''Kill Bill Vol. 1 Original Soundtrack'' is the soundtrack to the
first volume of the two-part
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...
film ''
Kill Bill
''Kill Bill: Volume 1'' is a 2003 American martial arts film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars Uma Thurman as the Bride, who swears revenge on a team of assassins (Lucy Liu, Michael Madsen, Daryl Hannah, and Vivica A. Fox) an ...
''. Released on September 23, 2003, it reached #45 on the Billboard 200 album chart and #1 on the soundtracks chart. It was organized, and mostly produced and orchestrated by
RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name the RZA ( ), is an American rapper, actor, filmmaker, and record producer. He is the ''de facto'' leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums ...
from the
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
.
Soundtrack development
In a 2003 Interview, RZA spoke about the soundtrack's creation process:
Track listing
# "
Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)
"Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" is the second single by American singer-actress Cher from her second album, ''The Sonny Side of Chér''. It was written by her husband Sonny Bono and released in 1966. The song reached No. 3 in the UK Singles C ...
" by
Nancy Sinatra
Nancy Sandra Sinatra (born June 8, 1940) is an American singer and actress. She is the elder daughter of Frank Sinatra and Nancy Sinatra ( Barbato), and is best known for her 1966 signature hit "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'.
Nancy Sinatra ...
– 2:40
# "That Certain Female" by
Charlie Feathers
Charles Arthur Feathers (June 12, 1932 – August 29, 1998) was an American musician most associated with the rockabilly scene of the 1950s. Although not initially recognized for his contributions to rockabilly, over time his presence would bec ...
– 3:02
# "
The Grand Duel
''The Grand Duel'' (Italian: ''Il Grande duello''), also known as ''Storm Rider'' and ''The Big Showdown'', is a 1972 Spaghetti Western film directed by Giancarlo Santi, who had previously worked as Sergio Leone's assistant director on ''The Goo ...
(Parte Prima)" by
Luis Bacalov
Luis Enríquez Bacalov (30 August 1933 – 15 November 2017) was an Argentine-born film composer. He learned music from Enrique Barenboim, father of Daniel Barenboim the conductor of the Berlin, and Chicago orchestras, and also Berta Sujovolsky ...
– 3:24
# "
Twisted Nerve
''Twisted Nerve'' is a 1968 psychological thriller film directed by Roy Boulting and starring Hywel Bennett, Hayley Mills, Billie Whitelaw and Frank Finlay. The film follows a disturbed young man, Martin, who pretends, under the name of Georg ...
" by
Bernard Herrmann
Bernard Herrmann (born Maximillian Herman; June 29, 1911December 24, 1975) was an American composer and conductor best known for his work in composing for films. As a conductor, he championed the music of lesser-known composers. He is widely re ...
– 1:27
# "Queen of the Crime Council" dialogue by
Lucy Liu
Lucy Alexis Liu is an American actress. Her accolades include winning a Critics' Choice Television Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Seoul International Drama Award, in addition to nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award.
Liu has star ...
and
Julie Dreyfus
Julie Dreyfus (born 24 January 1966) is a French actress who is well known in Japan where she made her television debut on a French language lesson program on NHK's educational channel in the late 1980s. She has appeared on the TV show ''Ryō ...
– 0:56
# "Ode To Oren Ishii" by
The RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name the RZA ( ), is an American rapper, actor, filmmaker, and record producer. He is the ''de facto'' leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums ...
– 2:05
# "Run Fay Run" (from "''
Three Tough Guys
''Three Tough Guys'' (also known as ''Tough Guys'') is a 1974 crime-action film directed by Duccio Tessari. It may be regarded as an example of the Blaxploitation genre. It stars Lino Ventura, Fred Williamson and Isaac Hayes, who also compose ...
''") by
Isaac Hayes
Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...
– 2:46
# "
Green Hornet
The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of media ...
" by
Al Hirt
Alois Maxwell "Al" Hirt (November 7, 1922 – April 27, 1999) was an American trumpeter and bandleader. He is best remembered for his million-selling recordings of "Java" and the accompanying album '' Honey in the Horn'' (1963), and for the them ...
