James Bond Theme
The James Bond theme was originally the theme tune of the James Bond film James Bond - 007 is chasing Dr. No from 1962 and, at the request of the film producer United Artists, has also become the leitmotif of the character in other Bond films.
History of origin
The theme was written by the composer Monty Norman in the summer of 1961 for the musical A House for Mr Biswas under the title Bad Sign, Good Sign . The musical based on the novel of the same name by VS Naipaul was never performed, as was Bad Sign, Good Sign .
The great breakthrough as a film composer came for the British bandleader John Barry in the wake of the beginning James Bond wave of success that began in 1962. Barry founded the jazz rock band John Barry Seven in October 1957 , and their singles hit the British charts in 1960. From January 9, 1962, United Artists made pressure that a theme song had to be found that would make James Bond identifiable during the planned film series. The commissioned Monty Norman was to deliver a film score , but did not compose a new song in a hurry, but proposed his composition Bad Sign, Good Sign , written in the summer of 1961 , which had never been published; it was felt to be appropriate. Everyone involved suggested Barry as arranger to make the piece more attractive to the film. On June 9, 1962, Norman and Barry met for the first time. On June 21, 1962 the first recording date of the song, now dubbed the James Bond Theme, was in the Cine-Tele Sound Studios (CTS, London) with John Barry Seven & Orchestra , the rest was on 25/26. Recorded in London's Denham Film Studios on June 6, 1962 .
The 1:47 minute long instrumental recording with a catchy melody, consisting of just 60 bars, is dominated by a riff on the electric guitar played by band member Vic Flick with a maestro fuzz tone and bebop phrases in big band style during the bridge .
Publication and Success
The single James Bond Theme / The Blacksmith Blues (Columbia 4898) came on the market in September 1962 and reached number 13 in the UK charts in November 1962 . In the Bond movie James Bond - 007, Dr. No , the theme was first heard at its premiere at the London Palladium on October 5, 1962.
According to the will of the film producers, the James Bond theme subsequently appeared between the films From Love From Moscow (1963) to Die Another Day (2002) as the opening melody during the famous, visualized gun barrel. In Casino Royale , the gun barrel can only be seen at the end of the introductory teaser - since Bond is only now a mature double-0 agent . In the film Quantum of Solace , the Bond theme closes the film with the iconic pistol barrel setting and leads to the credits. In all James Bond films for which John Barry composed the soundtrack, a different version of the James Bond theme appears - it is slower in, for example, Greetings from Moscow .
Variety magazine estimated that over half the world's population had seen a James Bond film and that virtually all of them would recognize the tune.
Analysis & Interpretation
James Bond represents the classic secret agent of the film. His leitmotif (main theme) in jazz and big band style that runs through all films underlines his perception as an embodiment of decision-making power, casualness and coolness.
Depending on the version, two strong accents are heard three times at the beginning in the high brass section, which are always answered by a further thrust an octave lower. They immediately give an uncompromisingly powerful impression. Now the piece is initially based on a much quieter, leisurely ostinato . Its harmonic course is already characterized by chromatic and crescendo - decrescendo movements, which gives the piece something mysterious and exciting. In your mind's eye you can see a slowly striding Bond, who examines the situation waiting and observing. After these initial bars, a second ostinato on the electric guitar is laid over it . The fast dotted and straight eighth note movements make it restless. In this motif , too, there are chromatic twists that suggest the mystery and danger of a Bond story. Leading on to the chorus , the initial harmonic ostinato motif soon reappears with a distinct crescendo. The additional accents on beats 2 and 4 by the high brass and snare drum also help to build up tension and push the action towards the chorus .
The chorus is in the forte and forms the climax of the musical course. This is where the entire big band line-up comes into play. The melody is characterized by larger tone jumps and repeated chromatic turns. The upward sound jumps have a signal character and convey Bond's heroic side in combat. The chromatic twists, however, repeatedly force the melody into a surprising character.
The chorus theme is also rhythmically varied and is loosened up by occasional syncopation. The Swing - meter speaks a clear language: Bond remains transparent in action and retains its stylish elegance.
