Michael Kamen: A CBn Tribute

Michael Kamen was one of the world’s most prolific composers, having worked in all aspects of media. In his life he has achieved much, having won three Grammys, two Golden Globes, two Ivor Novello awards, two Oscar nominations an Annie, an Emmy and countless millions of fans who respected him and admired his work.

Kamen was born on April 15th 1948 in New York City. He studied at The New York High School of Music & Art, having shown interest in music from around the age of 10 after listening to the soundtracks from films such as The Vikings and The Wizard of Oz. He was already deeply involved in the music of Brahms and Leonard Bernstein who was performing ‘Young Peoples Concerts’ at the time.

“At school I played the Clarinet and I learned a new step of the scale every week, I improvised fingers on the instrument because I had not been taught. When I auditioned for the music teachers at Junior High School I was very proud of my playing, but was a bit dismayed when the teachers said, ‘Well, we have a choice; we can either break your fingers and start all over again or we can start a new instrument.’ When they suggested the oboe, I leapt at the chance.”

Michael Kamen

He later went on to study the oboe at Juilliard’s School for Music Dance and Drama in New York, and while he was there, Kamen helped set up a rock-classical fusion band called the New York Rock And Roll Ensemble. Enigmatic composer, pianist, conductor and teacher Leonard Bernstein featured this band in one of his many Young People’s Concerts, the first with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra on the 8th of February 1968. Bernstein himself introduced Kamen to symphonic arranging and composing and ignited a passion that would burn for over 30 years.

Kamen started composing ballets in the early 1970s, and has written ten of them. Kamen contributed some music to the off-beat rock Western movie Zachariah in 1971 and later that decade, he wrote the complete scores for The Next Man in 1976, Between The Lines, Rodin mis en vie (1976), Stunts (1977) and Boardwalk (1979). He also worked with Pink Floyd as an arranger for their album The Wall in 1979, expanding his experience from Symphonic arranging to Rock and Pop.

The 1980s saw him work with illustrious names in Jazz, Rock and Pop, notably Eric Clapton, Herbie Hancock and George Harrison. Subsequently, Kamen scored some of the period’s most entertaining and diverting movies, which included Venom, The Dead Zone, Brazil, Mona Lisa, Rita Sue And Bob, Too, Die Hard, Crusoe, For Queen And Country, The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen and of course, his rousing score for 1989 Bond film Licence To Kill. A piece of work that highly interests all Bond music fans is his Bond Theme collaboration with Vic Flick (original Bond Theme guitarist for John Barry) and Eric Clapton that to this day has never been heard by the fans.

In the early 90s Kamen markedly composed the music for Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves (for which he was awarded two Grammys), The Krays and Let Him Have It– the latter written by current Bond scribes Neal Purvis and Robert Wade. Recent years have seen Kamen continue composing for Hollywood films, as well as arranging some of Bob Dylan’s songs for the orchestra in a 1994 concert to benefit UNESCO and 1996 saw him compose music for the closing of the Summer Olympics in Atlanta.

In 1999 Kamen famously worked alongside Metallica, combining his orchestral finesse with their rock sound for the humorously titled S & M concert. The recording with the San Francisco symphony orchestra went multi-platinum, serving as an underlining to Kamen’s already illustrious career. January 2000 saw the release of his Millenium Symphony, which drew inspiration from myriad cultures and peoples around the world, something he sought to portray in every facet of his work.

Kamen also founded the Mr Holland’s Opus Foundation—after the Oscar Nominated film of the same name starring Richard Dreyfuss—which dedicates itself to giving musical instruments to under-privileged students who want to learn the craft.

“My eternal debt is to Bach and his meaningful music, which always inspires me to tears.”

Michael Kamen

Mr Kamen’s mark on both the world of music and the world of Bond is indelible and permanent, this biography only serves to highlight his most prominent achievements. He had been suffering from multiple sclerosis for six years before announcing it this year, he died of a heart attack yesterday at only 55 years of age, and he leaves behind a wife and two daughters.

The staff of CommanderBond.net offer their condolences to Mr Kamen’s family at this difficult time.

Composer Michael Kamen Dies

Composer Michael Kamen has died at the age of 55 after suffering from multiple sclerosis. Bond fans knew Kamen best for his score to Licence To Kill. He also scored many of other films including Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, and Mr. Holland’s Opus.

Bond Fans Unite!

