • 1986
  • Jon Butcher Axis – "The Ritual"
  • Big Guitars from Texas – "Guitar Army"
  • Yngwie Malmsteen – Rising Force
  • Northern Star – "Back to Earth"
  • Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble – "Say What!!"
    • 1987Art of Noise and Duane Eddy
  • Eric Johnson – "Zap"
  • The Alan Parsons Project – "Where's the Walrus?"
  • The Fabulous Thunderbirds – "Down at Antone's"
  • Yes – "Amazing Grace"
    • 1988
  • Herbie Hancock, Dweezil Zappa, Terry Bozzio – "Wipe Out"
  • Bruce Springsteen – "Paradise by the C"
  • Stevie Ray Vaughan and Dick Dale – "Pipeline"
    • 1989
  • Jeff Healey Band – "Hide Away"
  • Jimmy Page – "Writes of Winter"
  • Joe Satriani – Surfing with the Alien
  • Frank Zappa – Guitar
    • 1990, Terry Bozzio and Tony Hymas
  • Steve Morse – High Tension Wires
  • Joe Satriani – "The Crush of Love"
  • Andy Summers – "A Piece of Time"
  • Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble – "Travis Walk"
    • 1991Vaughan Brothers
  • Eric Johnson – Ah Via Musicom
  • Joe Satriani – Flying in a Blue Dream
  • The Allman Brothers Band – "True Gravity"
  • Steve Vai – Passion and Warfare
    • 1992
  • Danny Gatton – 88 Elmira Street
  • Rush – "Where's My Thing?"
  • The Allman Brothers Band – "Kind of Bird"
  • Yes – "Masquerade"
    • 1993 and Double Trouble
  • Jeff Beck and Jed Leiber – "Hound Dog"
  • Dixie Dregs – Bring 'Em Back Alive
  • Santana – "Gypsy/Grajonca"
  • Joe Satriani – The Extremist
    • 1994
  • Aerosmith – "Boogie Man"
  • Jeff Beck and Jed Leiber – "Hi-Heel Sneakers"
  • Joe Satriani – "Speed of Light"
  • Tangerine Dream – "Purple Haze"
    • 1995Pink Floyd
  • Dixie Dregs – "Shape of Things"
  • Rush – "Leave That Thing Alone"
  • Santana – "Luz Amore y Vida"
  • Joe Satriani – "All Alone"
    • 1996The Allman Brothers Band
  • Jeff Healey Band – "Shape of Things"
  • King Crimson – "Vrooom"
  • Santana with Vernon Reid – "Every Now and Then"
  • Steve Vai – "Tender Surrender"
    • 1997, Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt, Robert Cray, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Dr. John, and Art Neville
  • Booker T. & the M.G.'s – "Green Onions"
  • Eric Johnson – "Pavilion"
  • Joe Satriani – " My World"
  • Edward and Alex Van Halen – "Respect the Wind"
    • 1998The Chemical Brothers
  • Robben Ford – "In the Beginning"
  • Eric Johnson – "S.R.V."
  • Joe Satriani – "Summer Song"
  • Steve Vai – "For the Love of God"
    • 1999Pat Metheny Group
  • Everclear – "El Distorto de Melodica"
  • Propellerheads – "Take California"
  • Joe Satriani – "A Train of Angels"
  • Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band – "Trouble Is..."
  • Jimmie Vaughan – "The Ironic Twist"
    • 2000Santana and Eric Clapton
  • Jeff Beck – "What Mama Said"
  • Green Day – "Espionage"
  • Moby – "Bodyrock"
  • Steve Vai – "Windows to the Soul"
    • 2001Metallica, Michael Kamen and the San Francisco Symphony
  • Peter Frampton – "Off the Hook"
  • Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band – "Electric Lullaby"
  • Phish – "First Tube"
  • Joe Satriani – "Until We Say Goodbye"
    • 2002
  • Godsmack – "Vampires"
  • Joe Satriani – "Always with Me, Always with You"
  • The Allman Brothers Band – "High Falls"
  • Steve Vai – "Whispering a Prayer"
    • 2003The Flaming Lips
  • Gov't Mule – "Sco-Mule"
  • Tony Levin – "Apollo"
  • Joe Satriani – "Starry Night"
  • Slash – "Love Theme from The Godfather"
    • 2004
  • Linkin Park – "Session"
  • Robert Randolph and the Family Band – "Squeeze"
  • The Allman Brothers Band – "Instrumental Illness"
  • Steve Vai – "Essence"
    • 2005
  • Los Lonely Boys – "Onda"
  • Rush – "O Baterista"
  • The Allman Brothers Band – "Instrumental Illness"
  • Steve Vai – "Whispering a Prayer"
    • 2006 and Friends
  • Adrian Belew – "Beat Box Guitar"
  • Stewart Copeland – "Birds of Prey"
  • Joe Perry – "Mercy"
  • Steve Vai – "Lotus Feet"
    • 2007The Flaming Lips
  • Arctic Monkeys – "Chun Li's Spinning Bird Kick"
  • Peter Frampton – "Black Hole Sun"
  • David Gilmour – "Castellorizon"
  • Joe Satriani – "Super Colossal"
    • 2008
  • Metallica – "The Ecstasy of Gold"
  • Rush – "Malignant Narcissism"
  • Joe Satriani – "Always with Me, Always with You"
  • Steve Vai – "The Attitude Song"
    • 2009Zappa Plays Zappa featuring Steve Vai and Napoleon Murphy Brock
  • David Gilmour – "Castellorizon"
  • Metallica – "Suicide & Redemption"
  • Nine Inch Nails – "34 Ghosts I–IV"
  • Rush – "Hope "
    • 2010
  • Booker T. Jones – "Warped Sister"
  • Brad Paisley – "Playing with Fire"
  • The Brian Setzer Orchestra – "Mr. Surfer Goes Jazzin'"
  • Steve Vai – "Now We Run"
    • 2011
  • Los Lobos – "Do the Murray"
  • The Black Keys - "Black Mud"
  • Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds – "Kundalini Bonfire"
  • Dweezil Zappa – "The Deathless Horsie"
    • Each year is linked to the article about the Grammy Awards held that year.
    Vaughan Brothers consists of Jimmie and Stevie Ray Vaughan.