LogFAQs > #957386998

6. Shadow Man (Mega Man 3)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Usl7cw6VnLU

I don't think I'll ever write something as cool as the first two seconds of this track, but if I do I will probably retire on the spot, having miraculously reached the peak of my composing career. Yeah, the whole song is really good, sure, but that funky riff that just rips out at the start, that's magic. I've seen a theory before that the first few seconds of a Mega Man theme are the most important - that first three seconds before Mega Man teleports in set the tone, and amp up the excitement for the stage you're about to play. Shadow Man's theme ranks high in this metric - that riff followed by that "cool" chromatic bassline sets the mood well for a challenging and cool stage. This is my favorite Bun Bun track and like I said before, I think more than anyone he embodies the concept of "Rock Man" better than anyone else, if indeed rock music is supposed to be his concept; this is thick with funk and blues elements and just kind of oozes that particular vibe that MM3 has. I really like the bridge at :44 - I usually call these the "Mega Man 3 bridges" because almost every theme in this game has this element of a short, complex melodic fill that leads into the outro section, and it just flows incredibly well back to that sick opening riff. All-timer of a theme, could have been top 3 if I ranked stuff differently, sucks that it doesn't make the top 5.