The Great Ewok Music Throwdown

Deciding which Ewok song is the best...

Ewoks. Some hate them. Some dislike them. I think a few people might like them. One guy loves them. But whatever you think of those stubby assholes, they played an important part in ending the “Star Wars” trilogy, not least as distraction techniques for the Rebel soldiers, but also musically. Yub Nub!

As most know, 1983's “Return of the Jedi” ends with a massive party in the Ewok village, with the Ewoks themselves providing music diegetically, although they seemed to have a pretty good choir hidden away off-camera. Known on the soundtrack as 'Ewok Celebration' and by fans as 'Yub Nub,' the musical side of the song stylistically follows the earlier Ewok music in the film (when Luke, Han, etc. meet the Ewoks and are accepted into the tribe) with primitive percussion and wind instruments. Vocals, however, are a different story.

There are three known versions of 'Ewok Celebration': the version on the soundtrack, which is sung by Ewoks before a choir comes in at the end; the film version, which is performed solely by a choir; and an initial version sung by a choir in English. For those who aren't that familiar with this magical piece, here are the lyrics:

English:

Freedom, we got freedom;

And now that we can be free,

Come on and celebrate.

Power, we got power;

And now that we can be free,

It's time to celebrate.

Celebrate the freedom;

Celebrate the power;

Celebrate the glory;

Celebrate the love.

Glory, we found glory.

The power showed us the light,

And now we all live free.

*Celebrate the light; (Freedom!)

Celebrate the might; (Power!)

Celebrate the fight; (Glory!)

Celebrate the love.

Celebrate the love.

Celebrate the love.

Glory, we found glory.

The power showed us the light,

And now we all live free.

*Celebrate the light; (Freedom!)

Celebrate the might; (Power!)

Celebrate the fight; (Glory!)

Celebrate the love.

Celebrate the love.

Celebrate the love.

Celebrate the love.

Ewokese:

Yub nub, eee chop yub nub;

Ah toe meet toe peechee keene,

G'noop dock fling oh ah.

Yahwah, eee chop yahwah;

Ah toe meet toe peechee keene,

G'noop dock fling oh ah.

Coatee cha tu yub nub;

Coatee cha tu yahwah;

Coatee cha tu glowah;

Allay loo ta nuv.

Glowah, eee chop glowah;

Ya glowah pee chu nee foom,

Ah toot dee awe goon daa.

*Coatee cha tu goo; (Yub nub!)

Coatee cha tu doo; (Yahwah!)

Coatee cha tu too; (Ya chaa!)

Allay loo ta nuv,

Allay loo ta nuv,

Allay loo ta nuv.

Glowah, eee chop glowah.

Ya glowah pee chu nee foom

Ah toot dee awe goon daa.

Coatee cha tu goo; (Yub nub!)

Coatee cha tu doo; (Yahwah!)

Coatee cha tu too; (Ya chaa!)

Allay loo ta nuv,

Allay loo ta nuv,

Allay loo ta nuv,

Allay loo ta nuv.

A demo version of ‘Ewok Celebration,’ complete with English lyrics

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Like 'Lapti Nek' (the original Jabba's Palace song), the English lyrics were written by John Williams' son Joseph, who is also the lead vocalist of the rock band Toto. The lyrics were then translated into Ewokese by sound designer Ben Burtt, and it wasn't until recently when the English version suddenly showed up as part of a Star Wars Celebration convention, and on the E-book version of J.W. Rinzler's essential tome “The Making of Return of the Jedi.” The amusing thing is that, like the Ewoks, many fans have spent many years hating this song for whatever reason, and were really vociferous in their hatred. That is, until about 1997.

And this is where it gets complicated. In 1997, George Lucas decided technology was up to speed for him to update “Star Wars” (which he had always said was unfinished) with computer graphics, and at the same time, he decided to lay his hands on “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi.” Going into those changes is going down a whole new rabbit hole so I'll ignore that, but there is one difference that is vitally relevant to this discussion. They changed the freaking Ewok song!

'Victory Celebration,' as it's known on the soundtrack, is the new finale for ROTJ '97, and it was created to accommodate the montage inserted into the celebration sequence of various worlds showing their joy at gaining freedom from the Empire. Initially, it was just Tatooine, Bespin, and Coruscant, but later post-prequel editions have also added Naboo, with a Gungan call of “Weesa free!” VC97 - as we'll call it - begins fairly similarly to EC83, although the tune is completely different, eschewing the bouncy and rustic original for a more new-age take.

The 1997 “Victory Celebration” Ending.

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The new cue was also composed by John Williams and is a wonderful, joyous melody that continues with the choral theme. But, like all of Lucas’ changes, it's a hot potato amongst fans, and many people have said that the original ending music fits more with the nature versus technology theme of the trilogy. I guess that's maybe true with the music side of things, although that theory takes a dive when the song is sung by an invisible choir; either that or the Ewoks managed to make London Voices a part of their tribe. I'm not sure how many actually dislike the music or are just opposed to it because it was part of the Special Edition debacle, but either way, fans have never been particularly kind to it. Truth be told though - as a piece of music, I prefer it.

Don't get me wrong, I'd prefer the original version as it existed in the theatrical cut, just because I don't want any changes at all. I want my ROTJ, damnit. That said, VC97 works just as well on film and actually has a warmer feel to it, with more of a sense of camaraderie perhaps. It's worth noting that the soundtrack version - released on the two-disc 1997 RCA CD - is different than the film version; on the soundtrack album, the first section of choral is sung by children, but in the film, it dials this out to just the instrumental music and only plays the second section with the adult choir.

I think, in the end, ‘Ewok Celebration’ works better as the end of the original trilogy as three standalone films, but ‘Victory Celebration’ fits the retrofitted version of the series, with the prequels.

But that’s just me - what do you think? Let me know what your Ewok opinion is. This is important stuff, man. We need to know.

Allay loo ta nuv, friends. Allay loo ta nuv.