The Hollyridge Strings was an American studio orchestra renowned for its easy-listening instrumental music, active primarily during the 1960s and 1970s on Capitol Records.
Masterminded by composer Stu Phillips (born September 9, 1929), the group emerged in 1964 to capitalize on the British Invasion, starting with The Beatles Song Book, a Top Ten hit. The orchestra featured a rotating lineup of skilled session musicians, with Phillips, Mort Garson, and Perry Botkin, Jr. serving as key arrangers and conductors.
Specializing in orchestral covers of contemporary pop hits, they produced albums featuring songs by The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Elvis Presley, The Four Seasons, and Simon & Garfunkel, blending lush strings with light jazz and pop sensibilities.
Their peak saw three albums simultaneously in the Billboard Top 20, inspiring imitators like the Sunset Strings. Beyond pop covers, they ventured into original mood music and holiday collections, such as Christmas Favorites (1965).
The Hollyridge Strings’ elegant, nostalgic sound became a staple of mid-century media, with tracks later sampled in modern works like Black Dynamite (2009). Their legacy endures as a hallmark of sophisticated instrumental pop.
50 recordings by The Hollyridge Strings you can hear on Instrumentals Forever:
(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear • Answer Me, My Love • Are You Lonesome Tonight • Ask Me • Be True To Your School • Bossa Nova, Baby • Bridge Over Troubled Water • California Girls • Can’t Help Falling In Love • Caroline, No • Dance, Dance, Dance • Don’t Be Cruel • God Only Knows • Good Luck Charm • Good Vibrations • Heartbreak Hotel • Help Me, Rhonda • Hey Jude • I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You • I Get Around • I Want To Hold Your Hand • I Will Follow Him • Imagine • It’s Only A Paper Moon • Kiss Me Quick • Let It Be • Little Deuce Coupe • Love Me Tender • L-O-V-E • Mona Lisa • Mrs Robinson • Nature Boy • Pretend • Ramblin’ Rose • Return To Sender • Sealed With A Kiss • Sherry • Sloop John B • Somewhere Along The Way • Surfer Girl • Surfin’ USA • The Sound Of Silence • Theme From ‘Love Story’ • Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days Of Summer • Too Young • Unforgettable • Venus • We’ve Only Just Begun • Wouldn’t It Be Nice • Yesterday •