The Die Another Day soundtrack was released on November 12, 2002 and the score by David Arnold was well received by a very large proportion of Bond fans. However, much to our chagrin, a comparatively small amount of it was available: only 46 minutes in total. In place of the rest of the score we were given “extras” most of which featured on the DVD, such as Madonna’s music video, a feature on the making of the video and some picture galleries. Alongside those were online Bond Bonus Extras(!) that apparently didn’t work very well. Less than impressive for the soundtrack of the 40th Anniversary film. We assumed the lack of Arnold’s music was due to a similar problem that the Tomorrow Never Dies score suffered; sacrifice at the hands of a tight post-production schedule.

However, in 1999, two years after the release of the film, the Tomorrow Never Dies score got a second volume, free from any extraneous tracks such as title songs or promotional remixes of the James Bond Theme (save for a fascinating audio interview with John Burlingame), just pure David Arnold.

What more could we ask for?

That is something all Bond music/David Arnold fans want to see happen again; the release of a second volume of the Die Another Day score. We realised (on seeing the film after listening avidly to the CD mere days before) that only a small portion is available for Bond music fans on the soundtrack CD, and that a vast amount of Arnold’s atmospheric, contemporary score remains unreleased.

What happened to the bombastic, almost martial version of the James Bond Theme that accompanied the opening surfing stunt of Die Another Day? Or the timeless, impossibly cool sound of the Bond Theme overlayed with contemporary drum samples and the opening electronic sounds from Doctor No in the cue that oversees Bond’s escape from the MI6 Medical Ship in Hong Kong harbour? Just two of many superb pieces of Arnold’s music in Die Another Day yet to see a CD release.

CommanderBond.net asks those responsible for the release of the Die Another Day soundtrack to compile and release a second volume of the score for the 40th Anniversary film. A petition was set up roughly a year ago by level007- one of our forum members- and we at CBn feel it needs more signatures before we can present this to Warner Bros. Records or MGM.

So, please, support the cause by signing the petition. As of now we have 573 total signatures. If you have already signed the petition we thank you, however, if you have not and would be genuinely thrilled by a CD release of the rest of Die Another Day‘s music, we stress that you do as soon as possible.

Madonna's Video Makes VMA Awards 2003

Madonna is in the running for “Best Video From A Film” category in this years MTV Awards.

The Queen of Pop is up against Britney Spears/Pharrell, Eminem and JC Chasez for the award.

“Each and every year we try to put together the most diverse, most exciting and most unexpected awards show anyone has ever seen,” said MTV/MTV2 President Van Toffler.

So, will Bond’s Anniverary piece win the day? The 20th anniversary edition of the show, hosted by Chris Rock, will be broadcast live from N.Y.C.’s Radio City Music Hall on Aug. 28 at 8 p.m, so you can find out then!

Below is detailed information of each nominee in the category “Best Video From A Film” (courtesy Yahoo News).

BEST VIDEO FROM A FILM:

BRITNEY SPEARS F/PHARRELL of N.E.R.D.
Video: Boys (Co-Ed Remix)
LP: Austin Powers In Goldmember
Production Co.: FM Rocks
Producer: Ron Mohrhoff
Director: Dave Meyers
Record Label: Maverick Recording Company
Movie: Austin Powers in Goldmember
Movie Studio: New Line Cinema

JC CHASEZ
Video: Blowing Me Up (With Her Love)
LP: Drumline Soundtrack
Production Co.: FM Rocks
Producer: Craig Fanning
Director: Bryan Barber
Record Label: Fox Music/Jive Records
Movie: Drumline
Movie Studio: 20th Century Fox

EMINEM
Video: Lose Yourself
LP: 8 Mile Soundtrack
Production Co.: Geronimo Films
Producer: Chris Palladino
Director: Eminem/Paul Rosenberg/Phillip G. Atwell
Record Label: Aftermath/Shady/Interscope
Movie: 8 Mile
Movie Studio: Universal Pictures

MADONNA
Video: Die Another day
LP: Die Another Day Soundtrack
Production Co.: Traktor TM
Producer: Jim Bouvet
Director: Traktor
Record Label: Warner Bros. Records
Movie: Die Another Day
Movie Studio: MGM

Remastered YOLT Track Listing

CommanderBond.net has received the track listing for the remastered You Only Live Twice soundtrack.

The soundtrack, due for release on February 25, features seven previously unreleased tracks. It is available for pre-order from Amazon US.

