I am by no means a James Bond fan. I am one of the few people in the world that have never seen an actual James Bond film in full. Granted, I am a big fan of Daniel Craig and Sean Connery, but the film series never called out to me. However while I am not a Bond fan nor have I ever seen an actual Bond film in full, I am very much aware of the music behind the Bond films.
For fans of the film series, “Best of Bond…” is a remarkable and utterly incredible compilation of the some of the best and most iconic Bond music ever made. From scores to soundtracks and themes, this music compilation has it all. And then some.
Thanks to a film conscious uncle who loves Bond I spent most of my young years listening to music from James Bond films, and couldn’t help but love every single minute of this album. Of course the win goes to Paul McCartney who writes the theme song “Live and Let Die,” a wonderful action packed pop ditty with blazing guitars, an orchestra, and McCartney’s blazing pipes. And you have to love Carly Simon’s ode to Bond with “Nobody Does it Better,” a soulful anthem to 007 that is catchy and absolutely beautiful. From the John Barry Orchestra, there’s the James Bond theme as well as the themes to the opening titles for the Bond films, and the excellent theme to Goldfinger from the immortal Shirley Bassey. Tom Jones has a great tune for “Thunderball,” and there’s one of my personal favorites, the Sheen Easton theme “For Your Eyes Only.”
I also truly enjoyed the A-Ha theme “The Living Daylights.” Admittedly I even really liked the weaker opening title songs like “Tomorrow Never Dies” from Sheryl Crow, and “The World is Not Enough” from Garbage. Shirley Manson’s haunting vocals add a nice touch to the new wave of Bond films. The weakest titles on the record are by fare Madonna’s “Die Another Day,” and the utterly forgettable “Another Way to Die” from Jack White and Alicia Keys. I’ve heard much better, guys. And you just can’t match up to your predecessors. With an in depth and very rich collection of themes from the Bond films, this album filled with almost a hundred tracks is a genuine gem of a movie companion that many Bond fans will listen to over and over. There’s everything from Chris Cornell, to Lulu, right down to Gladys Knight and Nancy Sinatra. You simply can’t go wrong here.