English musician and video game composer David Wise got his start in the industry when Tim and Chris Stamper, the two brothers who co-founded British video game company Rare, discovered him at a music shop and offered him a job based on his synthetic music programming skills. After being hired by Rare, Wise composed music for a lot of their NES games throughout the nineties but he really gained a fan base for his songs after he composed the hugely popular Super NES game Donkey Kong Country in 1994. Starting with that game he became known for his atmospheric and stylish rhythms. His music was pretty much the soundtrack of my childhood and when I first heard it after being introduced to the Donkey Kong platformers, I was blown away by how inspired, catchy and oftentimes utterly funky the music for those games are, to the point where I became an instant fan of Wise before I even knew his name. In addition to the Donkey Kong Country series, Wise has composed the music for Diddy Kong Racing, Star Fox Adventures and the Yooka-Laylee series among others.

In preparation for this article I’ve listened to the soundtracks for every game David Wise ever composed, which means I’ve listened to hundreds of songs from over 80 video games. Here’s my opinion on which ones are the best.

“DK Island Swing” from Donkey Kong Country (1994, SNES)

The first David Wise song I fell in love with. The way this uses bongo drums to quietly build up to the swinging jungle beat that it eventually ascends to, as if a bunch of jazz musicians are improvising a song together, added well to the wild mood of Kongo Jungle. And after the wild part ends, it descends into a slower, quieter and completely different melody (as if I needed a break to absorb the awesome jam I just listened to). One of David Wise’s masterpieces, and its multiple remixes in other Nintendo games over the years are often just as toe-tapping.

“Aquatic Ambience” from Donkey Kong Country (1994, SNES)

This became Donkey Kong’s most iconic water level music. Perfectly captures the feeling of swimming in the ocean as well as the otherworldly vibes of entering a different world thanks to its relaxing, new-age-style melody.

“Gangplank Galleon” from Donkey Kong Country (1994, SNES)

The music you hear when you confront King K. Rool aboard his ship at the end of the game starts out in a jaunty upbeat way as if Wise was channeling the vibes of a pirate musical written by Gilbert and Sullivan, but then it takes a sinister turn as if the music itself realized halfway through that hard rock is the more appropriate sound for a confrontation with K. Rool. I actually like the jaunty part of the song better, but Wise has remixed this particular song several times, including in the Game Boy game Donkey Kong Land, for which Wise leaned a lot more into the Gilbert and Sullivan vibes minus the rock, and so despite the song originating in DKC, the Game Boy version of the song might actually be my favorite.

“Cavey Cavey” from Donkey Kong Land (1995, Game Boy)

Speaking of Donkey Kong Land, that game’s soundtrack by Wise and fellow musician Graeme Norgate absolutely rivals the soundtrack of DKC, and of all of Wise’s songs from that game, my favorite might be the cave music you hear in the mountain area. It almost has an R&B vibe with a little hip hop flavor sprinkled in. For a cave area it has an appropriately quiet and low-key style that frequently drops a hard beat every other few seconds, as if the song drops back and forth from tiptoeing to moonwalking.

“Snakey Chantey” from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest (1995, SNES)

Donkey Kong Country 2 brings all the pirate vibes of “Gangplank Galleon” and puts them all in one game, with the quiet march of “Klomp’s Romp” feeling like a distant and more low-key cousin, but “Snakey Chantey” combines “Gangplank Galleon” and “Klomp’s Romp” into one of the best songs in the entire series, this one being more vibrant and jazzy than either of the songs that inspired it.

“Forest Interlude” from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest (1995, SNES)

Relaxing woodland vibes from David Wise. Almost melancholy by nature but mostly just beautiful and at times mystical.

“Stickerbrush Symphony” from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest (1995, SNES)

This is one of my favorites in the entire DKC series. Another melancholy beat that almost feels like it should have lyrics due to how strong its melody is. Wise envisioned it as something that might go with a water level but he instead used it to juxtapose the tension of navigating the thorny Bramble Blast level, which made this song stand out even more as something memorable.

“In a Snow-Bound Land” from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest (1995, SNES)

Perfect tune to enhance the experience of navigating an ice cavern. Has an otherworldly quality similar to “Aquatic Ambience” but the haunting Arctic echoes of this one’s melody are even more beautifully realized.

“Hot Top Volcano” from Diddy Kong Racing (1997, N64)

I’m usually a sucker for desert or lava level music because composers for those worlds tend to lean into a Middle Eastern vibe and incorporate many of my favorite musical sounds like those of the lute, the ney and the bongo drums. Fitting with the cartoony vibe of the Nintendo 64 game Diddy Kong Racing, “Hot Top Volcano” leans into these things with little subtlety but heavy “Dance party at the pyramid” vibes.

“ThornTail Hollow Night” from Star Fox Adventures (2002, GCN)

There is a daytime version for this song too but I love this night version way more. Quintessential “stare at the moon and contemplate life” music.

“Funky’s Flights” from Donkey Kong Country 2 (2004, Game Boy Advance)

David Wise composed some new songs for the Game Boy Advance remake of DKC 2 and my favorite of those is definitely this one you hear while flying one of Funky Kong’s planes. They don’t call him Funky for nothing!

“Stilt Village” from Donkey Kong Country 3 (2005, Game Boy Advance)

David Wise’s music for the Game Boy Advance remake of DKC 3 contains some of his best and most underrated work. This song almost feels like “adventuring into the unknown” music with a serious vibe and an exotic flavor.

“Rockface Rumble” from Donkey Kong Country 3 (2005, Game Boy Advance)

The most “country” of all the songs in the DKC series. Wise has a reputation for composing moody and quiet stuff but he’s just as skilled at leaning into sunny vibes.

“Mangrove Cove” from Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (2014, Wii U)

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, which saw Wise return to the DKC series for the first time in almost a decade, showed he is still just as brilliant as he has ever been. This tropical trumpet blast of a song that you hear in the first level is perfect in every way, including the way it sets the mood for the energy of the entire game.

“Seashore War” from Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (2014, Wii U)

One of my favorite things David Wise ever composed. The drama this song evokes with its use of strings and vocals makes me feel like I’m sailing home on a raft during a tsunami. That description doesn’t even do it justice though. This has everything I want emotionally from a song.