– 2:18
# "
Battle Without Honor or Humanity
is an instrumental music piece by Japanese rock musician Tomoyasu Hotei. It was originally featured in the 2000 film '' New Battles Without Honor and Humanity'' (also known as ''Another Battle'') by Junji Sakamoto, for which Hotei wrote the sou ...
", often considered the "Kill Bill theme song" (from "''
Another Battle''") by
Tomoyasu Hotei
, also known simply as Hotei ( ), is a Japanese musician, singer-songwriter, composer, record producer and actor. With a career spanning more than 35 years, Hotei claims record sales of over 40 million copies and has collaborated with acclaimed a ...
– 2:28
# "
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin, Horace Ott and Sol Marcus for the American singer-songwriter and pianist Nina Simone, who recorded the first version in 1964. "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been cover ...
/ Esmeralda Suite" by
Santa Esmeralda
Santa Esmeralda is a French-American disco group formed in the 1970s. The group had hits with its remake of the 1960s hits "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" and "House of the Rising Sun". Santa Esmeralda featured original lead singer Leroy Gómez ...
featuring
Leroy Gómez – 10:29
# "
Woo Hoo" by
The 5.6.7.8's
The 5.6.7.8's are a Japanese rock band from Tokyo. They first started performing as a quartet in Tokyo, and recruited guest performers during their Australian tour. They became a trio in 1992, before touring Australia.
Members
The 5.6.7.8's fo ...
– 1:59
# "Crane /
White Lightning" by
The RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name the RZA ( ), is an American rapper, actor, filmmaker, and record producer. He is the ''de facto'' leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums ...
/
Charles Bernstein Charles Bernstein may refer to:
* Charles Bernstein (composer) (born 1943), American composer of film and television scores
* Charles Bernstein (poet)
Charles Bernstein (born April 4, 1950) is an American poet, essayist, editor, and literary sc ...
– 1:37
# "The Flower of Carnage" 修羅の花 (from ''"
Lady Snowblood ''Lady Snowblood'' may refer to:
* ''Lady Snowblood'' (manga), 1972–1973 serialized manga
* ''Lady Snowblood'' (film), 1973 film adaptation of the manga
** '' Lady Snowblood: Love Song of Vengeance'', the 1974 sequel to the film
{{Disambig ...
"'') by
Meiko Kaji
is a Japanese actress and singer. Since the 1960s, she has appeared in over 100 film and television roles, most prominently in the 1970s with her most famous roles as outlaw characters, best known for her performances in the film series ''Alley ...
– 3:52
# "
The Lonely Shepherd
The Lonely Shepherd, also known as ''Einsamer Hirte'' or ''Der einsame Hirte'' in German or as ''El pastor solitario'' in Spanish, is an instrumental piece by James Last, first released in a recording with the Romanian panflutist Gheorghe Zamfir.
...
" by
James Last
James Last (, ; born Hans Last; 17 April 1929 – 9 June 2015), also known as Hansi, was a German composer and big band leader of the James Last Orchestra. Initially a jazz bassist (Last won the award for "best bassist" in Germany in each of ...
&
Gheorghe Zamfir
Gheorghe Zamfir (; born April 6, 1941) is a Romanian nai (pan flute) musician.
Zamfir is known for playing an expanded version of normally 20-pipe nai, with 22, 25, 28 or even 30 pipes, to increase its range, and obtaining as many as eight ove ...
– 4:20
# "You're My Wicked Life" dialogue by
David Carradine
David Carradine ( ; born John Arthur Carradine Jr.; December 8, 1936 – June 3, 2009) was an American actor best known for playing martial arts roles. He is perhaps best known as the star of the 1970s television series ''Kung Fu'', playi ...
,
Julie Dreyfus
Julie Dreyfus (born 24 January 1966) is a French actress who is well known in Japan where she made her television debut on a French language lesson program on NHK's educational channel in the late 1980s. She has appeared on the TV show ''Ryō ...
and
Uma Thurman
Uma Karuna Thurman (born April 29, 1970) is an American actress and former model. She has performed in a variety of films, from romantic comedies and dramas to science fiction and action films. Following her appearances on the December 1985 an ...