The music increases once more when the rhythmically and melodically varied opening ostinato in the wind section reappears. The tension curve flows and discharges again in the powerful octave accents of the intro. They almost look like pistol shots or fist blows that bring the musical activity to its knees and end it.
What now follows is merely the repetition of the first part starting with the much quieter and calmer harmonic ostinato.
The ostinati as well as the chromatic twists give the entire piece a tension that is discharged in the chorus and at the same time never really dissolves. Apart from his love affairs, Bond never really has a break, he is never granted real inner peace. The contrasting dynamics of the piece seem like a change in Bond's emotional states: in one moment everything is tense, then lively, relaxed. Both sides of the character 'James Bond' are represented in the music. His job is exciting and demanding, but it can also be lonely and exhausting at times.
Copyright dispute
Legally, the roles of those involved in the James Bond theme were clear, as the composer was Monty Norman, the music producer John Burgess and the arranger John Barry. However, this had claimed on October 12, 1997 in The Sunday Times that he was the composer of the film music. Norman felt defamed by the newspaper article and filed a lawsuit. Between 1976 and 1999, Norman Royaltys raised £ 485,000. In March 2001, the copyright lawsuit reached the London High Court , where the 60 bars of the melody were analyzed in depth. The opening bass line ("vamp"), the following guitar riff and the bebop phrases of the bridge in big band style were arranged by Barry. The reviewer was of the opinion that the guitar riff was the basic idea of the song, which came from Normans Bad Sign, Good Sign . Most of it was due to Monty Norman as a composer. On March 19, 2001, the court ruled in favor of Norman, who received £ 30,000 in damages for defamation.
It is undisputed that Barry changed and expanded the Bond theme very much with his arrangement from 1962. The court, however, considered his compositional parts to be too low, as it only allowed Barry 10 of the 60 bars. Nevertheless, it was not Norman but John Barry who was then obliged to compose the music for the following James Bond films. For Goldfinger (1964), Barry was also responsible for the prestigious title song , which he wrote in collaboration with lyricists Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse . Shirley Bassey sang it, making it the biggest hit of her career. Barry brought her back in front of the microphone for Diamantenfieber (1971) and Moonraker (1979).
The theme was not only used in the Bond films, but also in Catch Me If You Can by Steven Spielberg from 2002 in a contemporary context with an excerpt from Goldfinger .
Cover versions
Over 70 versions of the James Bond theme have been recorded and published. The artists were:
- John Barry for the James Bond films
- George Martin for the James Bond film Live and Let Die
- Marvin Hamlisch for the James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me (Bond '77)
- Bill Conti for the James Bond film Deadly Mission
- Michael Kamen for the James Bond film License to Kill
- Eric Serra for the James Bond film Goldeneye
- Moby for the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (special credits version)
- Paul Oakenfold for the James Bond film Die Another Day (special credits)
- David Arnold for the James Bond films
- Thomas Newman for the James Bond films Skyfall and Specter
- Ray Barretto
- Count Basie
- Bond
- Al Caiola
- Cannibal Corpse
- Frank Chacksfield
- Johnny and the Hurricanes
- Ray Martin
- Meco
- Hugo Montenegro
- Perez Prado
- Sex mob
- The Skatalites
- Billy Strange
- The Ventures
- John anger
- Wave: globe
- Fanfare Ciocărlia
Additional information
literature
- Siegfried Tesche: Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. The history of the James Bond film scores. Schott, Mainz 2006, ISBN 3-7957-0567-3 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Christoph Lindner: The James Bond phenomenon: a critical reader . Manchester University Press, 2003, ISBN 0-7190-6540-2 , pp. 95 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
- ^ Jon Burlingame: The Music of James Bond . Oxford University Press, New York 2012, ISBN 978-0-19-986330-3 , p. 11 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
- ^ Christoph Lindner: The James Bond phenomenon: a critical reader . Manchester University Press, 2003, ISBN 0-7190-6540-2 , pp. 119 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
- ^ Monty Norman v. The Sunday Times: The "James Bond Theme" Lawsuit
- ^ Jon Burlingame: The Music of James Bond . Oxford University Press, New York 2012, ISBN 978-0-19-986330-3 , ( limited preview in Google Book Search).