Nothin' But the Music - Track 007

               Some great music can be found in movies, whether it is a song or orchestral composition written for the film or a piece already written and given new life as part of a cinematic work.  Some songs define their movies, and some movies define their songs.  I know of no other film series, however, with a more distinctive and diverse collection of music than the James Bond series.  For one thing, it’s one of the longest-running film series of all time and has simply had ample time to build up a large collection of songs associated with it.  Bond music has touched and been influenced by most musical genres, and the songs often become signs of the times in which the films were released and based.  As Halle Berry once put it, Bond music has also become a genre all its own.  With each film, a song sets the tone of the film or touches on the forthcoming plot after an opening scene, describes some of the film’s characters in an abstract way, speaks to the complexities of Bond’s own existence, or achieves any combination of the three.  As part of this blog series paying tribute to great music, naturally, I must pay tribute to the greatest examples of that unique genre.  I’ve decided to make this a top 10 list, although I love all Bond theme songs (and some of the non-theme music that has graced 007’s film outings as well).  But, I will state that I see this as the top 10 greatest Bond themes in terms of their place in the series and their proper accentuation of the films in which that are featured.  They are probably also my personal favorites, but that ranking would look a little different.  So, in Chuckonia’s view, the top 10 best James Bond themes (so far) are:

10) The World Is Not Enough – Garbage did a great job adding a grungy yet stylish start to Pierce Brosnan’s third outing as 007. It was ironically appropriate that a mostly male band led by a female vocalist would sing the theme to the first Bond film in which the primary villain was a woman. The song and film are titled after the Bond family motto that was revealed in the film and novel “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.” That, alone, gives the operative phrase significance. However, the words to the song are more like a villain’s love letter and could be considered the unspoken dialogue between Elektra King and Renard. Some would argue that in the view of James Bond as a cold, survival-only thinker, that the lyrics may more thoroughly represent his words to someone else as he trudges through a lonely, deadly mission. This is definitely a song that makes multiple points as once and was a great addition to the Bond music collection.

9) You Know My Name – Wow! I remember my heart jumping a little when I first heard this song after the first few minutes of “Casino Royale.” As great as that movie was, this song was the real kickstart to the new James Bond series. Since the film was portraying Daniel Craig’s 007 as starting out his Double-0 career, a song that essentially reminded the viewer, and the unfortunate victims of Bond’s Walther PPK, that they already knew the name and would really know it within the next two hours was very appropriate. The lyrics somewhat speak to the overall history of the franchise, though, as they take a “villains come and villains go but Bond survives” view of the world. A nice tie-in to the universal concept of fiction’s greatest superspy.

8) Diamonds Are Forever – The second of the Bond themes sung by Shirley Bassey (the undisputed Queen of 007 songs), this song was a very classy sign of the times as it, among other things, is the only real feminist anthem in the series. Hence, the line, “Men are mere mortals who are not worth going to your grave,” rings louder than any part. It was a perfect fit for the early 70s. Its melody is a good blend of smooth lounge music and psychedelic mood music. Though the film itself, like all Bond stories, was full of action, “Diamonds Are Forever” was a parade of high-class sights, sounds, scenarios, locales, and low-lifes. Those factors and the strong performance by Jill St. John as Tiffany Case, the ultimate 70s Bond girl, called for a song that spoke to the female audience in a personal way and set an audible imprint as only the voice of Shirley Bassey could.

7) A View to A Kill – No Bond theme has become more thoroughly associated with the music of its decade than this hit from 1985. Duran Duran still performs it with the frequency of their other biggest hits, and the song can be heard on radio around the world. It is a true staple of 1980s music. The song doesn’t tell a story and has little consistent theme except to talk about death and fate in random terms. But, the beat is awesome and it sets the audience up for a mood of suspense and intense shifts in the tone of the film which begins after the song ends.

6) For Your Eyes Only – Sheena Easton’s 1981 hit that opens what is often considered Roger Moore’s best 007 film has a soft tune (common with most of the themes during the Moore era) and was written like a pure love song. Its sexual undertones made it fit the stereotypes of Bond. And, since the film itself didn’t put a lot of focus on any single character, the song’s lack of connection to the story didn’t matter and allowed it to just be a cool song. This was also the first time we actually saw the theme song's vocalist during the opening credits.

