DK Island Swing

"DK Island Swing" (titled "Jungle Level" in Japanese soundtracks) is a recurring musical theme most commonly heard within the Donkey Kong franchise. The theme was composed by David Wise and has since been synonymous with the franchise as well as Donkey Kong himself.

The theme consists of three distinct portions, beginning with a jungle ambiance and a drum beat, followed by the main, upbeat melody, and finally a calmer, slower-tempo melody before looping back to the beginning.

"DK Island Swing" is first heard in the first level Donkey Kong Country, Jungle Hijinxs, and is thereafter used as the theme for every jungle level in the game: Ropey Rampage, Barrel Cannon Canyon, and Orang-utan Gang.

Composition
During Donkey Kong Country's development, David Wise was asked to write some demo pieces for a jungle level. He wrote three pieces, under the impression that they would be used just for the tech demo to be sent to Nintendo in Japan. After Wise presented them, he was told to combine them together into one piece, which ultimately became the theme heard in the final game.

In composing "DK Island Swing," Wise took influences from a variety of jungle-styled musical pieces and came up with an original theme, while maintaining the familiar elements that make it "sound like a jungle." The composition process took a long time, with Wise first coming up with a melody and working on it for days until he felt it worked for the level and "breathe[d] quite naturally."

Donkey Kong Country
In Donkey Kong Country, a slower-paced arrangement of "DK Island Swing" is incorporated into "Mine Cart Madness," the theme used for the Mine Cart levels Mine Cart Carnage and Mine Cart Madness.

Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
Though the original theme does not appear in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, the Bonus Area music for the game, titled "Token Tango," is a more upbeat arrangement of the middle portion of "DK Island Swing," and was also composed by David Wise. In addition, "Krook's March", the theme that plays in castle levels, contains a march-like arrangement of "DK Island Swing" towards the end.

Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
In Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, an arrangement of the first portion of DK Island Swing titled "Wrinkly's Save Cave" plays in the area of the same name when Wrinkly Kong is watching television.

Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color)
The Game Over theme in the Game Boy Color remake of Donkey Kong Country is a slow arrangement of several notes from the main melody of "DK Island Swing"

Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance)
"DK Island Swing" is given a new arrangement for the Game Boy Advance remake of Donkey Kong Country with a slightly slower tempo.

Donkey Kong Country 2
Donkey Kong Country 2, the Game Boy Advance version of Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, features a new arrangement of "Token Tango" that uses less reverberation.

Donkey Kong Country 3
In Donkey Kong Country 3, the Game Boy Advance remake of Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, a frantic arrangement of "DK Island Swing" can be heard in the level Stampede Sprint when Ellie is scared by some Sneeks and runs away at high speed shortly into the level. The same arrangement can be heard when Baron K. Roolenstein flees from the Banana Queen at the end of the game, though only that initial section is heard.

Donkey Kong Country Returns
Donkey Kong Country Returns and its Nintendo 3DS port Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D feature three full arrangements of "DK Island Swing." The first, titled "Jungle Hijinxs," is an arrangement of the entire theme, except the third portion's tempo is sped up to match that of the rest of the theme. It plays in the first and third levels of the game, Jungle Hijinxs and Tree Top Bop, respectively, as well as in the game's E3 2010 trailer. This arrangement returns in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, where it can be played on the Jungle Hijinxs, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, where it can be played on any Super Smash Bros.-series or Donkey Kong-series stage, though the intro is cut off. An excerpt of this arrangement also plays in level 1 of the Donkey Kong Country Returns microgame in WarioWare: Get It Together!

The second arrangement, titled "King of Cling," is an arrangement exclusively of the third portion of "DK Island Swing," using a flute as its main instrument. It plays in the second and fifth levels of the game, King of Cling and Canopy Cannons, respectively, and later in the Forest levels Clingy Swingy and Springy Spores. In Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D, the jungle level in the Cloud world, Crushin' Columns, uses "King of Cling" for its music.

