Last Bond Soundtrack You Listened To

Hilly wrote:

...the fight at Stacey's house (the way the Bond theme sounds towards the end reminiscent of the first half of Thunderball's "Chateau Flight")

as below: fight at Stacey's (two versions of it)

So great! The Bond theme weaves so effortlessly with that brass riff I mentioned. Good pick up with the TB citation btw. I wish Barry indulged us a little more with these film-specific renditions of the Bond theme like that. I feel TMWTGG, MR, OP, AVTAK and the TLD gunbarrel all have very similar Bond themes which diffuse the tension a little (the preference for strings and horns instead of the harder guitar riff used in the Connery era. The guitar riff would have been a better fit for the direction Glen moved the series into for the 80s). For example, the Paris taxi chase could have had the extra bit of urgency had that AVTAK rendition of the Bond theme quoted above been used instead of the lighter, seemingly overused track.

Yes, we definitely need all those tracks on an official release. Even that romantic little number when Bond boards the iceberg. Can be called "autopilot".

Yes, it is fantastic how the theme weaves in, real urgency and purpose that somehow works for Moore's Bond (that tuck and roll he does on the top floor). As far as I know, unlike Moonraker, a fuller VTAK score is not down to rights. Unless there's something I don't know. Just weird that of all the scores being expanded, VTAK doesn't. Yet even TLD when it first came out, at least on CD a few years before the expanded's came out (OHMSS etc), had 'bonus' tracks.

I should add I listened to my Casino Royale score. I'm not bashing Arnold, though he ditched the techno for the score, it's nots one that hugely sways. I much prefer TND and DAD (for all their techno). The weaving of the song's instrumental isn't bad but after a while Miami International just dulls into my mind, the absence of the proper Bond theme still bugs me (I know he was doing the whole "well he's not quite 007 yet" thing) but still. Vesper feels similar enough to Paris & Bond in my mind, quite beautiful in its way but still an echo of what came before.

Whereas I then listened to Skyfall. I do love the song more than I should, after a while it has this real punch (my hand in your hand...off we go or whatever...my mind's a bit mushy) and the use of the Bond theme early on ("The Bloody Shot") when I saw/heard it in the cinema made me mentally cheer. Alright, no great shakes score wise (doesn't help parts of tracks like Granborough Road/Quartermaster were used writ large in Spectre), but it has its moments like Komodo Dragon, Chimera, Severine and yes, Tennyson (Enquiry has a suitably urgent Bond theme and I do like the scene anyway. Both the preceding run up Whitehall and in the select committee room made me think, at last this is a Bond I can like).

Curiously, listening to CR, made me wish it *had* been Brosnan. Parts of that film weren't too far removed from a Brosnan film (Venice say), I could see Brozzer pounding across the tarmac at Miami in classic arms pumping mode.

Hilly wrote:

Yes, it is fantastic how the theme weaves in, real urgency and purpose that somehow works for Moore's Bond (that tuck and roll he does on the top floor). As far as I know, unlike Moonraker, a fuller VTAK score is not down to rights. Unless there's something I don't know. Just weird that of all the scores being expanded, VTAK doesn't. Yet even TLD when it first came out, at least on CD a few years before the expanded's came out (OHMSS etc), had 'bonus' tracks.

Hopefully La La Land Records, after an expanded TND release (hopefully at the end of the year, following on from DAD in 2017 and TWINE in '18), they'll go back and do some of the Barry scores. What exactly is the legal business regarding MR's soundtrack?

Hily wrote:

I should add I listened to my Casino Royale score. I'm not bashing Arnold, though he ditched the techno for the score, it's nots one that hugely sways. I much prefer TND and DAD (for all their techno). The weaving of the song's instrumental isn't bad but after a while Miami International just dulls into my mind, the absence of the proper Bond theme still bugs me (I know he was doing the whole "well he's not quite 007 yet" thing) but still. Vesper feels similar enough to Paris & Bond in my mind, quite beautiful in its way but still an echo of what came before.

