David Wise (often also credited as Dave Wise) is a British video game music… Read Full Bio ↴David Wise (often also credited as Dave Wise) is a British video game music composer. He is one of the in-house composers at Rare, and his music appears in most of the Rare-developed titles. He started his career at Rare in 1985 and was the company's sole musician up until 1994. He is known for his atmospheric style of music, mixing natural environmental sounds and setting it to a tune.
Undoubtedly his most famous work is the soundtrack for Donkey Kong Country series of games, widely considered to be some of the best soundtracks to ever appear on SNES. Aside of the usual jolly "jungle" themes that fit to Donkey Kong's style in general, these games have a quite wide variety of different musical styles in different areas of the game. More recently, he's done the soundtrack for the Game Boy Advance port of Donkey Kong Country 3, and is working on a mystery Xbox 360 title.
Video game credits
(Please note: Although very few games prior to 1993 had credits, it is a known fact that David Wise was the only musician at Rare from 1985 to 1994, which effectively covers all of their NES and early SNES titles. Some very few games, such as Double Dare, did credit him.)
[edit]
1987 - Slalom (NES)
1988 - R.C. Pro-Am (NES)
1988 - Wheel of Fortune (NES)
1988 - Jeopardy! (NES)
1988 - Anticipation (NES)
1989 - Marble Madness (NES)
1989 - World Games (NES)
1989 - WWF Wrestlemania (NES)
1989 - Sesame Street 123 (NES)
1989 - John Elway's Quaterback (NES)
1989 - California Games (NES)
1989 - Taboo (NES)
1989 - Wizards & Warriors (NES)
1989 - Sesame Street ABC (NES)
1989 - Hollywood Squares (NES)
1989 - Who Framed Roger Rabbit (NES)
1989 - Jordan Vs. Bird: One On One (NES)
1989 - Cobra Triangle (NES)
1989 - Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II (NES)
1989 - Wheel of Fortune Junior Edition (NES)
1989 - Jeopardy! Junior Edition (NES)
1989 - Silent Service(NES)
1990 - Double Dare (NES)
1990 - Wheel of Fortune Family Edition (NES)
1990 - Jeopardy! 25th Anniversary Edition (NES)
1990 - The Amazing Spider-Man (Game Boy)
1990 - Captain Skyhawk (NES)
1990 - Pin Bot (NES)
1990 - Snake Rattle ‘N’ Roll (NES)
1990 - Super Off Road (NES)
1990 - Wizards & Warriors X: Fortress of Fear (Game Boy)
1990 - NARC (NES)
1990 - A Nightmare On Elm Street (NES)
1990 - Super Glove Ball (NES)
1990 - Cabal (NES)
1990 - Time Lord (NES)
1990 - Arch Rivals (NES)
1990 - WWF Wrestlemania Challenge (NES)
1990 - Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship (NES)
1991 - Digger T. Rock (NES)
1991 - WWF Superstars (Game Boy)
1991 - Battletoads (NES, Game Boy)
1991 - Beetlejuice (NES)
1991 - Super R.C. Pro-Am (Game Boy)
1991 - High Speed (NES)
1991 - Sneaky Snakes (Game Boy)
1991 - Sesame Street ABC & 123 (NES)
1991 - Pirates! (NES)
1992 - Wizards & Warriors III (NES)
1992 - Beetlejuice (Game Boy)
1992 - Indy Heat (NES)
1992 - R.C. Pro-Am II (NES)
1992 - Championship Pro-Am (Mega Drive)
1993 - Battletoads (Mega Drive, Game Gear)
1993 - Battletoads Double Dragon (NES, SNES, Mega Drive, Game Boy)
1993 - Battletoads in Ragnarok's World (Game Boy)
1993 - Battletoads in Battlemaniacs (SNES)
1993 - X The Ball (Arcade)
1993 - Snake Rattle‘N’ Roll (Mega Drive)
1994 - Monster Max (Game Boy)
1994 - Super Battletoads (Arcade)
1994 - Donkey Kong Country, (SNES) (with Robin Beanland and Eveline Fischer)
1995 - Donkey Kong Land, (Game Boy) (with Graeme Norgate)
1995 - Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (SNES)
1996 - Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, (SNES) (with Eveline Fischer) (Additional Music)
1997 - Diddy Kong Racing (N64)
2000 - Donkey Kong Country (GBC)
2002 - Star Fox Adventures (GCN)
2004 - It's Mr. Pants (GBA) (Additional Sound FX)
2005 - Donkey Kong Country 3 (GBA)
2008 - Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise (DS)
2008 - War World (Xbox 360)
2013 - Sorcery! (iOS, Android, Steam)
2014 - Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Wii U) (at Retro Studios)
2014 - Tengami (iOS, Android, Wii U)
2015 - Star Drift (iOS)
2017 - Star Ghost (Switch)
2017 - Snake Pass (Switch, PS4, PC)
2017 - Yooka-Laylee (with Grant Kirkhope and Steve Burke)
Undoubtedly his most famous work is the soundtrack for Donkey Kong Country series of games, widely considered to be some of the best soundtracks to ever appear on SNES. Aside of the usual jolly "jungle" themes that fit to Donkey Kong's style in general, these games have a quite wide variety of different musical styles in different areas of the game. More recently, he's done the soundtrack for the Game Boy Advance port of Donkey Kong Country 3, and is working on a mystery Xbox 360 title.
Video game credits
(Please note: Although very few games prior to 1993 had credits, it is a known fact that David Wise was the only musician at Rare from 1985 to 1994, which effectively covers all of their NES and early SNES titles. Some very few games, such as Double Dare, did credit him.)