The third arrangement, titled "Palm Tree Groove," is a cool jazz-styled rendition of the main melody that plays in two of the game's silhouette levels, Sunset Shore and Foggy Fumes. However, the music that plays in the third silhouette level, Smokey Peak, is a slightly different version, replacing the piano with an electric organ and incorporating a male chorus throughout the duration of the track as well as an electric organ solo straight after the main melody.

In addition to the three full arrangements of "DK Island Swing", there are also three themes that incorporate "DK Island Swing" into their arrangements. The credits theme, 「エンディングスタッフロール」 (Endingu Staffu Rōru, "Ending Staff Roll"), includes an arrangement of DK Island Swing's main. The motif can also be heard at the end of the ending cutscene's music, and its first four notes of "DK Island Swing" can be heard in the music for the Golden Temple entrance, which cannot be heard again after entering the main level.

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
David Wise returned to compose the soundtrack for Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze 20 years after he composed the original "DK Island Swing", which features several arrangements of the theme. There are two full arrangements of "DK Island Swing" included in the game, as well as being included as a part of two other tracks.

The first arrangement is based on the third portion of "DK Island Swing" and plays in Swinger Flinger, Precarious Pendulums, and Platform Problems.

The second arrangement is a rendition of the entire theme, with the third portion's tempo matching the rest of the theme (similar to the Donkey Kong Country Returns arrangement "Jungle Hijinxs"). This arrangement plays in every other temple level: Bopopolis, Spinning Spines, and Slippy Spikes, as well as in the game's E3 2013 trailer. This arrangement is also included in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, where it can be played on the Jungle Hijinxs stage, and in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, where it can be played on any Super Smash Bros.-series and Donkey Kong-series stage. Despite not playing in Swinger Flinger in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, the arrangement is titled "Swinger Flinger" in the English version of both Super Smash Bros. games.

Additionally, the motif of "DK Island Swing" is incorporated into the game's credits theme. The scene after the credits where Donkey Kong obtains the seventh mysterious relic plays another arrangement of "DK Island Swing"'s first two bars to end on an.

Donkey Kong Land
As Donkey Kong Land is a Game Boy title based on Donkey Kong Country, the jungle levels in the game (Jungle Jaunt, Simian Swing, Tyre Trail, and Congo Carnage, all of which are located in the first world of the game) use a arrangement of "DK Island Swing", with the introductory ambiance and third portion of the original cut out, and slight variations to the notes leading up to the main riff.

This arrangement is also included in the Game Boy Color remake of Donkey Kong Country in Jungle Hijinxs, Ropey Rampage, Barrel Cannon Canyon, and Orang-utan Gang.

Donkey Kong Land 2
A chiptune arrangement of "Token Tango" from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest composed by Grant Kirkhope is featured in Donkey Kong Land 2.

Donkey Kong 64
An arrangement of "DK Island Swing" composed by Grant Kirkhope, titled simply "Jungle" in the the official soundtrack, can be heard in the first area of Donkey Kong 64, Jungle Japes as well as in secret areas. It uses the opening drum beat and main melody for the first half, while the second half includes variations of the main melody as well as an original melody.

A calmer version of this arrangement also plays past the cave in Jungle Japes, while a slower-tempo, marimba version of the main melody plays inside the cave itself. A horn-heavy, more sinister-sounding arrangement of the main melody also plays in the stormy area of Jungle Japes, a slower woodwind-heavy version plays in certain optional caves, as well as the ship floating around the lighthouse in Gloomy Galleon, and a sped up brass ensemble version plays for the Army Dillo boss fight in that area.

Different arrangements of "DK Island Swing" are also used for the Kongs' transformations. A sped-up variation of the Jungle Japes arrangement plays during Donkey Kong's Strong Kong form, a arrangement for Diddy Kong's Rocketbarrel Boost, a light-hearted arrangement for Tiny Kong's Mini-Monkey form, another sped-up arrangement for Lanky Kong's OrangStand Sprint, and a slow-paced,  saxophone arrangement for Chunky Kong's Hunky Chunky form.

Donkey Kong also plays the main melody on his Bongos.

