Interview With David Arnold: Back In Bond
Soundtrack.net features an excellent interview with composer David Arnold, in which he discusses the new Casino Royale score, the title songs, his ‘Shaken & Stirred’ album, working with orchestrator Nicholas Dodd, and much more…
When asked if he was given more freedom for the Casino Royale score, as the film was the first 007 mission, Arnold said: ‘You still have the job of scoring the film that is in front of you, and not one perhaps you wished had been made, or preferred had been made. Ultimately, I found it more satisfying because for the first time in a long time, it felt like there was an element of truth to the piece–even though it was ultimately a fantasy. I can really only credit the screenplay and Martin Campbell’s direction of Daniel Craig for that…’
‘It was really left up to me what to do as far as the Bond Theme was concerned. It has been in the script from day one that it wouldn’t appear fully-fledged until the end of the movie.’
‘It was me playing the guitar at the end; I used a Gibson ES135, and a Fender Twin amp,’ said Arnold of the final Casino Royale track: “The Name’s Bond… James Bond.” ‘It’s a little treat I save for myself at the end of every Bond movie. I didn’t do it on Tomorrow Never Dies, as Alex Gifford from The Propellerheads wanted to do it on “Backseat Driver”, and I didn’t have the heart to say no…’
‘The only reason I never used any Madonna or Sheryl Crow song material in the films was that they were not delivered to the studio until I was around 60% of the way through writing the score. It would have been too late…’
When asked how much of an influence John Barry had on the Casino Royale score, as well as if there were any nods/in-jokes, Arnold answered: ‘Barry is the sound of Bond as far as I’m concerned, and it’s amazing how much like a Bond film it becomes when that sound appears. Even the other composer who have worked on Bond films over the years have tipped their hat to him. I try to reach out a little every time, but you can’t stray too far. I write the only way I know how for the film that’s in front of me, alongside the requirements of the producers, studio and director. We end up with what I have done.’
‘I had started on a song “I Will Return” with lyricist Don Black [for Die Another Day], but fairly early on we were told that the Madonna track would be the title song and played out again at the end, so we never finished it.’
On Chris Cornell and “You Know My Name,” Arnold comments: ‘Chris was suggested to us by Lia Vollack, the head of music at Sony Pictures. He came over to Prague to meet us all and look at some footage. He was blown away by it, as was I, and we discussed what kind of song we had in mind. He was a generous and easy collaborator. I didn’t want to throw a load of ideas at him, so we agreed to go away and write some ideas ourselves, and then get back together to see what we had done. We had sort of written the same song independently of each other, so we put it together in a few days back in London…’
‘I have always told Eon Productions that I don’t expect to be asked back as a matter of fact, and I don’t take it for granted that I will,’ says Arnold. ‘I will be there for as long as they ask me back–I remain committed to the character, and will do it forever if they ask me.’
Pre-order the ‘You Know My Name’ CD single from Amazon.co.uk (£3.99)
Pre-order the ‘You Know My Name’ CD single from Amazon.com ($11.99)
Interview with David Arnold – Scoring Casino Royale
Stay tuned to CBn for all the latest Casino Royale coverage.