– 1:14
# "
Ironside" (excerpt) by
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
– 0:16
# "Super 16" (excerpt) by
Neu!
Neu! (; German for "New!"; styled in block capitals) were a West German krautrock band formed in Düsseldorf in 1971 by Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother following their departure from Kraftwerk. The group's albums were produced by Conny Plank, w ...
– 1:06
# "Yakuza Oren 1" by
The RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name the RZA ( ), is an American rapper, actor, filmmaker, and record producer. He is the ''de facto'' leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums ...
– 0:22
# "Banister Fight" by
The RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name the RZA ( ), is an American rapper, actor, filmmaker, and record producer. He is the ''de facto'' leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums ...
– 0:21
# "Flip Sting" (
SFX
SFX may refer to:
Entertainment
* Special effects (usually visual), illusions used in film, television, and entertainment
* Sound effects, sounds that are artificially created or enhanced
* SFX (magazine), ''SFX'' (magazine), a British magazine c ...
) – 0:04
# "Sword Swings" (SFX) – 0:05
# "Axe Throws" (SFX) – 0:11
The last three are merely noises that occur as sound effects in the film. The
vinyl record
A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...
version includes only the first fifteen tracks.
Also not included
Numerous tracks used in the film and to advertise it were not included in the soundtrack album:
* "Seven Notes in Black" by Vince Tempera – From ''
Sette note in nero
''Sette note in nero'' () is a 1977 Italian giallo film directed by Lucio Fulci and co-written by him with Roberto Gianviti and Dardano Sacchetti. ''Sette note in nero'' stars Jennifer O'Neill, Gianni Garko, Marc Porel, and Ida Galli. The film i ...
'' (''"Seven Notes in Black"''; AKA ''The Psychic''). Heard when The Bride awakens and fends off her would-be rapists; background music for the RZA's "Ode to O-ren"
* "''
Truck Turner
''Truck Turner'', also known as ''Black Bullet'', is a 1974 blaxploitation film, starring Isaac Hayes and Yaphet Kotto, and directed by Jonathan Kaplan. The screenplay was written by Michael Allin, Leigh Chapman (under a pseudonym, Jerry Wilkes), ...
'' Theme" by
Isaac Hayes
Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...
– heard, appropriately enough, when The Bride tracks down Buck's truck.
* "
Music Box Dancer
"Music Box Dancer" is an instrumental piece by Canadian musician Frank Mills that was an international hit in the late 1970s. It features an arpeggio, arpeggiated piano theme in C-sharp major (enharmonic to D-flat major) designed to resemble a mus ...
" by Frank Mills - heard when the Bride pulls up to Vernita Green's house.
* "A Long Day of Vengeance" by
Armando Trovaioli
Armando Trovajoli (also Trovaioli, 2 September 1917 – 28 February 2013) was an Italian film composer and pianist with over 300 credits as composer and/or conductor, many of them jazz scores for exploitation films of the Commedia all'italiana ...
– From ''
I lunghi giorni della vendetta''. Heard in the
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
sequence after one of Boss Matsumoto's men murders O-Ren's father.
* "Kaifuku Suru Kizu (The Wound That Heals)" by
Lily Chou-Chou
is a Japanese band that debuted in 2000. Initially a fictional band that produced music for the 2001 Shunji Iwai film ''All About Lily Chou-Chou'', the group later reformed in 2010 for the 10th anniversary of the film. Lily Chou-Chou is not a p ...
– From the film ''
All About Lily Chou-Chou
All or ALL may refer to:
Language
* All, an indefinite pronoun in English
* All, one of the English determiners
* Allar language (ISO 639-3 code)
* Allative case (abbreviated ALL)
Music
* All (band), an American punk rock band
* ''All'' (All al ...
''. Heard when The Bride marvels at Hattori Hanzo's sword collection.
* "I'm Blue" and "I Walk Like Jayne Mansfield" – additional songs performed by
the 5.6.7.8's
The 5.6.7.8's are a Japanese rock band from Tokyo. They first started performing as a quartet in Tokyo, and recruited guest performers during their Australian tour. They became a trio in 1992, before touring Australia.
Members
The 5.6.7.8's fo ...
in the House of Blue Leaves.
