The James Bonds may have changed over the course of 46 years (from Sean Connery to George Lazenby, back to Connery, then to Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig), but the venerable 007 film series has its staples: loads of derring-do, special effects, beautiful women – and (usually) memorable music. I say usually because the Bond theme songs over five decades range from iconic (Shirley Bassey's “Goldfinger”) to purely serviceable (Gladys Knight's “Licence to Kill”) to outright awful (Madonna's “Die Another Day”).
The new Bond film, opening today, “Quantum of Solace,” features a tune called “Another Way to Die,” written by the White Stripes' Jack White and performed with Alicia Keys. Their talents aside, the song is nothing special musically. But there is something special about it: It's the first-ever Bond-theme duet.
That's just one Bond-theme factoid you can impress your friends with at your next shaken-not-stirred martini party. For more ammunition, get yourself a copy of the new CD “The Best of Bond ... James Bond” (Capitol-EMI), which includes 24 Bond-movie tunes and a seven-cut DVD, and read on:
Sound bites
The very first Bond theme, for 1962's “Dr. No,” was the electric guitar-driven instrumental (titled “James Bond Theme”) by the John Barry Orchestra that would become synonymous with the character. Only one other Bond film – 1969's “On Her Majesty's Secret Service” – has had a nonvocal opening theme.
Only one artist has sung three Bond themes – Shirley Bassey (“Goldfinger” in 1964, “Diamonds Are Forever” in '71 and “Moonraker” in '79.
Bond themes have been almost exclusively sung by female vocalists. Exceptions: “From Russia With Love” (Matt Monro, in 63), “Thunderball” (Tom Jones, in '65) and Chris Cornell's “You Know My Name,” from 2006's “Casino Royale.” Ensemble recordings include Paul McCartney and Wings' “Live and Let Die” in 1973, Duran Duran's “A View To A Kill” in '85, a-ha's “The Living Daylights” in '87 and Garbage's “The World Is Not Enough” in '99. The John Barry Orchestra, which
recorded the theme for “Dr. No,” returned seven years later with the “On Her Majesty's Secret Service” theme.
Some of the more memorable tunes in Bond films have been secondary songs. For example, the Calypso-flavored “Underneath the Mango Tree” (sung repeatedly, including by Sean Connery and Ursula Andress) in “Dr. No”; “Where Has Everybody Gone?” (sung by the Pretenders) in “Licence to Kill”; and the best of the bunch, Louis Armstrong singing the bittersweet “We Have All the Time in the World” at the end of “On Her Majesty's Secret Service.”
Two “unofficial” Bond films (that is, not part of the Albert Broccoli family franchise) boasted theme songs of their own. Lani Hall sang the title song for 1983's “Never Say Never Again,” and Dusty Springfield crooned “The Look of Love” in 1967's “Casino Royale” spoof.
Three Bond themes have been nominated for Oscars as best song: “Live and Let Die” in 1974; “Nobody Does It Better” (from “The Spy Who Loved Me”), sung by Carly Simon, in 1978; and “For Your Eyes Only,” sung by Sheena Easton, in 1982.
One Bond theme was actually sung by the immortal Lulu: 1974's “The Man With the Golden Gun.” It's still better than Madge's aforementioned “Die Another Day,” but not by much.
Duran Duran's “A View to a Kill” actually hit No. 1 on U.S. charts.
Fans will argue over which is the best Bond theme song (you can sample random blogs), but Bassey's “Goldfinger” usually gets the nod, with “Nobody Does It Better” and “Live and Let Die” also enjoying wide popularity. While I have to agree about “Goldfinger” (also, in my book, still the best film in the 007 canon), there's no doubt in my mind that the most romantic Bond theme yet recorded is 1967's “You Only Live Twice,” sung by Nancy Sinatra. I'm not alone. Coldplay's covered it in concert, and Chris Martin's almost as romantic as I am.