1. You Only Live Twice (Title Song) – Nancy Sinatra
2. Capsule In Space
3. Fight At Kobe Dock-Helga
4. Tanaka’s World
5. A Drop In The Ocean
6. The Death Of Aki
7. Mountains And Sunsets
8. The Wedding
9. James Bond – Astronaut?
10. Countdown For Blofeld
11. Bond Averts World War Three
12. You Only Live Twice (End Title) – Nancy Sinatra
13. James Bond In Japan
14. Aki, Tiger And Osato
15. Little Nellie
16. Soviet Capsule
17. Spectre And Village
18. James Bond – Ninja
19. Twice Is The Only Way To Live

Review: 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service' Remastered

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (Bonus / Remastered) – 1969 / 2003
Composer: John Barry

The On Her Majesty’s Secret Service Remastered Soundtrack is available from Amazon US.

I have always truly enjoyed this score despite the limited amount of music previously available. After hearing this incredible reissue, the listener can truly see what it was exactly that Barry was going for. OHMSS has got to be one of Barry’s best outings with a bond film, it has such depth, and such character and one of the best main themes written for a Bond film. I remember really wanting certain cues like “Gumbolds Safe” and “Blofelds Plot” as a kid and always wondered (like I did with DAF) why the rest of the wonderful music didn’t end up on the original EMI cd release. Well folks, now we have a wonderful release that has every piece of music that you ever wanted from OHMSS. You might as well use the other issue of this score (and the others as well) for stylish coasters in your living room, the remastered discs are that good! It’s good to hear OHMSS with the amount of bass it deserves, it’s also nice to finally be able to hear each and every instrument of the orchestra working as one. OHMSS shows how creative John Barry can be, he uses quite a bit of electronics (considering the year is 1969) in a period where only one composer that I know of, Jerry Goldsmith, successfully incorporated electronics into a film score. So many cues on this disc incorporate electronics very well (which is partly b/c of the wonderful remixing job done). Trust me though, the electronics are not distracting and really add to the score.

How Does The Disc Sound?

Just like DAF, OHMSS sounds absolutely incredible! All the cues that you know and love from the previous release all sound as if they were recorded yesterday. Even the dreaded “Do you know how Christmas trees are grown?” sounds astonishing, I actually listened all the way through it for the first time after buying this new release. Trust me, if you have yet to hear the outstanding job of remastering on any of these new Bond discs, take my word for it and buy them! Especially the expanded releases!

How Does The Disc Look?

Outstanding! It looks just like the DAF (see that review for details). Except there are some hidden extras not at all mentioned in the track list on the back of the jewel case. You’re all in for a pleasant surprise! Once again, some of the tracks are mislabeled in a way that you don’t know exactly what you’ll be hearing with each cue, but once again I’ll do a track-by-track analysis.

Track-by-Track Analysis:

* – contains previously unreleased material

Track 1 – “We Have All The Time In The World” – Louis Armstrong (3:15)

Ah yes, one of the most beautiful love songs written in the last half century if you ask me. This is a good way to open the score, and a wonderful song that represents the love between Bond and Tracy.

Track 2 – “This Never Happened to the Other Fella” (5:06)*

This track starts out with the gunbarrel! What a wonderful gunbarrel it is too, I love the brass stingers at the beginning and how they go up an octave rather than the usual down to begin the gunbarrel music. Barry decided on using a synthesizer to perform the Bond theme rather than a guitar, it’s an interesting choice and works well for the film. A new type of James Bond theme for a new bond. Then the music segues into the original cue, except there’s a pause at 1:47 that gives us two sets of the chorus of the Bond theme as heard in the film as Bond looks through his rifle scope at Tracy. This was previously unreleased, and I’m glad they added into the track. From there on, the track is the same as it was (except sounds much better of course and has a better mix of the orchestra).

Track 3 – “Try” (3:26)

This is a wonderful piano piece that can be heard in the background as Bond and Tracy talk at the casino. It is the same as the older EMI release.

Track 4 – “Ski Chase” (3:39)*

This track starts out with a foreboding brass section, then subtle strings move in to accompany the shot of Bond and Teresa skiing, it’s a very romantic theme. The main title comes in as Blofeld and his henchmen ski after them. This track differs from the previous release at exactly 2:30 as we hear a fluttering flute as the shot dissolves back to London where Bond thinks about Tracey being dragged off. Then Barry brings in some mournful strings backed with timpani drums as Bond reflects. With the added music, this cue is truly an emotional masterpiece that allows the listener to hear 007’s anguish.

Track 5 – “Do You Know How Christmas Trees Are Grown?” – NINA (3:21)

This is an incidental cue that can be heard by all the people arriving in Switzerland by train. Think of it as a joyful Christmas soundtrack for the town. I never was to keen on this song, but it sure does sound great!