* "From Man to Man" from the ''
Death Rides a Horse
''Death Rides a Horse'' ( it, Da uomo a uomo, lit=As man to man) is a 1967 Italian Spaghetti Western directed by Giulio Petroni, written by Luciano Vincenzoni and starring Lee Van Cleef and John Phillip Law.
Plot
Bill (John Phillip Law), a boy ...
'' soundtrack by
Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone (; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpeter who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as more than 100 classica ...
– heard in the House of Blue Leaves battle. Used prominently to advertise Kill Bill.
* "Kenka Karate Kyokushin Ken Opening Theme" – heard in the house of Blue Leaves when the bride fights the boss of the crazy 88s.
* "
Nobody but Me" by
The Human Beinz
The Human Beinz ( ) is an American rock band from Youngstown, Ohio. Originally known as The Human Beingz, the band initially featured John "Dick" Belley (vocals, guitar), Joe "Ting" Markulin (vocals, guitar), Mel Pachuta (vocals, bass), and Gary C ...
– heard in the House of Blue Leaves battle.
* "Police Check Point" by Harry Betts (from the film ''
Black Mama White Mama
''Black Mama White Mama'' (also known as ''Women in Chains'') is a 1973 women in prison film directed by Eddie Romero and starring Pam Grier and Margaret Markov. The film has elements of blaxploitation. The movie also was released as ''Hot, Hard ...
'') – heard briefly in the House of Blue Leaves battle.
* "Yagyu Conspiracy" by Toshiaki Tsushima (from ''
Shogun's Samurai
''Shogun's Samurai'', known in Japan as , is a 1978 Japanese historical martial arts period film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. The film is the first of two period films by Fukasaku starring Shinichi "Sonny" Chiba as Jūbei Mitsuyoshi Yagyū, the o ...
'') – background music for "You're My Wicked Life"
* "Funky Fanfare" by
Keith Mansfield
Keith Mansfield (born 1941 in London, England) is a British composer and arranger known for his creation of prominent television theme tunes, including the ''Grandstand'' theme for the BBC.
Career
Other works include "The Young Scene" (the ori ...
– heard as the logo music for the Our Feature Presentation film snipe.
* "I Giorni Dell'Ira" by
Riz Ortolani
Riziero Ortolani (; 25 March 192623 January 2014) was an Italian composer, conductor, and orchestrator, predominantly of film scores. He scored over 200 films and television programs between 1955 and 2014, with a career spanning over fifty year ...
(from ''
Day of Anger
''Day of Anger'' ( it, I giorni dell'ira, lit. "The Days of Wrath") is a 1967 Spaghetti Western film directed and co-written by Tonino Valerii and starring Lee Van Cleef and Giuliano Gemma, and features a musical score by Riz Ortolani. The film ...
'') – heard when The Bride plucks an eye from one of the Crazy 88. This track would be later used in ''
Django Unchained
''Django Unchained'' () is a 2012 American revisionist Western film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, and Samuel L. Jackson, with Walton Goggins, Dennis Chri ...
'', where it was included in the soundtrack.
* "Champions of Death" by
Shunsuke Kikuchi
was a Japanese composer who was active from the early 1960s until 2017. He specialized in incidental music for media such as television and film. Kikuchi was regarded as one of Japan's most highly demanded film and TV composers, working princi ...
(from ''
Champion of Death
, also known as ''Karate Bullfighter'', is a Japanese martial arts film made by the Toei Company in 1975. It was the first in a trilogy of films based on the manga '' Karate Baka Ichidai'' (literal translation: A Karate-Crazy Life), a manga base ...
'') – heard in the House of Blue Leaves battle.
* Other brief clips are not included nor are credits as to who wrote or performed them available.
See also
* ''
Kill Bill Vol. 2 Original Soundtrack
''Kill Bill Vol. 2 Original Soundtrack'' is the soundtrack to the second volume of the two-part Quentin Tarantino film, ''Kill Bill''. First released on April 13, 2004, it reached #58 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and #2 on the ''Billboard'' soundtra ...
''
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
RZA albums
Kill Bill
2003 soundtrack albums
Maverick Records soundtracks
fr:Kill Bill#Bande originale