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Quick Big Mi6 Music Score Ranking Game

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  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,136
    One of my favourites, gave it the 5th spot. The album doesn't do it justice though.
  • StirredNotShakenStirredNotShaken Toronto
    Posts: 2,402
    I don't see this one at all, guys. I've been a massive fan of John Barry for most of my life and all I hear with the score is a mediocre effort by a composer I expect far better of. Stunned at how long it lasted and even moreso at the praise for it. I expected this to go out in the first four or five.
  • Some_Kind_Of_HeroSome_Kind_Of_Hero
    Posts: 6,844
    vzok wrote: »
    The Pyramids music is very well used, mixed with the narrator of the Pyramids show.
    Here are the Bee Gees up against Marvin.


    I didn't catch this yesterday, but this is seriously cool. I especially like the end from 6:58 onward. My appreciation for Hamlisch's score would majorly have gone up if this is how the action sequences had been scored. But then I'm a fan of David Arnold and Propellerhead's "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" and "Backseat Driver," so that probably explains that. ;)
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    Posts: 4,483
    Great post @mattjoes
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    Even with very little time to work on the score, Barry delivered the goods: a simple score for a very simple film. My only regret is that this score will never be fully embraced.
  • zebrafishzebrafish <°)))< in Octopussy's garden in the shade
    Posts: 4,341
    Does anyone have a link to audio of the highly-praised Journey to Scaramanga's Island? It is not on the OST.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,136
    goldenswissroyale wrote: »
    Great post @mattjoes

    Indeed. Excellent post.

    Next up is our number 14:

    TOMORROW NEVER DIES
    Music composed by
    DAVID ARNOLD

    tomorrow-never-dies-sountrack-cd-back.jpg

    David Arnold's Bond debut received one gold medal, two 4th places, three 8th places, one 9th place and one 10th place. Five more top 15's were obtained.

    Few participants seem to dislike this one, it received only one bottom 5, a single 23rd place.

    The original music for TND received 122 points in total. The best ranking from the Brosnan Era.

    This score won a BMI Film Music Award, and it was also nominated for a Saturn Award.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,136
    Tomorrow we'll enter the top half, let's have a look back at the game so far:

    14. TND
    15. TMWTGG
    16. TSWLM
    17. LTK
    18. DAD
    19. TWINE
    20. SF
    21. GE
    22. FYEO
    23. CR67
    24. DN
    25. SP
    26. NSNA
  • Quantum_of_TomorrowQuantum_of_Tomorrow
    Posts: 508
    ouch, yes this is sacrilege, but I gave it the gold medal. Barry's scores were astounding (I would say FRWL and OHMSS particularly) but this is adapted to a modern audience (like me). The "Backseat Driver" and "White Knight" tracks particularly in my opinion are revolutionary. I'm interested that QoS beat this. I suppose it's not that surprising, QoS will probably come next or LALD, or maybe CR. Maybe it's a top ten with 100% Barry?
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    The competition is tough as hell, but TND keeps ranking high for me. Arnold is firing on all cylinders here. This score is thrilling, powerful, exciting, "classic" and not yet overstuffed on electronics. The theme song is poor but luckily never blows into the score. 'Surrender' is a far better song, in my opinion, though not to everyone's liking--I'm well aware of that. ;-) 'Backseat Driver' en 'White Knight' are nothing short of "awesome", as @Quantum_of_Tomorrow said.

    I'm also pleased, however, that both CR and QOS are still in the running. Though devoid of the Bond Theme (unlike TND), they are among Arnold's finer, more polished work. But I'll never forget the joy I had keeping the first released TND soundtrack in heavy rotation while my fellow teenagers were wasting their time on stupid pop songs; or playing 'Backseat Driver' and Moby's rendition of the Bond Theme while driving my dad's car for the first time ever. ;-)
  • vzokvzok
    Posts: 4,044
    zebrafish wrote: »
    Does anyone have a link to audio of the highly-praised Journey to Scaramanga's Island? It is not on the OST.