It's certainly the most bland score in the series, maybe rivalled by Newman's efforts. The score only really works when the Bond theme or You Know My Name is alluded to. Unlike, say, Body Double in TWINE, or Hamburg Break In (in TND) even before the Bond theme is quoted, there's a good deal of ambience and style that's quite melodic that doesn't reference a title song. Can't say I see the parallels between the clinical Vesper's Theme and the vastly superior, tonally acute Paris and Bond. Sure it's pleasant enough but doesn't quite capture Vesper's complexity. Mentioned elsewhere, Torture Queen from TWINE might have worked better. As for Miami International... what a track.

Hilly wrote:

Whereas I then listened to Skyfall. I do love the song more than I should, after a while it has this real punch (my hand in your hand...off we go or whatever...my mind's a bit mushy) and the use of the Bond theme early on ("The Bloody Shot") when I saw/heard it in the cinema made me mentally cheer. Alright, no great shakes score wise (doesn't help parts of tracks like Granborough Road/Quartermaster were used writ large in Spectre), but it has its moments like Komodo Dragon, Chimera, Severine and yes, Tennyson (Enquiry has a suitably urgent Bond theme and I do like the scene anyway. Both the preceding run up Whitehall and in the select committee room made me think, at last this is a Bond I can like).

Skyfall benefits from freshness, I think. Plus, those tracks your reference as highlights I'd agree with. Still, I think I'd sacrifice them if it meant having a more celebratory score like TND, TB, AVTAK or OHMSS (the latter, as suggested by John Barry, was made particular use of the big Bond sound to help assure audiences they're still watching a Bond film). Given the patriotic nature of the story, as well as being the 50th anniversary film, that should have been reflected through the score, and one of the 4 I mentioned would have capitalised on that.

Hilly wrote:

Curiously, listening to CR, made me wish it *had* been Brosnan. Parts of that film weren't too far removed from a Brosnan film (Venice say), I could see Brozzer pounding across the tarmac at Miami in classic arms pumping mode.

Interestingly, the Venice portion was added by a non-Brosnan era veteran. Haggis conjured up that idea to contrive Bond seeing Vesper commit suicide; "first he wants to kill her, then he wants to save her" and the falling house enabled that. No, the Miami Airport sequence is too generic/not inventive enough for Brosnan's Bond. For god's sake the man parasurfed a tidal wave!

this might help re: rights etc https://bondandbeyond.forumotion.com/t1948-the-fate-of-john-barry-s-moonraker?highlight=moonraker

when Tadlow went to record it they were shut down. Might be in the thread cited but I know I read it on here.

Oh sure, a score like TND or whatever would've helped Skyfall but coming after two relatively forgettable scores it worked enough. The shame is that Spectre, like the whole film, seemed to rely on the legend of the previous film.

Maybe I reached for Brosnan.

AVTAK's score underlines the dark undercurrent of the film's tone and the aging of Bond himself to add real desperation to many sequences and raise the stakes. I think its a distinct improvement on OP which I felt played it too safe and thus outside of certain more iconic cues is a bit on the sedate side. And this builds towards the TLD score as well.

I hate that the 2003 remaster CD sounds so awful for AVTAK. I usually listen to my US LP copy which is fantastic. And the film mix for 1985 Dolby Stereo is quite excellent with a lot of natural low end on the original mix-and the title song. I think the Laserdisc version sounds the best overall out of all the video releases.

Someday I'd like to get the UK 7" white vinyl release of the title song. It's always eluded me and there never was a 12" single remix officially released.

blasted this out today



joint-favourite track on this score and exemplifies GF. Big, bold, brassy and yes, classy. Would love to hear this down at a concert with the right orchestra.

Hilly wrote:

blasted this out today



joint-favourite track on this score and exemplifies GF. Big, bold, brassy and yes, classy. Would love to hear this down at a concert with the right orchestra.

Absolutely. One could get the helluvan orchestral concert from the various Bond soundtracks. A typical orchestral concert contains approximately 90 minutes of music or slightly less than that.

