James Bond theme songs, from worst to first

Vinnie Bartilucci

Freelance pontificator - unsubstantiated opinions for a reasonable fee

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8 Responses

  1. Jarrod Buttery says:

    Whoops, bit of a typo in your list, Vinnie. Madonna should be at the bottom. I’ll just wait here while you fix that up….

    • Much like there’s nothing that can knock Goldfinger off the top of the list, I feel nothing can jackhammer those bottom two songs out of the cement in the basement.

      But I assure you – Madonna tried. Really hard.

  2. ClassicBecky says:

    I would NEVER call you a bad name, Vinnie, either flora or fauna inspired, but when I saw where you placed “You Only Live Twice” I dropped my snowglobe and whispered *rosebud* … I couldn’t help it. YOLT to me is the most beautiful of the Bond songs, and it definitely belongs in the category of instantly recognizable. It is a sorrow and a pity Woody Allen made me say it) that for some inexplicable reason Nancy Sinatra sang it … but even that doesn’t take away from that gorgeous music, those incredible strings … gives me goosebumps when I hear it. If it were my list (which it isn’t) I would also have Goldfinger as #1, but YOLT would be a strong #2.

    I had never heard the Blotto song, and I loved it. I really enjoyed this piece, Vinnie, and you put SO much work into it. It certainly shows in your finished article. Great job!

  3. Mindy Newell says:

    Best of the best: GOLDFINGER, sung by inimitable Shirley Bassey.

    Other favorite: LIVE AND LET DIE (Paul McCartney and Wings)

    And the intro riff to HELP! (The Beatles, of course!)

  4. mike weber says:

    Ummm. I’ve read that Monty Norman’s “James Bond Theme” needed a lot of tweaking … possibly by Barry. Also, i recall a calypso number used as opening theme in “Dr No” (Of course, i saw it last about thirty years ago, so…)

    As to the “urban legend” about “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” – i believe that it was Pauline Kael who reported seeing a poster that said it, and i sort of remember that the poster was Italian.