Track 6 – “Main Theme – On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (2:35)

This cue sounds AMAZING on this new disc!! It is a wonderful theme, and a wonderful marriage of electronics with orchestra.

Track 7 – “Journey to Blofeld’s Hideaway” (4:53)*

This track has been significantly extended from that cut and paste job on the other album. It contains all the music we hear as Bond flys to Piz Gloria in the helicopter and arrives. This seems to be expanded from what we hear in the film.

Track 8 – “We Have All The Time In The World” (2:59)

This is wonderful jazzy rendition of the main theme.

Track 9 – “Over and Out” (3:11)*

I have always really enjoyed this cue. It follows Bond and Draco as they close in on Piz Gloria in their helicopters; the subtle rythmetic electronic “beep” is a wonderful tension builder. The only addition to this cue is the deep “wah wah” brass that comes in at 2:55 as they make their final approach. It’s a wonderful addition!

Track 10 – “Battle at Piz Gloria” (4:03)

In the film, the first half of this cue was replaced by the James Bond theme, personally I think they should have kept what Barry had done. This cue accompanies the “invasion” of Piz Gloria and is some of Barry’s best action music!

Track 11 – “We Have All The Time In The World / James Bond Theme” (4:38)

This is one of the most emotional renditions Barry has ever done for Bond; it fits the melancholy of the final scene so well. Then we get an extended version of the James Bond Theme as the credits roll.

Track 12 – “Journey To Dracos Hideaway” (3:41)*

Ah yes, the first of the unreleased cues for OHMSS. This track starts out with the music that is heard as Bond and Tracy chat in the room just after Bond’s fight with one of Draco’s henchmen. Overall, the cue encompasses the music heard from that scene, all the way to when Bond meets Draco which brings us into the next track. It’s all there.

Track 13 – “Bond and Draco” (4:34)*

Here we have another rendition of the main theme as Bond and Draco discuss Tracy and some business. The main theme fades out at 2:33 into a mysterious cue done with deep strings, flutes, and a bass guitar as Bond asks about Blofeld. After that, we get the James Bond theme as 007 gets permission for his 2 weeks of leave from M. This is once again, Barry doing top-notch Bond work!

Track 14 -“Gumbold’s Safe” (4:59)*

This has got to be the cue that everyone (including myself) has really been wanting on disc. It is a wonderful repetitive theme that follows Bond as he cracks Gumbolds safe, there are some strings at: 48 that weren’t even used in the film and most likely was to accompany 007 as he walks onto the balcony to get the “Photostat” machine from the crane. This is such a wonderful track to be able to have, the repetition works so well as it builds to a wonderful brassy climax as Gumbold returns from lunch. One of the tensest cues EVER written for a Bond film.

Track 15 – “Bond Settles In” (2:16)*

This cue begins right as the Fluorine Bunt is telling Bond that he must call to be let out of his room. Barry makes use of ominous Brass backed by electronics as well as a piano that seems to wonder off to its own melody. This track contains some music that does not even appear in the film and is a treat to have on the disc. Then, at exactly 1:30, the cue picks up where it does in the film with the first several bars of the Bond theme, and Barry’s march version of We Have All The Time In The World.

Track 16 – “Bond Meets The Girls (3:27)*

This track starts out with that wonderful saxophone line from Barry’s original piece “Who Will Buy My Yesterdays” as Bond is introduced to all the girls for the first time. It’s a wonderfully romantic piece and well played by the orchestra. This track was re-recorded on Silva’s Bond Back in Action disc, and let me tell you, it sounds terrible compared with Barry’s original that is presented here. At 2:10, the track shifts gears into a piece that I call “Beneath Piz Gloria”. This is the music that accompanies Bond as he is escorted to the Labs to meet Blofeld. It is a very beautiful piece of music and fits the action on screen very well. Once again, Barry makes subtle use of electronics a violin section, a xylophone as well as his token harmonized brass backing the rest of the elements up. This is a really well done cue, and a wonderful way to introduce the films villain.

Track 17 – “Dusk At Piz Gloria” (2:32)*

As far as I can tell, this piece was not used at all in the film (which is truly a shame). It sounds like an early inspiration for what we all would hear from Barry in the later Bond films like Octopussy as well as non-Bond films like Mercury Rising and Enigma. This is a very beautiful melodic piece which a hint of desperation and romance.

