Songs that would not exist without that instrument

Bohemian Rhapsody would not exist without Freddie's piano

When Freddie sat down at the piano in Rockfield Studio in 1975, he was not writing a song. He was writing a complete work. Without the piano as the backbone, the four sections of the song fall apart.

Bob Dylan's harmonica reinvented the protest song

Blowin' in the Wind has three chords and a simple melody. What made it timeless was something else: Dylan's harmonica responding to each verse like a second voice made of air.

The Stairway Arpeggio: 8 Seconds That Defined a Decade

Four notes. The descending chromatic bass line. And a Harmony Sovereign acoustic guitar recorded with little air. That is how the most imitated arpeggio in the history of rock was born.