ReMix:Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars "Mario's Tropical Paradise" 5:06

By Dr. Fruitcake

Posted 2004-01-26, evaluated by djpretzel


I'm a bit of a movie awards junkie - every year I watch the Oscars, keep track of Sundance and Cannes as much as possible, and I just got done watching the Golden Globes tonight. I usually spend most of the time yelling at the screen, disagreeing vehemently with the decisions of the Hollywood Foreign Press, but this year was a big exception - Lord of the Rings finally got best picture, Lost in Translation got some deserved attention, and Angels in America pulled off a considerable sweep. If you haven't seen it, are open-minded, and have access to HBO, I highly recommend checking it out some time - amazing adapted screenplay, amazing production, superlative cast, and great music. It really was that good.

Digression out of the way, Dr. Fruitcake's latest takes his impressive arranging skills a level further, with improved samples, covering a myriad medley of merry Mario musical motifs with some inventive transitions and a good ear for genre-shifts and juxtaposition. The ReMixer writes:

"What I have here is probably my best-ever MP3 remix. It's a medley of several various Mario themes, all remixed together into a colorful, lively tropical-style theme! The samples are much higher quality than any of my previous submissions, and I feel that the general quality of arrangement is higher as well. I sincerely hope you like! =) List of Included Games and Songs: Super Mario Bros. ("Main Theme"), Super Mario RPG ("Battle with Bowser", "Main Theme"), Mario Party 3 ("Still Going"), Super Mario World ("Credits"), Mario Party 2 ("Western Land"), Yoshi's Story ("Main Theme")"

There's definitely an overall tropical vibe with steel drum and marimba and boppin' percussion, along with punctuated brass and a moving bassline, even introducing some Latin percussion later on. Strings too, a piano cadenza, and an emphatic ending - there's just a ton of sheer sequencing going on here, and it's probably most impressive on that level, but the good doctor has as he mentioned improved his sound, and the mixing and production are enjoyable, too. I'm never extraordinarily partial to medleys, but I can still appreciate when one is handled with some know-how and the prescription here is dead-on. Good stuff from Dr. Fruitcake, a veritable cornucopia of goodness for fans of the Mario soundtracks in particular.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
avatar
Black_Doom
on 2015-12-19 00:05:13

Haha, this is certainy the most sunny remix here on OCR :D It makes me smile instantly - it's tropical atmosphere here is so heavy! The brass stabs are great, as well as the chromatic percussin and the organ. Also love that small piano bridge :) Incredible mix, especially considering its age.

avatar
Liontamer
on 2014-02-07 17:21:33

Always a big fan of this one. Here's a rough source breakdown for the curious:

Super Mario Bros. ("Main Theme") - :00-:03, :49-:51

Super Mario RPG ("Battle with Bowser") - :04-:59

Super Mario RPG ("Main Theme") - 1:06-1:34, background pattern 1:35-1:56 (not the backing pattern of Mario Party 3 "Still Going" which is very similar)

Mario Party 3 ("Still Going") - 1:35-2:00

Super Mario World ("Credits") - 2:00-2:28

Mario Party 2 ("Western Land") - 2:28-2:48, 2:49.5-3:18

Yoshi's Story ("Main Theme") - 3:37.5-4:37, 4:39-4:56

avatar
Marmiduke
on 2012-07-25 10:55:33

Despite the fact that this mix taps into Mario's Latin, tropical influences, I can't help but feel the gimmick doesn't pay off. There are definitely moments throughout the admittedly massive arrangement that actually put the flavour of the genre to good use, but moments like those are few and far between unfortunately. What is left is just a well-written medley in a Caribbean sound-font, and thus I feel the push was unnecessary.

Transitions are mostly fine, things never get boring and it utilises a pretty eclectic array of songs from the Mario franchise, which are all pluses. I actually felt a bit embarassed that I didn't recognise a lot of the melodies in here... I guess I'm not as big a Mario fan as I thought... gotta play more of them. Some melodies are shortlived, undeveloped and are just there for the sake of being there, but with a mix of this substantial length, that's not the crime of the century.