Track 18 – “Sir Hillary’s Night Out” (4:46)*

This track starts out with brooding strings as Bond figures out to open his door. After that we get the lovely full version of “Who Will Buy My Yesterdays” which is a nice underscore for Bond’s numerous love exploits. At 1:17, Barry introduces an electronic “sonar” type beep (which I actually always thought was part of the films sound effects for some reason). This of course doesn’t detract from the listening experience, in fact, it adds quite a bit in my opinion. This track covers the music all the way to where Bond wakes up staring at the angel on top of Blofeld’s Christmas tree, which was a pleasant surprise. We not only get the orchestral stinger when Bond discovers Bunt, we also get the “hazy” repetitive music following it, which is a conglomeration of electronics, a harp, and a flute.

Track 19 – “Blofeld’s Plot” (5:19)*

Here is basically what this track contains (Blofeld Escorts Bond / Hallway Fight / The Girls Get Their Gifts / Bond Hangs On Cable / Blofelds Hypnosis on the Girls / Bond Sneaks to the Storage Room / 007 takes out the Guard). This cue is jammed with a whole bunch of different music, which was a pleasant surprise, I simply didn’t know what to expect from the title. Overall, this is a bunch of music that Bond fans have been wanting for years, and now, we’ve got it. Highlights include the “Bond Hangs on Cable” (I just love that Brass theme as 007 emerges from the machine room on the cable) and “Blofelds Hypnosis on the Girls” (which is Barry’s homage to his own villain cues in Thunderball) cues, they are outstanding and contain very nice lush themes that accompany the action very very well. I would say that this track would be worth the price of the album, but to be honest, there isn’t one bad piece of music on this disc.

Track 20 – “Escape From Piz Gloria” (4:53)*

You guessed it, this is the complete music from the climactic ski chase as Bond heads for town. My only complaint (which is very minor) is that I distinctly remember some very deep strings playing the chorus to OHMSS at the very beginning; they’re not there. They must not have been mixed in, oh well. This track starts right as Bond straps into his skis and goes all the way to the very end of the ski chase where we get another welcome addition, the music that accompanies Bond as he subdues the henchman after the chase (which IS NOT on the “Bond Back In Action” release). The original version is of course much better than the re-recording done on the album mentioned above.

Track 21 – “Bobsled Chase” (2:03)*

I LOVE the way this track starts out with the lone brass line that meshes into a wonderful piece of music. After that (at :23) it goes a bit downhill as Barry rehashes his “fight theme” from the pre credit sequence which wouldn’t be so bad except for the ringing electronics which do actually for
once detract from the listening experience in my opinion. I usually skip over this track.

Final Impression:

Overall, I LOVED this disc. It is a dream to be able to finally hear most of the complete score. I say most of the complete score, but trust me, every cue that you have ever wanted on disc is there and sounds wonderful! Also, the Bonus tracks are mixed extremely well and flow very nicely without the listener even noticing the change from cue to cue. What the heck are you still doing reading this review? Go buy the album, in fact, buy all of the expanded scores! You will not regret it!

Review By Rich Douglas

© 2003 Rich Douglas, All Rights Reserved.

Full Thunderball Track Listing

Capitol Music have previously confirmed the track listing for the remastered soundtrack release of Thunderball, however, a more complete listing has now come to hand:

Aside from the remastered material, tracks 13 through 18 will feature the previously unreleased Barry score.

13. Gunbarrel/Traction Table/Gassing the Plane/Car Chase
14. Bond Meets Domino/Shark Tank/Lights Out For Paula/For King and Country
15. Street Chase
16. Finding the Plane/Underwater Ballet/Bond With SPECTRE Frogmen/Leiter To The Rescue/Bond Joins Underwater Battle
17. Underwater Mayhem/Death of Largo/End Titles
18. Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (Mono)

With track 18 being a mono track it seems likely that it will be an alternate instrumental version of the Mr Kiss Kiss Bang Bang that had been originally released, and features as track 12 on the remastered edition.

The remastered Thunderball soundtrack will be released on February 25 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon US for $11.98.

New Remasters Pre-Order Available

The second wave of the James Bond digitally remastered soundtrack re-releases are now available for pre-order from Amazon US.

A further eight soundtracks will be released on February 25, after the Tuesday’s release of remastered soundtracks for Dr. No, From Russia With Love, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Diamonds Are Forever, Live And Let Die, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy and The Living Daylights.

February 25 will see the following remastered soundtracks released;

Goldfinger – will include four tracks from the UK 60’s LP not previously released on CD.

