Wave Race 64 Memories: Dave

"Wave Race 64 inspired me musically."

Ice and I disagree on a lot of things, but we have one thing in common: Wave Race 64 inspires us musically.

I'm the bass player in an 80's cover band. There are some competent musicans in our group and we like to experiment (writing songs together has been a disaster so far) and one of the ways we experiment is with music from other genres.

The most profound memory I had of gaming was the soundtrack to Wave Race 64, so I brought in Sunset Bay for the group to hear. They loved it, and we performed it at our next gig. The crowd loved it too (two people obviously knew the song and totally rocked out to it).

We've played other covers, and our piano player especially likes to riff with me on tunes like Sunny Beach and Southern Island.

Wave Race 64 has one of the best soundtracks in games or movies, hands-down. Jazz and fusion have fallen by the wayside, and it's a pity. The soundtrack is the perfect blend of original American music and original Japanese pop.

I remember reading a review that really panned the soundtrack, saying it was terrible. The same reviewer later praised the 1080 Snowboarding soundtrack, so it's clear what he prefers. He didn't take into account that the music fit the relaxed feel of the game.

Wave Race 64: I don't play the game anymore, but I sure do play the music.