Warning: Contains spoilers for The Harder They Fall.
The soundtrack for Jeymes Samuel’s The Harder They Fall is full of original songs written and recorded specially for the film. Every song that appears in The Harder They Fall is memorable and is expertly placed to emphasize the events of the movie in a way that goes beyond audiences’ normal expectations from a movie score. After watching The Harder They Fall, it is no surprise to want to revisit the film’s music to relive the moments and catch small clues that might have been missed in the initial viewing.
The Harder They Fall is Jeymes Samuel’s fresh take on the American Western film genre and features an all-star cast that is led by Jonathan Majors and Idris Elba as Nat Love and Rufus Buck. Jeymes Samuel wrote and directed The Harder They Fall, but he also wrote and produced a lot of the songs that appear in the movie, both those that are part of the background soundtrack and those that are sung by the cast. Fans of Jeymes Samuel might not be surprised by this as they might know him by his stage name, The Bullitts, under which the British singer-songwriter has produced several albums of his own material as well as working on other soundtracks such as Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby.
The Harder They Fall’s soundtrack takes a lot of inspiration from reggae and traditional spirituals. Several of the ensemble pieces performed for The Harder They Fall feature the Fisk Jubilee Singers, a group of vocal artists and students from Fisk University in Nashville Tennessee who specialize in a cappella ensemble performances of spirituals originally sung by slaves. The other musical talent on display throughout the movie is extensive with performances recorded specially for The Harder They Fall by Alice Smith, Barrington Levy, Pretty Yende, Laura Mvula, Mayra Andrade, Koffee, Kid Cudi, Jay-Z, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Seal (Jeymes Samuel’s brother), and CeeLo Green. Here’s every song that appears in The Harder They Fall and what is happening when they play.
Every Song In The Harder They Fall
Three And Thirty Years, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by Alice Smith and Fisk Jubilee Singers – The first song in The Harder They Fall begins playing when Rufus Buck arrives at the house of Nat Love and his parents. The vocals begin as Nat’s father looks at a gun on the wall and includes biblical allusions that foreshadow the carving of a cross in Nat Love’s forehead.
Guns Go Bang, written by Jeymes Samuel, Scott Mescudi, and Shawn Carter, performed by Kid Cudi and Jay-Z – Guns Go Bang plays during the opening credits of The Harder They Fall after Nat Love has exacted his revenge on one of Rufus Buck’s original gang members.
Upon My Return, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by the cast – Upon My Return is the first song sung by a cast member in The Harder They Fall. As Bill Pickett (Edi Gathegi) prepares to take down the Crimson Hoods who have robbed a bank, he sings the song to himself. The song is reprised as Nat Love and his crew prepares for their journey into Redwood with the spoils of their bank robbery with several of the cast members picking up the lyrics as a form of grim rallying for the battle ahead.
Better Than Gold, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by Barrington Levy – As Nat Love enters Douglastown to visit Stagecoach Mary (Zazie Beetz) at her saloon and meets Cuffee (Danielle Deadwyler) for the first time.
The Jim Crow Count, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by Zazie Beetz – Another song performed by an on-screen character, The Jim Crow Count scores Stagecoach Mary’s first appearance in The Harder They Fall as she sings it on stage before meeting up with Nat Love.
Here I Come (James Samuel Remix), written by Barrington Levy and Paul Donald Love, Performed by Barrington Levy – Here I Come serves to score the breakout of Rufus Buck from his prison train, beginning when Trudy Smith (Regina King) first sees the train and reprises as Buck leaves the train.
Promise Land, written by Dennis Biddy, Brinsley Forde, Angus Gay, Tony Robinson, and Dennis Brown, performed by Dennis Brown – A classic song by the late prolific reggae singer Dennis Brown, Promise Land is one of the few songs that was not written especially for The Harder They Fall. The song plays as the Rufus Buck Gang make their way into Redwood for the first time.
Do Unto Others, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by Fisk Jubilee Singers – The spiritual style Do Unto Others plays a stark musical contrast to the scene it that it scores as Rufus Buck confronts and Wiley Escoe (Deon Cole) and beats him on the ground.
Away With The Winds She Goes, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by cast – Nat Love can be heard singing Away With The Wind She Goes to Stagecoach Mary before she rides into Redwood to offer to purchase Trudy’s bar. The melody can be heard again a short time later in The Harder They Fall as Rufus Buck (Idris Elba) whistles the tune as he enters the room where Mary and Nat are held prisoner.
Black Woman, written by Jeymes Samuel and Ms. Lauryn Hill, performed by Ms. Lauryn Hill – Lauryn Hill’s Black Woman plays over Stagecoach Mary’s arrival into Redwood after she leaves the Nat Love Gang on the outskirts.
Wednesday’s Child, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by Alice Smith – Wednesday’s Child is performed by the Redwood Saloon Singer, played by Alice Smith herself, as Stagecoach Mary makes her way through Trudy’s saloon to speak with Rufus Buck.
Ain’t No Better Love, written by Jeymes Samuel, Seal, and James Poyser, performed by Seal – Ain’t No Better Love plays during the first part of the climatic Redwood shootout as Nat Love and Stagecoach Mary fight back-to-back to defeat members of the Rufus Buck Gang.
Let’s Start (Live), written by Fela Anikulapo Kuti, performed by Fela Anikulapo Kuti and Ginger Baker – Another of the small number of songs that was not written specifically for the film, Let’s Start (Live) plays for the second act of The Harder They Fall’s Redwood shootout when Mary is fighting Trudy and Nat is making his way through the streets, stopping dramatically when Nat is wounded.
Blackskin Mile, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by CeeLo Green – Blackskin Mile plays during Cherokee Bill’s (LaKeith Stanfield) death scene after Cuffee shoots him in the neck and continues as Nat Love pays his respect to Jim Beckwourth before heading in to confront Rufus Buck.
Three and Thirty Years (Opera), written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by Pretty Yende – An operatic reprisal of Three and Thirty Years can be heard playing the in the background under Rufus Buck and Nat Love’s final confrontation as Rufus explains the reason that he killed Nat’s father.
No Turning Around, written and performed by Jeymes Samuel – Jeymes Samuel’s own performance of his song No Turning Around plays as Nat Love leaves Rufus’ body and goes to embrace Stagecoach Mary in the street outside and includes lines from Upon My Return in a very different context.
The Harder They Fall, written by Jeymes Samuel and Shawn Carter, performed by Koffee – In the closing scenes of The Harder They Fall, a choral version of the eponymous song from the soundtrack plays, as the protagonists ride off into the sunset. The song transitions into Koffee’s version for the start of the credits.
We Go Harder, written by Jeymes Samuel, performed by Laura Mvula and Mayra Andrade – We Go Harder is the second song that plays during the credits for The Harder They Fall.
King Kong Riddim [feat. BackRoad Gee], by Jay-Z, Jadakiss, and Conway The Machine – King Kong Riddim appeared in trailers for The Harder They Fall and is included in the soundtrack but does not appear in the movie itself. Jay-Z served as a producer on The Harder They Fall.
Where To Listen To The Harder They Fall's Soundtrack
With so many original and memorable songs throughout The Harder They Fall, listening to the soundtrack outside of the movie is a natural choice. The official soundtrack for the movie includes the majority of the songs listed above, as well as a few of the key skits from the movie. The soundtrack for The Harder They Fall can be streamed on major music platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. However, there are also physical copies of The Harder They Fall soundtrack available directly from Netflix as a CD, two-disc red vinyl set, or even as a cassette tape.