Thunderball – will include previously unreleased material expanding the soundtrack to over 75 minutes.

You Only Live Twice – will feature the films full score making it 73 minutes

The Man With The Golden Gun

The Spy Who Loved Me

Moonraker

A View To A Kill

Goldeneye

Bar Thunderball, the tracklistings for the soundtracks are currently unavailable.

Remastered Thunderball Track Listing

Capitol Music have confirmed the track listing for the remastered soundtrack release of Thunderball.

The soundtrack will feature six new tracks, five of which are known to be previously unreleased. The sixth track is titled Mr Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and could be either the Shirley Bassey or Dionne Warwick version of the track.

The tracklisting is;

1. Thunderball (Main Title)

2. Chateau Flight

3. The Spa

4. Switching The Body

5. The Bomb

6. Cafe Martinique

7. Thunderball

8. Death Of Fiona

9. Bond Below Disco Volante

10. Search For The Vulcan

11. 007

12. Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

13. Gunbarrel / Traction Table / Gassing The Plane

14. Bond Meets Domino

15. Street Chase

16. Finding The Plane

17. Underwater Mayhem

18. Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

The new tracks expand the soundtrack to in excess of 75 minutes.

The remastered Thunderball soundtrack will be released on February 25 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon US for $11.98.

Review: 'Diamonds Are Forever' Remastered

Diamonds Are Forever (REMASTERED/BONUS)- 1971

Composer: John Barry

Released: February 11, 2003

The Diamonds Are Forever Remastered Soundtrack is available from Amazon US.

When I first saw this film as a kid, the first thing I did after viewing it was go to the store and buy a cassette tape of the soundtrack. I immediately noticed how much music was sadly missing from the original EMI release, and the only way to hear all the wonderful unreleased cues was to watch the film and try to weed through dialogue and effects. Rest assured that with this release what you heard in the film is what you get on the disc, every single piece of music from Diamonds are Forever is wonderfully represented. I have always loved this score and it is much much better with the additional tracks and “extended” tracks.

What About The Discs Packaging? (Scoring is on a 000 to 010 scale)

The front cover is identical to the other EMI release; the back of the jewel case has a wonderful updated design that lists 21 tracks. The track titles however can be a bit deceiving, not in a bad way though! There are usually more cues in a track then the name lets on, I’ll do a track by track analysis a bit later on in the review. The booklet is a fold out job with wonderful liner notes about the film and score written by Jeff Bond. Overall I give the packaging 010 out of 010, it is a wonderfully designed package and easy to read.

How Does This Release Sound?

That’s easy, one can describe this with a string of simple words…. ASTOUNDING, INCREDIBLE, UNBELIEVABLE. I always noticed on my cassette tape (and in the film itself) the score sounded a bit “tinny” with hardly any bass and at times way to much reverb. My hat goes off to Doug Shwartz, the man behind the remastering. This score sounds like it was recorded yesterday and could easily fit a new bond film in the shape it’s in! I easily give the sound a 010 out of 010!! I cannot emphasize enough how incredible these remastered discs sound!

Track By Track:

* – contains previously unreleased material

Track 1 – “Diamonds Are Forever” (2:52)

This is the FILM VERSION of the song, it starts out with a wonderful stinger of brass (which is how this album deserves to start.. with a bang). Because of the wonderful remastering job, you will notice alot of new orchestration that you may not have noticed before. For example, the song has a bit more bass, which i think makes it a bit more lively. There are also some electronics at the very beginning underneath the ice bells that I have never noticed until now. The song sounds really good, better than it has on ANY bond compilation release in the past.

Track 2 – “Bond Meets Bambi And Thumper” (3:09)*

This is the listeners’ first taste of an “extended” track. It starts out with sweeping strings as bond and Felix discuss their plans. There is quite a bit of bass in the beginning of this track, not too much mind you, it definitely adds to the listening experience. As Bond begins to find his way into the house, we get the Bond Theme with electronics representing the theme song. The kicker comes in at exactly 2:04. Where the original track ends, is where the new release shines, we finally get that wonderful fight music Barry concocted for the film. It is an onslaught of brass, staccato strings, timpani drums, a xylophone, and brass stingers. This is the first of three times this action music is on the disc.