Diddy Kong Racing
In Diddy Kong Racing, an arrangement of "DK Island Swing", titled 「プレイヤーセレクト」 (Pureiyā Serekuto, "Player Select") in the official soundtrack, can be heard on the player select screen when choosing Diddy Kong. This arrangement returns in the game's Nintendo DS remake Diddy Kong Racing DS

Diddy Kong Racing DS
Diddy Kong Racing DS has two separate arrangements of "DK Island Swing", one heard while racing at Thunder Cove, and another heard while racing at Meandering Mount. Both of these sound similar to each other and are arranged by David Wise.

Mario Party
The music for DK's Jungle Adventure in Mario Party, titled "Jungle Adventure", incorporates an arrangement of "DK Island Swing"'s motif into the theme's melody.

Mario Party 10
In Mario Party 10s amiibo Party mode, an arrangement of the theme titled "Donkey Kong's Theme'" is played throughout the turn of a player using a Donkey Kong amiibo.

Super Smash Bros.
Marking the full theme's first use outside of games centered on Donkey Kong, an arrangement of "DK Island Swing" titled 「コンゴジャングルステージ」(Kongo Janguru Sutēji, "Congo Jungle Stage") in the official soundtrack appears in Super Smash Bros. for the Congo Jungle stage, arranged by HAL Laboratory composer Hirokazu Ando. Unlike the Donkey Kong Country original, the first section of this arrangement lacks any jungle ambiance.

The arrangement returns in Super Smash Bros. Melee under the title "Kongo Jungle N64" for the Kongo Jungle stage. It also is included in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, where it can be played on the Jungle Japes stage, and in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, where it can be played on the Kongo Jungle 64 stage, now retitled simply "Kongo Jungle" in both games. In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the arrangement is once again retitled, this time known as "Jungle Level (64) " and can be played on any Super Smash Bros.-series and Donkey Kong-series stage. In for 3DS / Wii U and Ultimate, the first portion of the arrangement is omitted.

Super Smash Bros. Melee
A new arrangement of "DK Island Swing" arranged by Shogo Sakai from HAL Laboratory, titled "Jungle Japes", is included in Super Smash Bros. Melee for the stage of the same name. This arrangement has a fast-paced big band swing style similar to the Donkey Kong 64 arrangement "Jungle", but it retains the slower-paced, atmospheric second half of the original "DK Island Swing." Additionally, the introduction has been shortened and leads straight to the main melody, and the final notes of the main melody have been extended.

This arrangement returns in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, now titled "Jungle Japes (Melee)", and can also be played on the Jungle Japes stage. The arrangement returns once again in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and can be played on any Super Smash Bros.-series and Donkey Kong-series stage.

This arrangement is also included as a selectable track in the European release of Donkey Konga under the name "Donkey Kong Country Theme".

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl features a new arrangement faithful to the original "DK Island Swing" titled "Jungle Level", the original track's Japanese title. This rendition was arranged by Kentaro Ishizaka from HAL Laboratory. The song can be played on the Rumble Falls stage. It also plays in The Jungle and parts of The Great Maze in the Subspace Emissary, though the first portion omitted.

A second arrangement titled "Jungle Level Ver. 2," arranged by Motoi Sakuraba, can also be played in Rumble Falls. This arrangement is a much faster-paced version of "DK Island Swing."

Additionally, when Donkey Kong uses his Final Smash, Konga Beat, an arrangement of "DK Island Swing" can be heard with the final bar repeated. The Final Smash and the accompanying arrangement returns in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U.

Both "Jungle Level" and "Jungle Level Ver. 2" return in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. "Jungle Level" can be played on the Jungle Hijinxs stage, while "Jungle Level Ver. 2" can be played on the Kongo Jungle 64 stage. In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, only "Jungle Level Ver. 2" returns, now renamed "Jungle Level (Brawl) ", and can be played on any Super Smash Bros.-series and Donkey Kong-series stage.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS features an arrangement of the Rocket Barrel level theme from Donkey Kong Country Returns, "Gear Getaway," that incorporates the main motif of "DK Island Swing" in the second half. It can be played on the Jungle Japes stage.

