This Sunday, Mumbai's Hollywood soundtrack fans will have a unique chance to hear their favourite James Bond songs in one concert. A show called The Name's Bond, directed by Cyrus F. Dastur, will feature Auxilia Pereira, Khooshmin Mirza, Michelle Naidu, Shreyas Purus Pardiwalla and Shriya Rao. The show won't be just a compilation of title songs from the evergreen series. The main theme music and other tunes will be played, with a lot of guitars, piano and saxophone. A lot of trivia will be discussed and an entire James Bond film ambience will be created. The global interest in James Bond’s music began with Dr No in 1962.
Today, ask a cross-section of people to name their favourite title song, and chances are each will offer a different answer. The older generation may pick Shirley Bassey's 'Goldfinger', where as the younger lot may opt for Adele's 'Skyfall'. Others may go in for renditions of Carly Simon, Paul McCartney & Wings, Madonna or even Chris Cornell.
Besides the main instrumental theme, the title song of any James Bond film has always been the subject of much discussion. For those who love their music, it's almost as important as the performance of the protagonist, the women on screen, the cinematography or action sequences.
To go back to Dr No , it had a few songs, but it was the main theme that caught immediate attention. While it was credited to composer Monty Norman, the well-known John Barry claimed it was actually his tune.
Barry went on to be a regular Bond music director, scoring nine films, followed by David Arnold with five. Other known composers are Marvin Hamlisch, Michael Kamen and Thomas Newman, who worked on the last two movies Skyfall (2012) and Spectre (2015), the latter featuring singer Sam Smith on 'Writing's On The Wall'.
The theme songs have had various styles, from soulful balladry and rocking grunge to synthesiser-driven pop and even rhythm ’n' blues. Interestingly, more female singers have sung them. While Shirley Bassey tops the list with 'Goldfinger', 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'Moonraker', the others have included Nancy Sinatra, Tina Turner, Carly Simon, Madonna, Sheena Easton, Gladys Knight, Rita Coolidge, Lana Hall, Sheryl Crow and Adele. British singer Dua Lipa is rumoured to have been finalised for the next film, tentatively titled Bond 25 , with music by Dan Romer.
The male singers include Matt Monro, who was stunning on 'From Russia With Love', Tom Jones, McCartney, Cornell of Soundgarden, and Smith. The groups Duran Duran, A-ha and Garbage have done their experimental bit too, and Jack White and Alicia Keys presented a duet with 'Another Way To Die' in Quantum Of Solace (2008).
The James Bond influence hasn't spared Hindi film music either. Legend has it that music director R.D. Burman loved 'Goldfinger' so much that he sampled the tune in 'O Hansini' in the 1974 film Zehreela Insaan . Of course, he had his own twist for the rest of the song. But that's another story.
