4 Songs That Prove Quentin Tarantino Films Have the Best Soundtracks

While Quentin Tarantino’s films may not be everyone’s cup of tea, it’s hard to deny that they all have killer soundtracks. Tarantino is the kind of writer/director who layers blink-and-you’ll-miss-it references to his other movies, subtle visual jokes, and other Easter eggs under the main plots of his films. However, those films would likely lose much of their punch if not for their carefully curated soundtracks.

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Between Reservoir Dogs (1992) and Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood (2019), Tarantino has cultivated nine unforgettable soundtracks. The songs below are examples of his impeccable song selection skills.

[RELATED: How an Ultra-Violent Movie Revitalized Nancy Sinatra’s Career]

1. “Stuck in the Middle with You” by Stealers Wheel (Reservoir Dogs)

Fans of Quentin Tarantino’s work likely can’t hear this classic from Stealers Wheel without remembering that it was the soundtrack to a particularly brutal scene in Reservoir Dogs. The song plays as Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) gleefully tortures a captive police officer after a bank robbery gone awry. For countless cinema fans, his unscripted and unrehearsed dance moves come to mind every time “Stuck in the Middle with You” plays.

2. “California Dreamin’” by The Mamas & The Papas (Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood)

Quentin Tarantino took viewers back to the end of the hippie movement with his latest film, and the soundtrack helped build the sense of time and place. The addition of “California Dreamin’” to Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood did more than add a ton of atmosphere to a scene in which not much happens. It also provided an interesting Easter egg for those who know about the real-life characters in the film. Michelle Phillips, the soprano singer in The Mamas & The Papas, was close friends with Sharon Tate.

3. “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” by Nancy Sinatra (Kill Bill Volume 1)

Quentin Tarantino does more than pick great songs for his soundtracks. He also seemingly knows how to choose the perfect song to elevate a scene or set the mood. “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” by Nancy Sinatra plays over the opening credits of Kill Bill Volume 1. The credits roll after the protagonist is betrayed and nearly murdered. More than being a stunning addition to the movie, it helped give Sinatra’s career a second wind in 2003.

4. “Misirlou” by Dick Dale (Pulp Fiction)

Few songs from the soundtracks of Quentin Tarantino’s films stand out the like Dick Dale’s surf rock version of “Misirlou.” The song started as an Easter Mediterranean folk song that dates back to the early 1900s. Albanian, Serbian, Armenian, Persian, and Indian versions of the song exist.

Dale heard the song growing up and later turned it into a surf rock tune, introducing it to a wider audience in 1962. Then, in 1994, it played over the opening credits of Pulp Fiction, reintroducing it to a wider and more modern audience.

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