    I think it's track 10
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    Posts: 4,483
    Sounds like wonderful memories @DarthDimi. TND is my second favourite Arnold score and ranks #10 at the moment. Some say the Bond theme is used too much while I enjoy every second of the Bond theme or its variations in TND.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    TND comes in at #16 for me. It's my least favorite of Arnold's but I suppose it's not saying much, considering I enjoy all of his work on the series.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    What I like about Arnold is that he showed a clear evolution in quality (as opposed to Barry, who showed a clear evolution in style but not in quality since he had the magic touch from the start.) TND was 'young' Arnold, the man who also wrote Stargate and ID4, scores full of good ideas and cool moments but otherwise severely unpolished.

    TWINE and DAD brought us "experimental" Arnold, the guy who goes for hip beats and digital mixing (see also F&F 2).

    CR and QOS give us a more mature, reserved Arnold; a less-is-more David Arnold. This is where he peaks for me, which explains why I regret that he wasn't around for SF and SP.
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 8,217
    TND ranked at #9 for me. My first Bond at the cinema and as such the score had a lasting impact. For a young me, this was what Bond should always sound like. As time goes by, it found its natural position amongst the lower end of Barry's consistently magnificent efforts, but it's always been and always will be a score that I absolutely cherish.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    14 is where I ranked this as well. One of the good Arnolds, this. A renewal of the Bond sound, but not devoid of traditional elements.
  • Quantum_of_TomorrowQuantum_of_Tomorrow
    Posts: 508
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    The competition is tough as hell, but TND keeps ranking high for me. Arnold is firing on all cylinders here. This score is thrilling, powerful, exciting, "classic" and not yet overstuffed on electronics. The theme song is poor but luckily never blows into the score. 'Surrender' is a far better song, in my opinion, though not to everyone's liking--I'm well aware of that. ;-) 'Backseat Driver' en 'White Knight' are nothing short of "awesome", as @Quantum_of_Tomorrow said.

    I'm also pleased, however, that both CR and QOS are still in the running. Though devoid of the Bond Theme (unlike TND), they are among Arnold's finer, more polished work. But I'll never forget the joy I had keeping the first released TND soundtrack in heavy rotation while my fellow teenagers were wasting their time on stupid pop songs; or playing 'Backseat Driver' and Moby's rendition of the Bond Theme while driving my dad's car for the first time ever. ;-)

    yes, I'm glad that CR and QoS are still in the running, and as you said, it's a "less-is-more" Arnold, (more so CR) which is very simplistic, particularly compared to the big, bombastic scores of TWINE and especially DAD. They do have a slight absence of the Bond theme I would say (though at the end of CR, it's perfection). I'm interested to see where those two fall in the rankings.
  • pachazopachazo Make Your Choice
    Posts: 7,314
    I precisely matched TMWTGG at #15. I don't know if anyone mentioned it, but I feel this score was a precursor to OP in a way, especially regarding the Bond theme. @DarthDimi, I'm very much in agreement with your comments about Arnold's evolution. TND was a little rough around the edges, so to speak, but it definitely has its moments.
  • Some_Kind_Of_HeroSome_Kind_Of_Hero
    edited July 2021 Posts: 6,844
    Well, I agreed with the bottom five of this ranking, but that's about where it's ended, haha. Tomorrow Never Dies was I believe the first film that really made me notice the music—how powerful it is against the image and just how much it accomplishes in establishing the mood and driving your emotional responses. Arnold's "Surrender" theme is one of the two best themes we've had since Barry, and it works powerfully as a heroic motif both with a note of danger during "White Knight" and with soaring romanticism in "All in a Day's Work." The techno elements give the film its sense of cool and 90s modernity in tracks like the playful "Backseat Driver," the bracing "*-3-Send," and what may very well be the best matching of music to visuals in the series, "Hamburg Break In." In Tomorrow Never Dies, Arnold brought the Bond theme back big and put it front and center in a way that felt classic and fresh all at once (see "White Knight," "Company Car," "Bond Drives to Paris"). There's nary an off note in the score. Would have had this one considerably higher myself. Barry is legendary and deserving of the majority of the top 10, but the totality of his Bond oeuvre is perhaps slightly overpraised in this ranking at the expense of the finer works other composers have written for Bond.
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 8,217
    Great post @Some_Kind_Of_Hero and 100% agreed on "Surrender" - a mighty fine tune used incredibly well throughout the score.
  • Quantum_of_TomorrowQuantum_of_Tomorrow
    Posts: 508
    Yes, the stuff based on "Surrender" is phenomenal. Much better than "Tomorrow Never Dies". I like Sheryl Crow but that theme song wasn't great.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,136
    Next up is our number 13:

