Year: 1998/2023
Duration: 3:00
Grade: Medium
Originally composed by Yoko Kanno for the 1998 anime television series Cowboy Bebop, and recorded by the Japanese jazz ensemble The Seatbelts.
Recorded TBD.
Program Notes
Cowboy Bebop is not only one of the greatest anime series ever created, but also one of the most respected and brilliant pieces of art ever conceptualized, in any medium. There are so many reasons to revere the series: the vivid artwork, the stellar voice acting, the heart wrenching stories, but most of all, the absolutely sensational, original music composed by Yoko Kanno. The jazz inspired soundtrack of Cowboy Bebop was recorded by a professional jazz ensemble called the Seatbelts and led by Kanno herself. The instrumental nature of Kanno’s music transmutes beautifully to the brass quintet orchestration, with this arrangement of Car 24 featuring the drum set extensively. The alto sax solo from the original recording has been transcribed for the second trumpet and the mighty bass clarinet playing from the initial track has been converted for the tuba. Car 24 is truly a hidden gem of a piece of music and it is this arranger’s honor to bring the fantastic music of Yoko Kanno and Cowboy Bebop to the brass quintet canon!
Shawn W. Davern 