Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence is the soundtrack from the
film of the same name, released on 1 May 1983 in Japan and towards the end of August 1983 in the UK. It was composed by
Ryuichi Sakamoto, who also starred in the film. It was Sakamoto's first film score, though it was released several weeks after the film Daijōbu, My Friend, for which he also composed the music.
Despite receiving mixed reviews from critics, the film has since become a cult classic, largely due to its soundtrack.[4] For the film's soundtrack, Sakamoto won the 1984
BAFTA Award for Best Film Music as well as the 1984
Mainichi Film Award for Best Film Score.[5]David Sylvian contributed lyrics and vocals on "
Forbidden Colours", a vocal version of the main theme, "
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence", both of which were released as singles. A special 30th anniversary edition, which included a second CD of tracks, was released in November 2013 in Japan.[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Ryuichi Sakamoto, except where noted
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence is the soundtrack from the
film of the same name, released on 1 May 1983 in Japan and towards the end of August 1983 in the UK. It was composed by
Ryuichi Sakamoto, who also starred in the film. It was Sakamoto's first film score, though it was released several weeks after the film Daijōbu, My Friend, for which he also composed the music.
Despite receiving mixed reviews from critics, the film has since become a cult classic, largely due to its soundtrack.[4] For the film's soundtrack, Sakamoto won the 1984
BAFTA Award for Best Film Music as well as the 1984
Mainichi Film Award for Best Film Score.[5]David Sylvian contributed lyrics and vocals on "
Forbidden Colours", a vocal version of the main theme, "
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence", both of which were released as singles. A special 30th anniversary edition, which included a second CD of tracks, was released in November 2013 in Japan.[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Ryuichi Sakamoto, except where noted