Music of Red Dead Redemption

The music for the 2010 action-adventure western video game Red Dead Redemption, developed by Rockstar San Diego and published by Rockstar Games, was composed by musicians Bill Elm and Woody Jackson. Recorded at Jackson's studio in Los Angeles, the soundtracks were produced by David Holmes. The music was intended to imitate soundtracks of 1960s Western films, such as Ennio Morricone's work on the Dollars Trilogy. In collaboration with each other, Elm and Jackson produced over fourteen hours of music across fifteen months. The composers used unconventional instruments to create unique sounds, and worked with artists such as Tommy Morgan during production. Four supplementary vocal recordings were also produced for the game.

The soundtrack album for Red Dead Redemption was released on iTunes in May 2010. Additional compositions, composed for the game's standalone expansion pack Undead Nightmare, were released on a second soundtrack in November 2010. Critical reception to the soundtracks was positive, as reviewers felt that the music connected appropriately with the gameplay and genre. The game's music was nominated for numerous awards. Several tracks became popular and begot cover versions and live performances.

Background and recording

Red Dead Redemption is one of the first games by Rockstar to use an original score. Music supervisor Ivan Pavlovich has cited the large scale of the game as one of the largest difficulties when producing the score. He said that, in order to achieve an effective gaming experience, the game could not solely feature licensed music, like previous Rockstar games. "We figured we'd need to write an original score," Pavlovich said. To work on the score, Rockstar engaged Bill Elm and Woody Jackson, member and former member of Friends of Dean Martinez, respectively. In collaboration with each other, the duo composed over fourteen hours of music, which scores the game's missions, across fifteen months. The original score and subsequent album were both recorded and mixed at Jackson's personal recording studio in Los Angeles, and mastered at Capitol Studios.^[1] Following the recording, Irish producer and composer David Holmes listened to the original score, and subsequently spent three weeks compiling fifteen instrumental tracks that could be used as standalone songs for the game's official soundtrack. Holmes attempted to make the soundtrack representative of the variety of sounds and moods in the game. Four vocal performances were also recorded for use in the soundtrack.^[2][a]

"(Theme From) Red Dead Redemption"

"(Theme From) Red Dead Redemption", the game's main theme, was composed by Bill Elm and Woody Jackson. The duo collaborated to produce original music for the game.

---

Problems playing this file? See media help.

Recorded at 130

Albums

Red Dead Redemption Original Soundtrack

Red Dead Redemption Original Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by Bill Elm and Woody Jackson
Released	May 18, 2010
Studio	Vox Recording Studios (Los Angeles, CA)
Genre	Soundtrack
Length	75:18
Label	Rockstar Games
Producer	David Holmes

Red Dead Redemption Original Soundtrack comprises songs from the game, composed and produced by Bill Elm and Woody Jackson. The soundtrack spans twenty tracks, covering a duration of 75 minutes, and features four additional vocal songs.

In the context of the game, Red Dead Redemption Original Soundtrack was well received. Simon Parkin of Eurogamer named it "standout", praising the use of multiple instruments.^[8] GamePro's Will Herring echoed these opinions, comparing the soundtrack to Ennio Morricone's Dollars Trilogy.^[9] Justin Calvert of GameSpot called the soundtrack "superb",^[10] and IGN's Erik Brudvig named it "exceptional" and "wonderful".^[11] Game Music Online praised the soundtrack as an individual piece, stating that it has the ability to accompany "any Hollywood film".^[5] Gideon Dabi of Original Sound Version felt divided about the soundtrack; though heaping praise, he wrote that it was "a little too slow on the draw".^[12]

Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare Original Soundtrack

Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare Original Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by Bill Elm and Woody Jackson
Released	November 23, 2010
Studio	Vox Recording Studios (Los Angeles, CA)
Genre	Soundtrack
Length	48:57
Label	Rockstar Games
Producer	David Holmes

Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare Original Soundtrack, the soundtrack for the downloadable content

In the context of the game, the soundtrack was generally well received. Harris Iqbal of Game Music Online praised its ability to incorporate horror and western music, stating that the soundtrack is "sometimes gimmicky and narrow in its scope, but there is still a decent amount of variety".[14] Michael McWhertor of Kotaku called the soundtrack "gorgeous".^[15]

Legacy

Red Dead Redemption won the award for Best Original Music from GameSpot,^[16] Music of the Year and Best Interactive Score at the Game Audio Network Guild Awards,^[17] and Best Original Score at the Spike Video Game Awards; the latter also awarded "Far Away" by José González with Best Song in a Game.^[18] Gonzalez performed the song on Zane Lowe's show on BBC Radio 1 in June 2010,^[19] at the Rockstar offices in New York in July 2010,^[20] and at the Spike Video Game Awards in December 2010.^[21] The performance at the Spike Video Game Awards was accompanied by a music video for the song, which Rockstar published a few weeks later.^[22] Ashtar Command also performed a live version of the song "Deadman's Gun" in August 2010.^[23] The popularity of the game has led to numerous cover versions of the music being released by various artists, such as musician Ben "Squid Physics" Morfitt,^[24] and artist María Katt.^[25]

Notes