Track 3 – “Moon Buggy Ride” (4:16)*

Where as the original release started right into the actual chase, this track starts out with the music that follows the spacemen on the moon set where the moonbuggy is located. It is a very mysterious start and fits the on screen action very well. It continues on to series of stingers and a frantic xylophone as Bond jumps inside the moonbuggy and takes off. From there on, we get the original “Moon Buggy Ride”, except it sounds a tad different (and much better of course) with the remastering job done. At exactly 3:37, we are treated with the previously unreleased orchestration of the main theme that follows some “pillow talk” between Tiffany and Bond.

Track 4 – “Circus, Circus” (2:50)

This track is identical to it’s previous release, except there is a distinct snare drum roll that I hadn’t noticed before because of the poor sound quality of the mix heard in the film and on the original EMI release. This cue is a very playful waltz that fits the Circus, Circus casino environment very well. It is also the first of 6 pieces of “incidental” music that is heard on this album. For those of you who may not know what incidental music is, it is simply the music in the film that not only we as the audience can hear, but the characters can hear in the film as well. In this case, it is the music that would be played to accompany the act going on for the casino goers.

Track 5 – “Death At The Whyte House” (4:53)*

This track starts out with the previously unreleased music that accompanies Bond’s “mountaineering” at the top of the Whyte House. It is a cool theme played out on piano and flute as 007 makes his way into the penthouse. It is definitely where Barry got his ideas for a few of the cues that can be heard in Moonraker. Listen closely, that piano echoes Bond’s exploration of the lab in Moonraker. Immediately following, we get the orchestral stinger as Bond shoots and kills the wrong Bloefeld. From then on, it is a wonderfully remastered version of the original track as Bond chats with the real Blofeld and is gassed in the elevator.

Track 6 -“Diamonds Are Forever (Source Music) (#:45)

This is simply another orchestration of the main theme.

Track 7 – “Diamonds Are Forever (Bond & Tiffany) (3:39)*

This track gets the “Incredibly Mistitled” award in my book, it’s not what you think it is.. it’s better! It begins with the Wint and Kidd theme played out on flute as they are seen on the cruise ship at the end of the film. That’s right folks, this is the music we hear as Bond and Tiffany have a nice dinner, and Bond disposes of the ambiguously gay hitmen couple. There is a very lengthy version of the theme song played out beautifully on strings before we hit the action at 2:45.

Track 8 – “Bond Smells a Rat” (1:52)

This is exactly the same as it was on the older release (but of course sounds MUCH better). It accompanies 007 as he becomes “another link in the pipeline” and literally smells a rat. It is a wonderful brassy cue that follows the construction crew as they assemble the pipeline, then we get another wonderfully done orchestration of the Wint and Kidd theme.

Track 9 – “Tiffany Case” (3:46)

This is the second incidental piece of music on the disc. It is used to accompany the chat between Bond and Case when they first meet at her apartment in Holland.

Track 10 – “007 and Counting” (3:31)*

Here we have a wonderful variation of Barry’s space march first introduced in You Only Live Twice. The remastering job does add some new orchestration (like you will notice it has with many of the other tracks), it accentuates the bass guitar in the background and adds some real depth to the piece.

Track 11 – “Q’s Trick” (2:26)

This is the third piece of incidental music on the disc. It is a very jazzy piece that follows Q as he shows Tiffany his newest gadget in the Whyte House Casino. It’s a fun listen.

Track 12 – “To Hell With Blofeld” (5:09)*

Now this track is a real jewel. It starts out with a wonderful brass theme as Bond is flown over the oil rig and dropped into the water in the “inflatable ball” raft. Then Barry gives us a wonderful clarinet theme as bond paddles toward the rig which eventually segues into the bond theme chorus on deep strings that is backed with a single trumpet. I always loved this cue, it’s a joy being able to finally hear it. Then at around 2:55 we get a wonderful orchestration of the 007 theme (the best version in the series in my humble opinion). The remastering really makes this version shine, it has a world of depth to it now that none of us have been able to hear in the past.

Track 13 – “Gunbarrel and Manhunt” (3:11)*

This gunbarrel is wonderful! It’s good to finally have a version of it on disc. There is a slight difference to it though, it doesn’t have the amount of reverb (“echoy sound”) as it does in the film. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, it just is a bit of a different listen on the disc and will take a few of you some time to get used to I’m sure. This track is ALL the music from the pretitle sequence. Immediately after the gunbarrel it starts out with an Asian motif, that is followed by a string of orchestral hits as 007 interrogates. Then it switches gear as we get an African type of motif as Bond ventures to Cairo. After that Barry segues into a full version of the Bond theme complete with the twangy guitar from the gunbarrel as Bond questions Marie by the pool, it fits the scene so well. Then it’s off to blofelds lab as we get a mysterious theme performed on a vibraphone and flutes, which is followed by Barry’s wonderful action cue (which we heard previously in track! 2).

