The many ways Alex Turner channels Ennio Morricone
Alex Turner, the magnetic frontman of Arctic Monkeys, draws influence from a vast spectrum, from rock legends like David Bowie to Leonard Cohen. However, delving deeper beyond the rock domain and into the realm of cinema, he also finds inspiration within a particular Italian legend: Ennio Morricone.
Morricone’s career spanned over six decades and encompassed an astonishing array of genres, from westerns to dramas, thrillers to historical epics. However, it was his collaboration with renowned director Sergio Leone that propelled Morricone to international fame. The iconic soundtracks he created for Leone’s spaghetti Westerns, particularly for A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, reshaped the landscape of film scoring.
It was the soundtrack for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly that seemingly traversed time and space — composed in 1966, the soundtrack became an integral part of the movie’s success, elevating it to legendary status and becoming something that many musicians continue to cite to this day. The score is instantly recognisable for its haunting melodies, innovative instrumentation, and evocative use of sound to enhance the storytelling.
Morricone’s ability to capture the raw emotions and rugged landscapes of the American West without ever setting foot there was nothing short of brilliant. Therefore, regarding Arctic Monkeys’ musical arrangements, especially Turner’s skill in conjuring vivid imagery solely through words, it’s understandable why Morricone’s work is held in such high regard. Within their hugely popular track ‘505’, the indie rockers sampled a section from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly soundtrack, specifically, and the organ that can be heard at the beginning of the track.
Despite this being the most well-known example of Turner directly referencing Morricone in his work, it isn’t the only time he’s channelled the late composer. While crafting both The Last Shadow Puppets’ sophomore album, Everything You’ve Come To Expect, and Arctic Monkeys’ sixth studio album, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, Turner repeatedly mentioned Morricone as a significant point of reference.
This can be heard in the former’s delicately placed compositions, namely its string arrangements and often dramatic musical sensibilities, and within the latter’s deeply complex exploration of haunting melodies, introspective lyricism, and ethereal atmospheres. More recently, Turner continued his penchant for embodying the film composer within the album The Car, specifically with songs like the titular track and ‘Body Paint’, which were crafted with the idea of a big movie theme tune in mind.
In the past, Turner has also discussed his appreciation for tracks like Morricone’s ‘Una Spiaggia a Mezzogiorno’ from Vergogna Schifosi, calling it one of his top five favourite tracks. His fondness for the lush, nostalgic quality of late 1960s film scores unquestionably influenced The Car, which deliberately meanders with the dreamy and intense melodrama present in many of Morricone’s most heartfelt and impassioned compositions.
