30 Years Of Brilliance: Bill Conti's For Your Eyes Only score

YouTubers, of the above masterclass, wrote:

The best chase music of all time.

AWESOME track.

Classic shit right here!

A masterpiece!

Best Bond score - sounds like the Bee Gees!

Better than most of John Barry's stuff.

Man this theme is so awesome!!!

This soundtrack is FANTASTIC!!

Ten years ago this got stuck in my head. Finding it again is like heaven.

DAMN i love this track !

Only composed one Bond film, but it also happened to be one of the best.

Pure awesome movie pure awesome soundtrack.

Why don't they go back to making music sound like this?

I love this score.

GoldenEye is so gay

Why wasn't Bill Conti used more for bond movies?

Bill Conti's undisputed masterclass in Bond score-ery, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, is 30 years old this year. But, in a strange twist of fate, what should have been this score's achilles heel in surviving the test of time - it's often sheer 80s-ness - has proven instead to be one of it's most potent weapons, as one subsequent generation after another yearn for a time when music scores actually had some f***ing melodies, whilst music in general has been harking ever-constantly back to the 1980s, a time where invention reigned and new sounds were beginning to dominate the landscape, a time when the music scene was exciting and fresh, a time when disco was pulsing away and new wave synth sounds initially dismissed as fads have become the stuff of constantly revisited legend.

Bill Conti tapped into this zeitgeist and then some with his pulsating score for the fifth Roger Moore James Bond adventure back in 1981, taking the groundwork of base requirements established by John Barry and not only delivering upon most of those but also adding his own distinct flavours and flourishes. Add to this already-lethal cocktail an Oscar-nominated title song from Sheena Easton, an inspired, utterly essential and endlessly quotable slice of 80s pop porn from Rage, a handful of beautiful trumpet solos from Derek Watkins and enough action-packed, speaker-blowing anthems to put The Prodigy to shame.

The score's age actually seems to have worked in it's favour, which is testament to a score full of musical character, pulsating rhythms, charm, spunk, pop accessibility, melodic range, sheer energy and brio. And the score still posesses probably the most barnstormingly ass-kicking gunbarrel cue of the entire series, Conti yanking the audience straight into the action head-first, giving them no choice but to surrender to it's full-steam awesomeness. A clutch of banging chase anthems, a few dashes of romance and a handful of cracking guitar-driven suspense cues later, any audience with ears know they've been in the company of greatness. And, 30 years on, people are still listening; What was supposedly only made to last all night has actually endured (and triumphantly so) for an entire three decades and counting.

Bill Conti, God bless you Sir, and may the powers that be at EON somehow find it within their black and corrupted hearts to rescue the once-untouchable musical legacy of this series from it's possible eternal damnation by re-acquiring your services one day very soon.

Armond White wrote:

AWESOME

hear, hear!

Along with Laz I too am a great fan of Conti's masterowrk for the Bond canon - my favourite two tracks being Runaway and the epic Submarine. Which I would probably be listening to right now if I werent already listening to the OHMSS soundtrack.

I agree with every word. Conti's score had panache.

And "Make It Last All Night" is sheer godliness.

The score gets better as it goes along and peaks with the cue--don't know its title--when Bond is being shadowed onto the ski jump by Kristatos' goons. I sincerely dislike the cue that accompanies the Citroen chase, however. Like much of Arnold's scoring in TND, it actually detracts from the action.

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

the cue--don't know its title--when Bond is being shadowed onto the ski jump by Kristatos' goons.

Yep, that's such a strongly effective cue in the film which, even though the music is still very much of-it's-time at this point, it still functions very well even today in helping to build the suspense of that scene. It's also a great showcase of how much versatility and variety this score has, because I think we all know exactly how someone like David Arnold would score this type of scene today; in a way we've heard a thousand times before from him, just a bit of generic low-key techno which could have wandered in from any US TV thriller show. It's cues like Conti's here which highlight just how strong, underrated and unfairly overlooked FYEO's score is; sonically, cues like the one you mentioned (and others) are different from John Barry, yet by and large still manage to evoke the same effect, whether it be enriching suspense and romance or offering fantastic melodic accompaniment to pulsating action sequences.

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

I sincerely dislike the cue that accompanies the Citroen chase, however. Like much of Arnold's scoring in TND, it actually detracts from the action.

I don't think I'd really equate it to Arnold, as Arnold's scoring of action sequences in Bond seemed fairly rote even from day one. When Conti brings the Bond theme into the Citroen chase, it feels like a genuinely celebratory crescendo to an enjoyable, melodic and pulsing action cue, whereas with Arnold it often feels uninspired and perfunctory as if he's just crossing off a checklist. In Conti's case, I think his chase cues provide an extra element of enjoyment which seems perfectly at home with Roger Moore shooting off trademark facial gestures to the pursuing goons and cars leaping over other cars or landing in trees.

Arnold sucks.

Conti is the man.

Lazenby. wrote:

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

the cue--don't know its title--when Bond is being shadowed onto the ski jump by Kristatos' goons.

Yep, that's such a strongly effective cue in the film which, even though the music is still very much of-it's-time at this point, it still functions very well even today in helping to build the suspense of that scene. It's also a great showcase of how much versatility and variety this score has, because I think we all know exactly how someone like David Arnold would score this type of scene today; in a way we've heard a thousand times before from him, just a bit of generic low-key techno which could have wandered in from any US TV thriller show. It's cues like Conti's here which highlight just how strong, underrated and unfairly overlooked FYEO's score is; sonically, cues like the one you mentioned (and others) are different from John Barry, yet by and large still manage to evoke the same effect, whether it be enriching suspense and romance or offering fantastic melodic accompaniment to pulsating action sequences.