Track 14 – “Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd/Bond to Holland” (4:03)*

In my opinion, this has got to be the best villain theme Barry has every concoted for a Bond film. This is the cue that is heard as Wint and Kidd dispose of the dentist and grab the diamonds in Africa. A couple of years back a version of this cue was recorded for the “Bond Back In Action” disc on Silva records. To be honest, that version doesn’t hold a candle to Barry’s original, the film version has more life to it and seems to have more depth. At 2:30 is where I really got excited though. “Bond to Holland” is that wonderful version of the James bond theme heard as Bond boards the hovercraft to Holland. This is a really “bondish” cue complete with “wah wah” brass. It is most definitely the inspiration for David Arnolds “Ice Palace Arrival” cue heard in Die Another Day.

Track 15 – “Peter Franks” (2:55)*

This track begins with a sluethy flute accompanied by timpani drums as Bond tails Franks to Tiffany Cases’ apartment in Holland. Then at :55 we get “that” action music again for the third and final time on the disc. The version heard here is by far the best of the three and is not to be missed! After that, we get the bass guitar riff that is heard as bond arrives at the airport with Franks’ body, this cue can be heard again in “On the Road”.

Track 16 – “Airport Source / On the Road” ( 3:00)*

This is another jazzy track and is another piece of incidental music as passengers leave the plane and Bond and Lighter discuss where the diamonds are located in the body. This version however is in its entirety and is extended from the version that can be heard in the film. “On the Road” is for the most part the same cue heard at the tail end of Track 15 and follows Bond as he rides with the gangsters to Slumber Inc. I’ve always enjoyed this jazzy piece and it is a pleasure to hear it un interrupted.

Track 17 – “Slumber Inc.” (2:22)*

Another incidental track. This track truly does mark the first instance of a chorus used in a Bond film. It is the music that accompanies the burning of Franks’ coffin (it accompanies Bond’s close call in the coffin as well). To be honest, this is actually a very cool track and a good change of pace from the rest of the album. It has a full chorus accompanied with threatening brass and staccato strings.

Track 18 – “The Whyte House” (2:21)*

Another jazzy piece of incidental music in the pure style of Las Vegas. It is the music that plays at the Whyte House Casino as Bond enters. This version is extended from what we hear in the film.

Track 19 – “Plenty, Then Tiffany” (2:26)*

Here we have a very nice “love” theme played out with strings and a muted trumpet for Tiffany and Bond. Then it switches gears as Bond sees the gangsters from slumber in the room, played out with flutes and a xylophone. From there we have another beautifully done rendition of the main title as Bond and Tiffany discuss how they will go about getting the diamonds. The versions and reversions of the theme on this disc simply do not get old and are a pleasure to listen to.

Track 20 – “Following the Diamonds” (4:03)*

This track starts out with a blast of orchestration as Tiffany escapes from the CIA into the rear parking lot at Circus Circus. From there, it goes into a dark theme as Case finds Bond waiting for her and sees Plenty’s body floating in the pool. The rest of the track follows bond as he sneaks into Metz’s van and gets into the Whyte labs. It is a very mysterious cue, and fits the on screen action very well. I love the way it picks up at 2:11 as Bond descends into the lower levels of the lab in the rear of Metz’s van. This track is Barry at his best, and is represented wonderfully on the disc.

Track 21 – “Additional and Alternate Cues” (9:11)

This starts out with what sounds like an alternate take of the Wint and Kidd theme, then moves to various themes that were most likely meant for Vegas. Your guess is as good as mine, I simply couldn’t find any information in the liner notes about what this track contains, thus making the final track a real adventure! At 4:33 however the music is easily placeable, it is the incidental music from the Zambora Guerilla act at Circus Circus. So roughly three and a half minutes of the track is one long jazzy piece. The next cue is clearly an alternate take of the moon buggy ride cue and seems to “hesitate” a bit more than the film version. Personally i like the film version better. After that, at 7:00, we get what sounds like another version of “Bond Meets Bambi and Thumper”.

Final Impressions:

Overall I would give this disc an easy 010 out of 010, it sounds incredible for starters! On top of that, it has EVERY cue from the film in remastered bliss. Whether your a bond fan, or love film scores (or both!) pick this one up! You won’t be disappointed!

Review By Rich Douglas

© 2003 Rich Douglas, All Rights Reserved