The arrangement is also included in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, where it can be played on the Jungle Hijinxs stage, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, where it can be played on any Super Smash Bros.-series and Donkey Kong-series stage.

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
Super Smash Bros. for Wii U introduces two new arrangements of "DK Island Swing," both of which were arranged by Bandai Namco composer Hiroyuki Kawada. The first arrangement, "Jungle Level Jazz Style," features jazz and ragtime music and omits the theme's third portion. This arrangement can be played on the Jungle Hijinx stage.

The second arrangement, "Jungle Level Tribal Style," takes on a more jungle-styled approach similar to the Donkey Kong Country original and incorporates the entire theme. This arrangement can be played on the Kongo Jungle 64 stage.

Both arrangements return in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, now titled "Jungle Level Jazz Style (for 3DS / Wii U) " and "Jungle Level Tribal Style (for 3DS / Wii U) ", respectively. They can be played on any Super Smash Bros.-series and Donkey Kong-series stage.

Counting previous arrangements of "DK Island Swing," Super Smash Bros. for Wii U features a total of seven different arrangements, making the game tied with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for including the most arrangements of "DK Island Swing" of any game.

Mario Power Tennis
Mario Power Tennis and its Wii port New Play Control! Mario Power Tennis feature three arrangements of "DK Island Swing" by Motoi Sakuraba, all of which play on the DK Jungle Court. The first is a brief arrangement of the main melody that plays during the court's introduction, the second is a fast-paced arrangement that plays during a game point, and the third, is a longer arrangement that plays during exhibition matches.

A version of the DK Jungle Court exhibition theme with higher sound quality titled 「ドンキー　ギミックコート ～ドンキージャングルコート」 (Donkī Gimikku Kōto ~Donkī Janguru Kōto, "Donkey Gimmick Court ~Donkey Jungle Court") was featured in the Mario Sports CD: Mario Tennis GC & Mario Golf Family Tour The Best album.

Mario Tennis Open
Mario Tennis Open features two arrangements of "DK Island Swing" both arranged by Motoi Sakuraba, and both play on the DK Jungle court. The first is an arrangement of the first portion of the theme and plays during the court's introduction.

The second is an upbeat arrangement of the second portion of the theme and plays during the match. Drums are prominent throughout and a piano solo can be heard towards the end.

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat and its Wii port New Play Control! Donkey Kong Jungle Beat use an arrangement of "DK Island Swing" by Nintendo composer Mahito Yokota in the game's first level, Dawn Savanna, consisting of the drum beat, main melody, and an extended version of the melody's final notes similar to Super Smash Bros. Melee's arrangement "Jungle Japes" played on the piano. A shortened variation of the theme also plays in the victory fanfare after Donkey Kong defeats a boss.

DK: King of Swing
DK: King of Swing features an arrangement of "DK Island Swing"'s main melody in the levels Tropical Treetops, Cactus Woods, and Cold Cold Forest, and another arrangement in the levels Risky Reef and Underwater Ruins. A third arrangement of the theme plays during the credits.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis
In Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, an arrangement of "DK Island Swing" plays in the levels of the final floor of the game, Jungle Hijinks. While the Mini Marios or Mini Donkey Kongs are inactive, only the jungle ambiance and drum beat play; after they begin to move, the music cuts to a later part of the theme, depending on which level the player is currently playing. A slightly different variation of this arrangement plays in Special Kit 3 custom levels in the Construction Zone. Both versions exclude the third portion of the original theme.

The music that plays during the final boss fight with Donkey Kong on the Roof and as well as the hidden floor DK's Hideout is another arrangement of the main melody of "DK Island Swing", which plays after an arrangement of the 25m theme.

The Jungle Hijinks and Construction Zone arrangements return in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!. The former can be heard in the Normal Mode levels of Jungle Rumble, while the latter can be heard in Rooms R-7, R-8 and R-9.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!
In Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!, a new arrangement of "DK Island Swing" based on the Roof arrangement from Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis can be heard in Room B-8.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!
The Jungle Hijinks arrangement of "DK Island Swing" from Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis reappears with slight modifications in the first three levels of Jumpy Jungle in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!.