Ed Tom Kowalsky wrote:

I sincerely dislike the cue that accompanies the Citroen chase, however. Like much of Arnold's scoring in TND, it actually detracts from the action.

I don't think I'd really equate it to Arnold, as Arnold's scoring of action sequences in Bond seemed fairly rote even from day one. When Conti brings the Bond theme into the Citroen chase, it feels like a genuinely celebratory crescendo to an enjoyable, melodic and pulsing action cue, whereas with Arnold it often feels uninspired and perfunctory as if he's just crossing off a checklist. In Conti's case, I think his chase cues provide an extra element of enjoyment which seems perfectly at home with Roger Moore shooting off trademark facial gestures to the pursuing goons and cars leaping over other cars or landing in trees.

Oh I have no problem with Conti's insertion of the Bond theme--it's the good part of this cue. The rest of the cue, however, strikes me as so shallow and silly that it evacuates any tension and suspense the chase may have. It thus distracts, in the same way Arnold's hamfisted techno-scoring of TND does. But as I said, I do admire much of Conti's work in FYEO. I cannot say the same for Arnold's in TND.

Gotta say I disagree. I find Conti's score really weak and one of the contributing factors that leads me to find watching FYEO really boring even if it is the only good Moore-era Bond film.

Don't know. It's as good as it can be. Always been fond of the Runaway track and others. It might veer into disco but then so did TSWLM and other scores of the time. I wouldn't say it's a masterpiece but I like it. As one of the Youtube quotes above says: "Goldeneye is so gay."

I believe Sir Ambler once referred to him as "Cunti".

You can come too late, and have to wait. That's what I did. Months too late.

I agree with Lazzers, this score swings. "Runaway" rocks, of course, but I also love "Helicopter Ride".

One of my favorite title sequences too.

c

Don't really like the film or the score.

You really can't deny the effectiveness of cues such as these:





That said, it's a bit of a mixed bag of a score.

An excellent score in which the composer doesn't mind experimenting with the tradional Bondsound and brings in his own style. It is a very effective soundtrack that shows one can be original and faithfull to the series. This score is easily recognisable as the music from FYEO. If you make me listen an Arnold track I probably wouldn't know in what movie to put it.

Bill Conti thank you.

Lazenby. wrote:

Bill Conti's undisputed masterclass in Bond score-ery, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, is 30 years old this year. But, in a strange twist of fate, what should have been this score's achilles heel in surviving the test of time - it's often sheer 80s-ness - has proven instead to be one of it's most potent weapons, as one subsequent generation after another yearn for a time when music scores actually had some f***ing melodies, whilst music in general has been harking ever-constantly back to the 1980s, a time where invention reigned and new sounds were beginning to dominate the landscape, a time when the music scene was exciting and fresh, a time when disco was pulsing away and new wave synth sounds initially dismissed as fads have become the stuff of constantly revisited legend.

Bill Conti tapped into this zeitgeist and then some with his pulsating score for the fifth Roger Moore James Bond adventure back in 1981, taking the groundwork of base requirements established by John Barry and not only delivering upon most of those but also adding his own distinct flavours and flourishes. Add to this already-lethal cocktail an Oscar-nominated title song from Sheena Easton, an inspired, utterly essential and endlessly quotable slice of 80s pop porn from Rage, a handful of beautiful trumpet solos from Derek Watkins and enough action-packed, speaker-blowing anthems to put The Prodigy to shame.

The score's age actually seems to have worked in it's favour, which is testament to a score full of musical character, pulsating rhythms, charm, spunk, pop accessibility, melodic range, sheer energy and brio. And the score still posesses probably the most barnstormingly ass-kicking gunbarrel cue of the entire series, Conti yanking the audience straight into the action head-first, giving them no choice but to surrender to it's full-steam awesomeness. A clutch of banging chase anthems, a few dashes of romance and a handful of cracking guitar-driven suspense cues later, any audience with ears know they've been in the company of greatness. And, 30 years on, people are still listening; What was supposedly only made to last all night has actually endured (and triumphantly so) for an entire three decades and counting.

Bill Conti, God bless you Sir, and may the powers that be at EON somehow find it within their black and corrupted hearts to rescue the once-untouchable musical legacy of this series from it's possible eternal damnation by re-acquiring your services one day very soon.

It was also used repeatedly on the show LIFESTYLES OF THE RICH AND FAMOUS, whose original theme score was also composed by Bill Conti.

I find Martin, Hamlisch and Conti's efforts are unfairly dismissed as mediocre because of their dated sound. This score is adept at being suspenseful, romantic and sheer fun when it needs to be. What else is needed?

mattjoes wrote:

I find Martin, Hamlisch and Conti's efforts are unfairly dismissed as mediocre because of their dated sound. This score is adept at being suspenseful, romantic and sheer fun when it needs to be. What else is needed?

Elegance?

Harmsway wrote:

mattjoes wrote:

I find Martin, Hamlisch and Conti's efforts are unfairly dismissed as mediocre because of their dated sound. This score is adept at being suspenseful, romantic and sheer fun when it needs to be. What else is needed?

Elegance?

I think that qualifies.

It's about as elegant as music that plays on a hotel TV channel. Or the Weather Channel.

Sharky wrote:

Harmsway wrote:

mattjoes wrote:

I find Martin, Hamlisch and Conti's efforts are unfairly dismissed as mediocre because of their dated sound. This score is adept at being suspenseful, romantic and sheer fun when it needs to be. What else is needed?

Elegance?

I think that qualifies.

floats my boat.

It's not Holy enough for Harms. If it was arranged for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, I'm sure he'd dig it. Damn you Bill Conti!

:) Well I'm sure the Mormons could make it their own.