A medley of Barry's finest would be a treat indeed. From Russia With Love's opening medley, into Pressing Engagement, 007 Theme, Capsule in Space, On Her Majesty's Secret Service main theme, Airport Source/Whyte House, Search for Scaramanga's Island, Flight Into Space, He's Dangerous and Hercules Takes Off...

That's not a bad medley idea Fields. Maybe the three of us should get onto someone like Q the Music. I mean, lockdown doesn't seem to stop most from filming at home.

I should add to the mix, this from the soundtrack



from 1.20 especially would sound rocking with a proper orchestra

Q The Music have an account here. Wouldn't be too hard to get in touch.

I'd love to hear a live version of Into Miami, Airport Source and The Whyte House. Some of Barry's finest work that doesn't rely on the Bond theme or film-specific theme.

Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang wrote:

Q The Music have an account here. Wouldn't be too hard to get in touch.  

I'd love to hear a live version of Into Miami, Airport Source and The Whyte House. Some of Barry's finest work that doesn't rely on the Bond theme or film-specific theme.

Good choices and my spine tingled at the idea of Airport Source in particular. I immediately conjure to mind Tiffany's walk. She's very attractive, for a woman.

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Choosing the top tracks for Thunderball and got to like Thunderball's expanded even if half of the expanded tracks are 8+min. I can sit through long tracks don't get me wrong but like OHMSS', they lump certain bits in with others. Such as "Bond Meets Domino/Shark Tank/Lights out for Paula/For King and country".

Now, the music for the discovery of Paula and that king and country is excellent, conveys enough to make your mood drop for poor Paula.

Street Chase is also excellent. Yes it's the 007 theme essentially but with TB bits if that makes sense. Complete contrast to 007 Takes the Lektor say or To Hell With Blofeld. It's a frantic version, it builds, it suddenly slackens, it builds again and you can picture Connery's frightened look as he flees and yes Bond is a little nervy I'd imagine. Only Lazenby's flight from the shed onto the ice rink matches that.

Death of Fiona is classic Barry. I love how you have this tune as Bond and Fiona dance, you can see Connery's furtive looks as he checks out that he's surrounded. You're sinking into this tune, subtly the drum comes in and next thing it's the only thing going and stops dead when Fiona is shot. Arnold on that Score film is right when every spy film since Bond in the 60s has sought, musically as well, to be Bond and that's down to Barry.

If JB had not scored OHMSS say, well...forget it.

Though the last two expanded tracks before the KKBB song are good detailing the battle full of craziness and certain sounds (such as when the Marines parachute in or as Bond and Domino are whisked away by the B-17) the top track for me is Chateau Flight...



It's bold, it's brassy and relentless as the fight develops. Oh for a track in the new films that gives you that smiilar feeling of edge of the seat excitement.

Tiffany's walk, the music and that camera movement... one of DAF's best moments, strangely. Who'd have thought, on paper, that it would be a moment.

As for Thunderball (and a bunch of other scores), the lumping of different, unrelated scenes as one track is frustrating. But glad to have it than not at all (AVTAK, MR, GE, TND)... C'mon on La La Records!

Death of Fiona is excellent. Violent drama made with music.

Top track for me for would probably be Cafe Martinique or Death of Fiona. Chateau Flight is excellent, though.

Yeah I don't know why the expanded scores for TB, YOLT and OHMSS felt the need to meld tracks that way. There's bootleg copies where people have broken the tracks down.

Nice choice for Cafe Martinque, Barry a master of music in the foreground and background. It surprised me years ago when I realised how composers like Barry, Goldsmith et al would do all the music even what you heard on the radio say, in a scene.

FYEO did too. So bizarre.

I suppose they'd need to be responsible for the sound of the film (foley and dialogue excepted, of course).

Goldsmith doing a Bond score... What a treat that would have been. Most obvious, I think, would be FYEO, even though I love Conti's music. Or GoldenEye. Again, I do think Serra's work is underrated, however. I wonder if anyone has fan edited his Russia House score into GoldenEye. See how that may have worked.

