Navajo Joe (Sergio Corbucci, 1966)

Morricone used the more English-sounding pseudonyme Leo Nichols in some of the early Spaghetti-westerns, as even many other contributors to the genre did in those days.

I mean, how can you not love this:

Yes, from 2.55 is the very fine Navajo Joe main theme, but before that I do recognize it as another extremely good Morricone composition but I can’t remember now where from. If that part before 2.55 also is from Navajo Joe I have really missed something from that movie. I think some of it reminds of The Big Gundown soundtrack which I have as a CD.

Its well known from Tarantino’s usage in Kill Bill

Yes, but has Morricone originally composed the first part for Kill Bill, or for another movie long before that ? Partly definitely for Navajo Joe after 2.55, but the part before that sounds also well known even if I do not know exactly from where and I haven’t seen Kill Bill.

No, that is a song composed for Navajo Joe and on the OST - the title is “The Demise of Barbara, and the return of Joe”

Yes I found that theme here also https://youtu.be/syH7pI-qIOs?t=652

Obviously I haven’t seen the whole movie suffiently for remembering but I think this solemn beautiful theme isn’t used that often in the movie at least not as often as the also very fine main theme. Morricone is extremely versalite and can compose in so many styles.

Re-watched this one for the first time in years the other night. Bloody great film.

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So we know the Koch blu-ray cocked up the music sync in the intro. What about the Kino/88 discs? Or any other release for that matter?

We should have an overview table :slight_smile: but depends on the audio track…

88 films blu-ray has not that guitar playing synched. Guitar starts to play, when the hat is very big on the screen. 88 films blu-ray has english subtitles.

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So I just watched this movie for the first time and I knew one of the tracks on the soundtrack is called ‘The Demise of Barbara’ (because of Kill Bill), so I was expecting Barbara to die (but she didn’t). Does anyone know why it has that title?

She did, they just didn’t use the music the way it was listed in the original soundtrack. The extended soundtrack has more accurate titles.

What do you mean? She didn’t die in the movie. Or I must have missed it somehow.

She dies when Baxter is doing surgery on her. She recognizes him and he stabs her.

But that’s not Barbara. Barbara is the girl who distracts the guard at the corral, so Joe can release the horses.

Update/correction:

I can confirm Koch’s blu-ray sync is correct, and Kino’s is wrong.

Koch: The guitar plays just as the credits appear on the next scene.
Kino: The guitar plays just before Duncan stands up holding the scalp.

How about this new German release by WVG Medien? Does anybody have it?

They release tons of westerns as re-issue licensing. Likely identical with the/a previous Koch release. Unfortunately this label often saves money by leaving off subtitles.

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