It's a hefty and unique take on the traditional medley, that's for sure. I'm not convinced that heavy doses of tropicana were crucial to the direction of the mix, but a well worked out medley of lesser covered Mario tunes deserves to be commended regardless.

avatar
Mirby
on 2011-12-24 16:26:07

This is one hell of a medley with one hell of a tropical flair. And it's awesome too! The arrangement is fantastic, the song choice is wonderful, and the feeling is smooth. Unlike pineapples, which are spiky. :P

avatar
Locke
on 2011-12-03 18:02:48

This is very good. The arrangement of all the tracks is superb. From beginning to end, everything is interesting and non-repetitive. Even for me, someone who doesn't like this genre, this song still landed a high place in my playlist.

avatar
Cash
on 2011-12-03 16:18:33

Superb, everything fits together so well. The way all the themes are combined is outstanding. A must download.

avatar
WesternZypher
on 2011-01-25 17:02:17

I just listened to this right after "Test of Island Courage" and it made me soooooooooooo happy :)!!

avatar
DarkSim
on 2010-12-15 12:07:35

I downloaded this back in the "I'm only going to listen to ReMixes from games I know" phase. A great thing about medleys like this is that it lets you know it's OK to listen to music from games you never played, especially when they're made this well. The bits I did recognise, especially the SMW credits theme, just made it extra-special.

A totally fun mix from beginning to end, it feels like it should be put to a promo video for Nintendo, or the credits for Super Smash Mario Beach Volleyball All-Stars (TBC).

avatar
OA
on 2010-08-27 13:06:26

Super solid, this really hits it's stride and takes it home. The brass and sax sound awesome, and everything clicks. It's definitely on the shorter side, but the performances and style keep it interesting and fun.

The intro is great, and it just gets better from there. Nice subtle use of synths in the otherwise classic funk arrangement style. Sax solo was rocking too.

All around awesome.

avatar
Crulex
on 2010-02-27 13:13:35

In this cold weather, a tropical paradise sounds good right now. This ReMix is amazing! 7 themes over the course of 6 games and it doesn't feel rushed to just thrown together. Now, that's a mega mix if I ever heard of one. Very good island-like feel to it. Nice!

avatar
duskvstweak
on 2009-12-26 10:58:35

So, funny story (depending on who's telling it and who's listening);

I had just broken up with my girlfriend and wasn't pretty. I'm cleaning my apartment and listening to my music when she shows up to get some stuff she had over. The topic of the break up comes up again and she starts crying. The moment calms down and she stops crying, and then this song plays on my speakers, full volume.

Thank you shuffle and thank you OCRemix. The mundane is always made better with you!

avatar
genius11433
on 2009-11-18 02:52:17

This is a very good mix, and I even liked that Yoshi digression. Solid from beginning to end. You got me clicking that "download" link before the song ended--high praise from me! Keep up the good work!

avatar
WillRock
on 2009-10-08 06:17:56

Oh wow this is so incredibly awesome :D

Gotta love it :P

avatar
Lovely Peach
on 2009-01-14 11:19:19

Very peppy, bright, and happy mix. I really like this, especially when the Super Mario RPG title theme comes in - I just love that game, so hearing themes from it always make me happy. AND the ending music from SMW! Such a great tune that's often overlooked, I'm glad you popped it in here. You combined some of my very favorite themes into this one ReMix. I'm not as familiar with the Mario Party music (had to look up the description to see what it was) but it's definitely not out of place here.

This is a great tropical-themed Mario piece. The Yoshi's Story theme even works here, although the piano segment right before that comes in seems a little disjointed from the rest of the piece - it's not bad, but it doesn't seem to fit the theme of the rest of the song. Thankfully you get right back to the fun stuff quickly.

There's a great full sound to this piece and the peppy beat just makes me wanna dance! Much better than the themes used in Mario Sunshine - THIS should've been the Isle Delfino theme! Very reminiscent of the Smash Bros. medley stuff too - excellent and a delight to listen to.

avatar
Mr Azar
on 2008-12-26 19:22:13

Great stuff :-).

Sources Arranged (6 Songs, 5 Games)


Primary Game:
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Nintendo , 1996, SNES)
Music by Yoko Shimomura
Songs:
"Fight Against Bowser"
"Happy Adventure, Delightful Adventure"
Additional Game:
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo , 1999, N64)
Music by Hironao Yamamoto,Kazuhiko Sawaguchi,Shohei Bando,Yasunori Mitsuda
Songs:
"Western Land"
Additional Game:
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo , 2000, N64)
Music by Ichiro Shimakura
Songs:
"Still Going"
Additional Game:
Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo , 1985, NES)
Music by Koji Kondo
Songs:
"Overworld BGM"
Additional Game:
Super Mario World (Nintendo , 1990, SNES)
Music by Koji Kondo
Songs:
"Ending"

Tags (2)


Genre:
Mood:
Happy
Instrumentation:
Additional:
Time > Tempo: Fast

File Information


Name:
Super_Mario_RPG_Mario's_Tropical_Paradise_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
4,979,423 bytes
MD5:
e6d717d734b9ca97aaee5d1ebd48b4eb
Bitrate:
128Kbps
Duration:
5:06

Promotion

8-bit Jazz Heroes - Press Start
View All

Latest Albums

View All

Latest ReMixes