This article is about the Three Dog Night song. For the orchestral piece, see "Shambala" (composition).

"Shambala"

Artist

Three Dog Night

Released

1973

Buy from

iTunes

Heard/referenced in:

"Tricia Tanaka Is Dead"
"The Man Behind the Curtain"

©1973

Songfacts entry

"Shambala", by Three Dog Night, is the song that spontaneously begins playing on the DHARMA van's 8-track tape deck when Hurley starts its engine in "Tricia Tanaka Is Dead". The beginning of the song is also heard earlier in the same episode in a flashback to Hurley's childhood. The song is heard yet again in "The Man Behind the Curtain" when Ben and Roger ride in the van.

The song, written by Daniel Moore in 1973, is the hit version by Three Dog Night. The lyrics reflect the removal of negative emotions, mirroring Hurley's goal to have fun no matter the circumstances. "Wash Away," which Hurley listened to at the end of "Tabula Rasa", echoed similar sentiments. Shambala itself is a reference to a mythical kingdom of enlightenment in the tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

"Shambala" is one of three examples in the series where a diegetic song (originating from within story and heard by the characters) is incorporated into the musical score, thereby becoming non-diegetic. After the song comes on in the DHARMA van in "Tricia Tanaka Is Dead", it is integrated into the score for use in the following montage sequence. The other examples of this scoring technique are "La Mer" in "Whatever the Case May Be" and "Downtown" in "One of Us". The non-diegetic version of "Shambala" incorporated into the score is featured on the Season 3 soundtrack as track 20 on disc 1, and is called "Shambala."

LyricsEdit

EpisodeEdit

The lyrics that are actually audible in "Tricia Tanaka Is Dead" are:

External linksEdit

• Wikipedia - "Shambala"