Kubrick's daughter Vivian, under the alias Abigail Mead, wrote the film's score. According to an interview in the January 1988 issue of Keyboard, the film was scored mostly with a Series III edition Fairlight CMI synthesizer and a Synclavier. For the period music, Kubrick reviewed Billboard's list of the top 100 hits for each year from 1962 to 1968, considering many songs but finding that "sometimes the dynamic range of the music was too great, and we couldn't work in dialogue."[24]
- Johnnie Wright – "Hello Vietnam"
- The Dixie Cups – "Chapel of Love"
- Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs – "Wooly Bully"
- Chris Kenner – "I Like It Like That"
- Nancy Sinatra – "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'"
- The Trashmen – "Surfin' Bird"
- Goldman Band – "Marines' Hymn"
- The Rolling Stones – "Paint It Black"
A single titled "Full Metal Jacket (I Wanna Be Your Drill Instructor)," credited to Mead and Nigel Goulding, was released to promote the film and incorporates Ermey's drill cadences from the film. The single reached #1 in Ireland, #2 in the UK,[55] #4 in both the Netherlands and the Flanders region of Belgium, #8 in West Germany, #11 in Sweden and #29 in New Zealand.