[edit]
1987 - Slalom (NES)
1988 - R.C. Pro-Am (NES)
1988 - Wheel of Fortune (NES)
1988 - Jeopardy! (NES)
1988 - Anticipation (NES)
1989 - Marble Madness (NES)
1989 - World Games (NES)
1989 - WWF Wrestlemania (NES)
1989 - Sesame Street 123 (NES)
1989 - John Elway's Quaterback (NES)
1989 - California Games (NES)
1989 - Taboo (NES)
1989 - Wizards & Warriors (NES)
1989 - Sesame Street ABC (NES)
1989 - Hollywood Squares (NES)
1989 - Who Framed Roger Rabbit (NES)
1989 - Jordan Vs. Bird: One On One (NES)
1989 - Cobra Triangle (NES)
1989 - Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II (NES)
1989 - Wheel of Fortune Junior Edition (NES)
1989 - Jeopardy! Junior Edition (NES)
1989 - Silent Service(NES)
1990 - Double Dare (NES)
1990 - Wheel of Fortune Family Edition (NES)
1990 - Jeopardy! 25th Anniversary Edition (NES)
1990 - The Amazing Spider-Man (Game Boy)
1990 - Captain Skyhawk (NES)
1990 - Pin Bot (NES)
1990 - Snake Rattle ‘N’ Roll (NES)
1990 - Super Off Road (NES)
1990 - Wizards & Warriors X: Fortress of Fear (Game Boy)
1990 - NARC (NES)
1990 - A Nightmare On Elm Street (NES)
1990 - Super Glove Ball (NES)
1990 - Cabal (NES)
1990 - Time Lord (NES)
1990 - Arch Rivals (NES)
1990 - WWF Wrestlemania Challenge (NES)
1990 - Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship (NES)
1991 - Digger T. Rock (NES)
1991 - WWF Superstars (Game Boy)
1991 - Battletoads (NES, Game Boy)
1991 - Beetlejuice (NES)
1991 - Super R.C. Pro-Am (Game Boy)
1991 - High Speed (NES)
1991 - Sneaky Snakes (Game Boy)
1991 - Sesame Street ABC & 123 (NES)
1991 - Pirates! (NES)
1992 - Wizards & Warriors III (NES)
1992 - Beetlejuice (Game Boy)
1992 - Indy Heat (NES)
1992 - R.C. Pro-Am II (NES)
1992 - Championship Pro-Am (Mega Drive)
1993 - Battletoads (Mega Drive, Game Gear)
1993 - Battletoads Double Dragon (NES, SNES, Mega Drive, Game Boy)
1993 - Battletoads in Ragnarok's World (Game Boy)
1993 - Battletoads in Battlemaniacs (SNES)
1993 - X The Ball (Arcade)
1993 - Snake Rattle‘N’ Roll (Mega Drive)
1994 - Monster Max (Game Boy)
1994 - Super Battletoads (Arcade)
1994 - Donkey Kong Country, (SNES) (with Robin Beanland and Eveline Fischer)
1995 - Donkey Kong Land, (Game Boy) (with Graeme Norgate)
1995 - Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (SNES)
1996 - Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, (SNES) (with Eveline Fischer) (Additional Music)
1997 - Diddy Kong Racing (N64)
2000 - Donkey Kong Country (GBC)
2002 - Star Fox Adventures (GCN)
2004 - It's Mr. Pants (GBA) (Additional Sound FX)
2005 - Donkey Kong Country 3 (GBA)
2008 - Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise (DS)
2008 - War World (Xbox 360)
2013 - Sorcery! (iOS, Android, Steam)
2014 - Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Wii U) (at Retro Studios)
2014 - Tengami (iOS, Android, Wii U)
2015 - Star Drift (iOS)
2017 - Star Ghost (Switch)
2017 - Snake Pass (Switch, PS4, PC)
2017 - Yooka-Laylee (with Grant Kirkhope and Steve Burke)
Cave Dweller Concert
David Wise Lyrics
Instrumental
Writer(s): david wise
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Silas Akron
I've been fascinated with caves since I was just a kid. The March, 1991 issue of National Geographic fed that blaze well with its phenomenal coverage of Lechuguilla. When Donkey Kong Country came out in '94 I was absolutely in awe of the cave stages. They were the most accurate translation of watery, natural limestone underground I'd seen (and heard!) in a video game. Thanks again for these Sam.
Sir Goggles.
Ah me too but I had an odd fascination with the glowing gems and thick coins. Something about it made my 11 year old brain buzz with excitement.
Lucas Sosa
Now I imagining you as an amateur speleologist, Man. Hehe.
Goatles
Aside from the caves being pretty realistic like you mentioned, DKC1 not only takes place mostly inside caves, but also has the highest percentage of cave levels in the entire Mario franchise. This game was catered towards you very heavily
AimeeLeigha
@Acetyl I'm not alone!
Acetyl
The backgrounds evoked a sense of wonder for me. I would try to imagine what else was back there. The ice caves and bayou especially.
Joseph B.
This is just a great song with some very surreal parts, but most people sadly never hear them. The early levels are too short for it to play though all the way, and the later levels are so dangerous, that the music will inevitably restart upon constant deaths.
James Polk
I never knew the more melodic, flying series of notes near the end existed until listening to the full version on this site. I never heard them in-game
It’s odd, since there are more cave levels than any other kind in the game.
MrMice
Nah breh, the most common level is the mineshaft levels. If you play elevator antics you'll get to hear the notes at the end even if you play really fast.
Shattered Rift
The original Cave Dweller Concert Restored is the song I link people to so that they can experience the joy of these restorations. So glad to hear an even more perfected version. Only complaint is how loud the water drips are: did Rare really intend for them to be that loud?