Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (soundtrack)

Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
Soundtrack album by
Ryuichi Sakamoto
Released1 May 1983
Recorded1983
StudioOnkio Haus, Tokyo, Japan
Genre
Length40:57
LabelVirgin
Producer
  • Sakamoto
  • Seigen Ono
  • Shinichi Tanaka
Ryuichi Sakamoto chronology
Left-Handed Dream
(1981) 		Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
(1983) 		Coda
(1983)
Singles from Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
  1. "Forbidden Colours"
    Released: 24 June 1983
  2. "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence"
    Released: September 1983
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[2]
Smash Hits6/10[3]

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]

  1. ^ "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence [Original Soundtrack]". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  2. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press.
  3. ^ "Albums". Smash Hits. 1–14 September 1983. p. 21. Retrieved 16 April 2021 – via sites.google.com.
  4. ^ "Ryuichi Sakamoto – Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence". In Sheeps Clothing. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  5. ^ Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence - IMDb, retrieved 2021-04-16
  6. ^ Ryuichi Sakamoto – Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (2013, Paper Sleeve, SHM-CD, CD), retrieved 2021-04-16