gren

Looks like I'll have to get the ball rolling on this one too. That's okay; if there's anything I like better than listening to music, it's raving about it.

To save myself some typing:

And the band...



The music in Cowboy Bebop fits perfectly the overall feel and theme; what else would you expect from an anime with episodes named after songs, lyrics, or musical genres? Yoko Kanno creates a work that could stand on its own even without the anime. Jazz and blues, rock, and even soft, sad torch songs, are played with just the right amount of enthusiasm or melancholy.

These are some of my favorites from the 4-disc boxed set:

"Tank!"
The opening theme and one of the best songs ever. Funky bass plays over a deep male voice in the beginning (3,2,1 Let's Jam!), and then explodes into a jazz-meets-swing pace. Like being in a speakeasy at the high point of the night (usually 2 a.m.). The box set has the T.V. edit and a full live version.

"Rush"
Played during the Spike's fight scene with Asimov in the first episode, this song is on the same level as "Tank!"; quick-paced, and focused on the horn section. Unfortunately, the box set does not have the same song that was played in the episode, but a mellower version called "NY Rush". Still pretty good though not nearly as energetic.

"Green Bird"
An odd song played in ep 5, "Ballad of Fallen Angels", while Spike is falling out of a cathedral window after a fight with Vicious, and having flashbacks to his past. It's reminiscent of "Bells are Ringing" in that it's sung in rounds with a very simple piano melody. Gabriela Robin does vocals, which are either in French or gibberish. Hauntingly pretty, once you hear it, it just sticks in your head.

"Adeiu (Long Version)"
Imagine a woman draped over a piano in a smoky bar, and you pretty much have the feel of this song. Emily Bindiger's vocals are perfect here; soft and sweet, with more than a hint of sadness. The short version is "Memory", a music-box song that plays over the next episode scenes for the last episode.

"The Singing Sea II"
This one took some getting used to, but now I play it at least two or three times in a row before moving on to the next song. Tulivu-Donna Comberbatch's voice seems to be an aquired taste; deep and warbling, but with a definite feminine quality. This song is more blues than jazz, but has a great sax solo in the middle.

"piano solo"
On disc #4 of the set (which contains live versions of the more popular songs), this piece is actually a mix of several songs-"Farewell Blues","Piano Black", a Tori Amos-like song I didn't recognize,"Green Bird", and "Piano Bar I" played live by a sole pianist (hence the title). Due to the nature of songs contained in it, "piano solo" switches tempos and moods, and although it doesn't always flow seamlessly from one song to the next-"Green Bird" and "Piano Bar I" are too different to blend into one another without pause-the overall result is a piece that one could really relax to.

"Goodnight Julia"
I can't believe I almost forgot this one, it's the song played by my namesake! This is but one version of the song Gren plays in the bar on Callisto, and I think it's the longer version of the one actually played in the episode ("Jupiter Jazz, Pt. 1"). Fully instrumental, this sax and piano song is fairly simple, but quite expressive; it really does sound like the musical equivalent of saying goodnight to someone you care about (maybe even goodbye?). Other versions are "Space Lion" (much longer, no piano, but some synthesized sounds and a weird tribal thing going on near the end) and "Space Lion (Orgel Version)"(a xylophone, I think, and about the same length as "Goodnight Julia")

Okay, I'm tired of typing, so it's time for someone else to take over!

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Gren's Music

Blindmaniac

Does the soundtrack have only have the movie tracks or is it part of the series also,

gren

The soundtracks I've mentioned are specific to the series. On the disc 4 of the box set are live tracks of 3 of the songs used in the movie, and disc 1 has the song "Rain", used in both the movie and the series. Future Blues and Ask DNA are the albums that have songs from the movie.

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Gren's Music

BlueFox1

does the sound track have "The Real Folk Blues" on it as well?

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gren

Disc 3 of the box set has a version called "See You Space Cowboys", and disc 4 has a live version of "The Real Folk Blues". I believe the final version that's actually played during the ending credits is on the mini-album Vitaminless, although all versions pretty much sound the same.

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Gren's Music