    CASINO ROYALE
    Music composed by
    DAVID ARNOLD

    casino-royale-cd-back.jpg

    Another Arnold score, this one being his second-highest placed entry.

    Reaching 2nd place in our two previous games, the score here is slightly less popular than the film it accompanies.

    However, CR still managed to collect one gold medal, one bronze medal, one 4th place, one 5th place, one 7th place and three 10th places. That's a total of eight top 10's.

    It also received six more top 15's, out of which no less than five were 13th places.

    The lowest rating here was 21st, on one occasion.

    CR's original score obtained 125 points in total.

    Awardwise, Arnold received a BMI Film Music Award for this score. Additionally, it was nominated for the Anthony Asquith Award for Best Film Music at the BAFTA's. There was also another Saturn Award nomination, as well as an IFMCA Award nomination.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    edited July 2021 Posts: 7,136
    I only started looking through the awards and nominations during the course of this game, here are a few I missed out on from the earlier exits.

    SP: Sattelite Award nomination, World International Film Music Award nomination for Composer of the Year.

    FYEO: winner of an ASCAP Award for Most Performed Feature Film Standards.

    TWINE: BMI Film Music Award winner.
  • Quantum_of_TomorrowQuantum_of_Tomorrow
    Posts: 508
    My first ranking that fits the general ranking perfectly (except from NSNA). I had this at #13 because I feel it's a bit TOO simplistic, which is rectified in QoS. "The Name's Bond...James Bond" is sheer perfection, but the rest is rather mediocre in my opinion. I'm interested that QoS is the highest ranked Arnold score.
  • MalloryMallory
    Posts: 2,165
    Having had the pleasure of watching Casino Royale performed live by an orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, I can say the score is indeed excellent, though like most on here it seems, QoS just edges it for me.

    I think that Arnold, essentially banned from using the Bond theme, delivers a very good Bond score, weaves in the title song in quite a number of places, some more obvious than others, and comes up with a great romantic cue for Vesper.
  • BennyBenny Shaken not stirredAdministrator, Moderator
    Posts: 15,138
    This one is a bit of a shock. I placed it 4th. I think it's a wonderful score from Arnold, and easily his best. Perfectly fits with the film. I really thought QOS would go before CR, along with a few other scores. Oh well.
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 8,217
    I had this one at #8. Sorry to see it go so early.
  • ProfJoeButcherProfJoeButcher Bless your heart
    Posts: 1,711
    I had it at 19. It just sounds like it could belong to most any movie, and I don't find a couple hints of the Bond theme leading to the song proper particularly genius. But it's fine overall.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    I am quite amazed. CR stands out for me as one of the very few non-Barry scores that come really close to the maestro's level of brilliance. This is an all but flawless score in my opinion. Arnold makes good use of the theme song to tease the Bond Theme; Miami Airport is a powerful action suit that builds and keeps building; the romantic cues for Bond & Vesper are delicious... This really is a great score.
  • goldenswissroyalegoldenswissroyale Switzerland
    edited July 2021 Posts: 4,483
    ProfJoeButcher wrote: »
    I had it at 19. It just sounds like it could belong to most any movie, and I don't find a couple hints of the Bond theme leading to the song proper particularly genius. But it's fine overall.

    Same ranking for me, although I could have ranked slightly better. I watched CR in concert once and it was great. Nevertheless, I also think that the music doesn't stand out like most other scores. It is only so low because I love most of the Bond scores. The shower scene gives me goosebumps everytime and the variations of the title song are wonderful, too. The action pieces are a bit interchangeable...
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