The Ecstasy of Gold

"The Ecstasy of Gold" (Italian: L'estasi dell'oro) is a musical composition by Ennio Morricone, part of his score for the Sergio Leone film The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. It is played while Tuco (Eli Wallach) is frantically searching a cemetery for the grave that holds $200,000 in gold coins. Sung by Edda Dell'Orso, it stands as one of the most well known of Morricone's themes.

Other uses

• American heavy metal band Metallica has used "The Ecstasy of Gold" as the introductory music for its concerts since 1983;^[1] it is included on the live albums Metallica Through the Never, S&M and Live Shit: Binge & Purge. An instrumental metal cover by Metallica (with minimal vocals and lead guitar work by lead singer James Hetfield) appears on the 2007 Morricone tribute album We All Love Ennio Morricone. This metal version was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Rock Instrumental Performance. It was also used in the trailer for and appears in Guitar Hero: Metallica, in its original form as composed by Morricone; however, it is not a playable track. It reached #21 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock charts in April of that year.
• The song is one of several used by Las Vegas five-star luxury hotel/casino, The Bellagio, in their renowned water fountain show.^[2]
• Seminal punk rock band Ramones used "The Ecstasy of Gold" as opening theme during their live performances.
• Remixed by The Swimmer to create the song "Django"^[3] in 1997 for the Underground Beats (Volume 8) compilation.^[4]
• Famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma recorded this song in his tribute album, Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone.^[5]
• The opening scene of Jackass Number Two (2006), in which the cast is chased through a suburban neighborhood by bulls, is accompanied by this piece.^[6]
• Used by the band Massive Attack on its Essential Mix, for BBC Radio.
• Sampled by Jay-Z in the song "Blueprint²" in his album by the same name released in 2002.^[7] Which was itself used as theme music by independent professional wrestler Eddie Kingston.
• Remixed by Bandini for the Ennio Morricone Remixes 2 album released on February 10, 2004 by Compost Records.^[8][9]
• Bandini remix used in a Nike commercial directed by David Fincher featuring Troy Polamalu and LaDainian Tomlinson.^[10]
• Shock radio personalities Opie & Anthony played it prior to their SiriusXM satellite radio from 2004-2014.
• An arrangement of this piece is used in the soundtrack to the 1997 Wild West-themed PlayStation game Wild Arms.
• Remixed by Mustard Pimp to create the song "Gold".^[11]
• Mirko Filipović used it as entrance music at UFC 128
• Used in the introduction sequence of the 2010 Activision racing game, Blur.^[12]
• Remixed by pop-punk/hardcore band Kid Liberty. Song is named "The Winds Of War".
• Sampled by hip-hop group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony in the song "We Workin'"; A cut from their 2007 album Strength & Loyalty. Produced by Three 6 Mafia.
• Portuguese football team Sporting CP has used "The Ecstasy of Gold" as the introductory music for its home matches for the season 2011/2012.
• The Canadian hardware store chain Rona featured "The Ecstasy of Gold" in its commercial promoting the 2012 Summer Olympics.
• Covered on the 2009 album Roland & the Lamprey by chiptune artist Glomag.^[13]
• Featured in a fantasy scene from Titled's "Untitled Kidnapped Episode"
• Sampled by rapper Immortal Technique in the song "Land Of The Gun".^[14]
• An arrangement of this piece is used in the beginning title screen of the next-gen versions of NBA 2k14, featuring today's NBA stars.
• Used in the Achievement Hunter RTX 2014 Intro Video played before their panel at RTX 2014.^[15]
• Used as background music when Marge Simpson makes sandwiches in The Simpsons episode "Super Franchise Me" (Season 26).
• A remixed version appears during the initial bullfight scene in the animated film The Book of Life.
• The track is played in the 2014 Still Game live arena show, as Tam reveals his plan to dress as a priest to reap the financial benefits.
• Used in the opening scene of the Prince Devitt documentary called Smack Em' Up:Reality Bites on the RTE2 channel, first aired on 17th December 2014.

• The track has been used repeatedly in video tributes to the American television drama Breaking Bad, particularly in the months leading up to the premiere of the spin-off series Better Call Saul.
• A remixed version of the song is used as the background music during a 2015 AT&T commercial entitled "AT&T Network Experts: Spread the Word".
• The song was used as background music in The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water while SpongeBob is making a speech.
• A remix is used in a 2015 commercial for Modelo Especial beer.

References