There are also two additional arrangements based on the Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis version, one used in Areas 2-5, 2-6, and 2-7, and the other in the multi-exit door levels: Areas 2-7 and 2-7. Both use new melodies while retaining notes of the original theme, although the former uses the March of the Minis arrangement during its first half.

Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move
An arrangement of "DK Island Swing" similar to the Jungle Hijinks arrangement from Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis is used for the Giant Jungle levels in Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
All three arrangements of "DK Island Swing" from Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! return in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars, where they can be heard throughout the Jumpy Jungle as well as in Levels B-3 and B-4. Compared to their Mini-Land Mayhem! versions, these arrangements use slightly more reverberation.

All three of these arrangements return in the levels of Barrel Blast Jungle in Mini Mario & Friends: amiibo Challenge.

Mario Super Sluggers
A jazz arrangement of "DK Island Swing" plays in the DK Jungle stadium in Mario Super Sluggers, with the theme's main motif interspersed throughout.

WarioWare: D.I.Y. Showcase
In WarioWare: D.I.Y. Showcase, an arrangement of "DK Island Swing" is used for the DK Country microgame, which loops through the theme's first two bars.

WarioWare Gold
In WarioWare Gold, and arrangement of the main melody of "DK Island Swing" plays in the Donkey Kong Country microgame.

Mario Kart 7
A fast-paced, jazz arrangement plays in DK Jungle in Mario Kart 7, Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. The first and third portions are absent, although the three-note echo heard at the beginning of the latter was incorporated in the second half of the arrangement. It was arranged by Satomi Terui. In the latter two games, unlike the other retro tracks, the music is the same as the original, although it was given a slight enhancement.

The arrangement is featured in the Mario Kart 8 Original Soundtrack with the following linear notes in the included booklet: "This is an arrangement of the main Donkey Kong theme music. I hope you can experience the atmosphere of listening to a big band number. This course also has really nice scenery - we've basically remastered the course from Mario Kart 7. It's more fun than a barrel of monkeys!"

Mario Golf: World Tour
In Mario Golf: World Tour, an arrangement of "DK Island Swing" plays on the DK Jungle course.

Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games
A jazz arrangement of "DK Island Swing" is included in the Wii U version of Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, titled "Diddy Kong's Theme". It is initially heard when playing against Diddy Kong in Rugby Sevens and can later be unlocked as a selectable music track for all Events.

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle
In Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, Rabbid Kong's first phase battle theme, titled "Rabbid Kong", incorporates an orchestrated arrangement of the theme heard in the stormy area of Jungle Japes in Donkey Kong 64, which in itself is an arrangement of "DK Island Swing." The main motif of the theme can also be heard in later parts of the first phase's music as well as in the second phase theme, "Rabbid Kong Rumpus", and the third phase theme, "Rabbid Kong Rumble". The arrangements were composed and arranged by Donkey Kong 64 composer Grant Kirkhope.

In the Donkey Kong Adventure DLC, a different arrangement of "DK Island Swing" titled "Jungle Joust" is used as the battle theme of the Jungle.

Mario Strikers: Battle League
In Mario Strikers: Battle League, if Jungle Retreat is chosen for both halves of the stadium, one of the tracks that can play is a rock arrangement of the first half of "DK Island Swing".

The Super Mario Bros. Movie
In The Super Mario Bros. Movie, an arrangement of "DK Island Swing" titled "Courting the Kongs" can be heard when Mario, Peach, and Toad arrive at the Jungle Kingdom.

An arrangement of the theme is also incorporated into the track "Drivin' Me Bananas", which went unused in the movie but is still included in the official soundtrack.

Other arrangements
An arrangement of "DK Island Swing" with higher-quality samples and instruments titled "Jungle Groove" is featured on the DK Jamz album along with the original version. This arrangement was also included on the Super Donkey Kong Game Music CD Jungle Fantasy album, titled 「ジャングルレベル"アレンジバージョン" JUNGLE LEVEL, SYNTH + SOUND EFFECTS VERSION OF STAGE ONE」 (Janguru Reberu "Arenji Bājon", "Jungle Level 'Arrange Version'").