5) License to Kill – Beyond the title itself, this is one of those definitive Bond songs. Yes, he was always licensed to kill (thus, he bears Double-0 status), but James Bond is also someone who doesn’t take it lightly when you mess with his friends and loved ones (remember what happened to Blofeld?). That concept was the entire plot of “License to Kill.” As bad a guy as Franz Sanchez was, he made the gravest of mistakes – he let a shark maul James Bond’s best friend and killed that friend’s wife. At that point, his number was up. Back to the song, though. “License to Kill” was the first Bond theme song that was cut short for the film. The entire first verse is left out. However, the entire song was included on the film’s soundtrack and in most other productions of the song. When you listen to the shortened version as played in the movie, the song seems to focus on the idea of avenging a friend that establishes the flim’s plot. But, when the entire song is processed, it could be considered more of an intense love song that speaks to the concept of doing absolutely anything for the one you love and to earn the love of another. In a sense, it speaks about the competition that can be seen between the two Bond girls in the film, Talisa Soto and Carey Lowell. I rank this song high on the list partly because of that clear double meaning. And though I am otherwise a fan of Gladys Knight, I also think hers was the perfect voice and presence to give life to this song.

4) Skyfall – Adele certainly deserved the Oscar for this beautiful song. Not only does it convey the melancholy plot of the film in a memorable way, but it takes both a literal and abstract approach to the song and film’s title. As the viewer eventually learns, “Skyfall” was the name of James Bond’s boyhood home where he lived until he was orphaned. But, at the time the song is heard in the film that is about an hour and a half from being learned. The song’s lyrics refer to a general place called Skyfall, particularly in the line “Skyfall is where we start, a thousand miles and poles apart,” but it more frequently splices the word into its constituent parts with the line “Let the sky fall.” It was a perfect use of the title. As comparisons go, the usage and flow of the film title as the song title is most akin to “Thunderball.” Unlike most of the themes for films titled by an uncommon word (“Goldfinger,” “Thunderball,” “Moonraker,” “Octopussy,” “Goldeneye”) this one clearly achieved telling a story in the abstract – perhaps Bond’s or M’s or Silva’s – and setting a mood that was clearly met by the story and pace of the film.

3) Goldfinger – Shirley Bassey’s first Bond theme was her best. From the first note, the song grabs you and makes you feel like you’re about to be introduced to a dark and glittery villain like none other and enter a cinematic world unlike any that has been on the screen. Indeed, that would happen. Though James Bond had been on theater screens twice before, “Goldfinger” was the film that truly launched the character into a global phenomenon. Whether that made Bassey’s performance more celebrated or if her performance can be given some credit for sending the film into orbit is debatable. What cannot be questioned, however, is that “Goldfinger” is one of the Bond themes that is universally recognized and can often be sung by people who have never seen the film or any of the 007 movies. That’s when you know a mark has been made. [Dame Shirley Bassey also made a mark at the 2013 Oscars when she performed "Goldfinger" in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Bond film series.]

2) Live and Let Die – When Roger Moore began his turn as Agent 007, he did it with a bang courtesy of Sir Paul McCartney. Paul and Linda’s coldly direct ode to the art of death delivers the concept of “it is what it is” in a very blunt style with an ebb and flow of slow and fast beats that make the song a favorite for singing along in the car. The instrumental version was also more distinctive when played over scenes in the movie than most of the other themes. Without telling a story, it became a touchstone for the story, the laid-back characters, and the lower-class locales portrayed in one of the most fun Bond films of all. [It is also still a staple of Paul McCartney's stage show.]

1) Nobody Does It Better – I have always seen “The Spy Who Loved Me” as the film that established a lot of the 007 stereotypes. There were more tuxedos, female enemy agents, and Cold War concerns in this film than virtually any other. In style and story, it was also at the top of the list during the Moore era. It was to the Moore era what “Goldfinger” was to the Connery era. As such, it needed (and achieved) a song that spoke to the character of Bond, the character of the usual Bond girl, and the infallible view of a fighter and lover that we all want to believe of James Bond. Carly Simon, one of the quintessential singer-songwriters of the 1970s, delivered just that – the quintessential Bond theme song. The beautiful melodious tune of the song put you at ease like the world will be after Bond completes a mission, and the words could be coming from the mind or mouth of a Bond girl or Bond himself. Regardless of the story or the actor of the time, “Nobody Does It Better” defines one man – James Bond.
*Honorable Mentions - There are two songs that can be found on the soundtracks of their respective Bond films that I feel were given a raw deal by not being the main themes for those films. They are:
-Surrender from "Tomorrow Never Dies." It plays during the film's closing credits.
-No Good About Goodbye by Dame Shirley Bassey from the soundtrack of "Quantum of Solace." This song was unknown to the public until the film's soundtrack was released.