"Cowboy Bebop" Soundtrack: Music Composition by Yoko Kanno and Shinichiro Watanabe

Written by Rose Bridges This is "Cowboy Bebop Soundtrack: Musical Composition by Yoko Kanno and Shinichiro Watanabe" (2024), translated by Risa Nagao.

How does Yoko Kanno's music subtly support the characters' inner thoughts and the progression of the story? How does Shinichiro Watanabe integrate music with visual storytelling ?

The author, who also contributes to Anime News Network, North America's largest anime website, interviewed Yoko Kanno, director Shinichiro Watanabe, and other soundtrack production staff, including Emily Bindiger and Steve Conte, for this book. He explored the art of creating soundtracks that are not just background music but function as part of the story.

<Table of Contents>
Introduction What is musical drama?
1 "A work that becomes a new genre in itself" : Shinichiro Watanabe's influences and legacy
2 Collection Blues : Analyzing Yoko Kanno's Music
3 "Black Dog" Serenade : Bebop, Classic Rock, Jazz Standards
4 "Jupiter Jazz" : Transcription of the Bebop World
5. See you, Space Cowboy :Music and Genre Parody in "Cowboy Funk" and "Mushroom Samba"
6 Jamming with Edward (and Jet and Faye) : Character theme songs
7 "Ballad of Fallen Angels" : Spike Spiegel's Musical Journey
Summary You're Gonna Carry That Weight
Commentary: The melodies of "Cowboy Bebop" emerge when placed in a context other than anime. Takayuki Komuro

This is a translation of a book originally published in 2017. It's a book that deepens the worldview of the anime Cowboy Bebop through music, and you'll definitely want to revisit it (Ammel).