Lukas Kendall had to sneak most of the extra stuff in due to the insane amount of record label and legal hurdles plus the fact that he was given virtually no time to do the expansions single handedly on a shoestring budget. This is why only certain titles were able to be done and he had to stick to the original LP track listings first.

Heh, interesting. Never knew that. Who exactly is Lukas Kendall?

Founder of Film Score Monthly and longtime soundtrack enthusiast who essentially jump started the specialty complete scores market.
This two part interview on the What's the Score podcast will explain it best as he does some very good detailing of the super rushed 2003 remaster project in the second part:
https://whatsthescore1.podbean.com/e/guest-cd-producer-and-director-lukas-kendall/
https://whatsthescore1.podbean.com/e/guest-cd-producer-and-director-lukas-kendall-part-2/

Excellent, thanks Boots! I'll give these a listen.

though cropping up in Moonraker, this is a tune I forever associate with Connery's Bond. Of course it featured in most of his films (twice in FRWL alone, it's first film naturally) and to me sometimes has a Western feel.

Though I do imagine sometimes it coming in Octopussy or VTAK and Daylights, the latter two with that late 80s sound Barry injected.

It does have a bit of a Western feel. There was a grand sort of jauntiness in those early Bonds, reflected in the music.

It's a cracking sort-of alternate Bond theme, and a crying shame that it hasn't featured since Moonraker.

Connery's passing-related wistfulness led to me digging out the 30th anniversary compilation CD and playing the whole thing yesterday.

My ultimate Bond incidental playlist.....Why not comment and add your own!

FRWL.
Man overboard
Stalking
007 takes the lektor

Goldfinger.
into miami
alpine drive
golden girl

Thunderball.
search for the vulcan
007
mr kiss kiss bang bang

Yolt.
Capsule in space
death of Aki
Mountains and sunsets
James bond astronaut

Ohmss.
Journey to blofelds hideaway
over and out
Gumbolds safe
sir Hilarys night out

Daf.
Circus circus
Death at the whyte house
Bond smells a rat
007 and counting
Qs trick
Wint and Kidd
The whyte house

TMWTGG.
Scaramangas fun house
lets go get em
in search of Scaramangas island


TSWLM.
Bond 77
ride to atlantis

Moon raker
Space laser battle
Miss goodhead meets Bond
Cable car/ snake fight

Spotify kindly deleted Live and let die so i have no reference, as for the others i have only heard them whilst watching the movie so again no reference.

Blunt Instrument wrote:

It's a cracking sort-of alternate Bond theme, and a crying shame that it hasn't featured since Moonraker.

Connery's passing-related wistfulness led to me digging out the 30th anniversary compilation CD and playing the whole thing yesterday.

It is a shame but I guess it's so intrinsically Barry's.

If he had scored LTK I could see this for the Wavekrest/jet ski scene or some of the tanker chase.

I think Arnold would do something interesting with it, but the time to have used it would have been TND when the Navy helps Bond slow the stealth ship. As CJB mentioned, there's a jauntiness, which would be at odds with the ultra-seriousness of Craig's era.

Hilly wrote:

Though I do imagine sometimes it coming in Octopussy or VTAK and Daylights, the latter two with that late 80s sound Barry injected.

It's a cracker track. I could certainly hear it featuring in the Airbase shootout sequence in TLD!

silvetoe wrote:

My ultimate Bond incidental playlist.....Why not comment and add your own!

Sound choices. There are similar existing threads already if you'd like to repost/discuss there:

Top 5 Tracks of each John Barry score

Top 5 Tracks of each David Arnold score

Top 5 Tracks of the Other Composers

Arnold might have held off if he thought off it being Barry's tune to begin with (unlike the Bond theme). You could've used a remix version for the BMW chase though Backseat Driver is great, a modern 007 might have fitted. Or part of the boat chase in TWINE, ice chase in DAD (or PTS hovercraft).