HUGE ARTICLE ABOUT THE BEST BOND SONGS AND HOW ADELE'S COMPARES!!

Springsteen78

Just thought I'd share this cool link as my fellow Bond fans might enjoy this piece on the top ten Bond songs of all time and how Adele's newbie measures up. It contains loads of Bond stuff and more than a dash of innuendo :-)

http://www.stereoboard.com/content/view/177722/9

Enjoy!!

bondsum

Thanks, Bruce. Interesting read but is peppered with a few inaccuracies though that doesn't take away from the overall result.

HASEROT

i'll sum up this article quite simply for those who care not to read through...

it's one big backhanded compliment..

that is all... moving on..

Getafix

Enjoyable article and I agree with most of what it says. Adele's song is quite mediocre IMO. A bit of a disappointment although not as bad as some of the Brosnan ones. Let's hope it doesn't fall victim to the "Brosnan effect".

SaintMark

Getafix wrote:

Enjoyable article and I agree with most of what it says. Adele's song is quite mediocre IMO. A bit of a disappointment although not as bad as some of the Brosnan ones. Let's hope it doesn't fall victim to the "Brosnan effect".

But still better than the other recent ones imho.

Getafix

SaintMark wrote:

Getafix wrote:

Enjoyable article and I agree with most of what it says. Adele's song is quite mediocre IMO. A bit of a disappointment although not as bad as some of the Brosnan ones. Let's hope it doesn't fall victim to the "Brosnan effect".

But still better than the other recent ones imho.

I actually prefer YKMN and even AWTD. They have a bit of oomph to them. As the article says, Adele doesn't really seem to give SF her all - strangely underpowered. Obviously it was a deliberate decision but not one that works IMO. Also, there isn't really a melody to speak of. It's not very hummable.

TheWizardOfIce

Getafix wrote:

Also, there isn't really a melody to speak of. It's not very hummable.

Yet in your previous sentence you say you prefer AWTD which is less a melody and more just a collection of random screeches as if Alicia was having her toenails pulled out by the Gestapo. Make your mind up.

Had Richard Keys done it I doubt we could have had a worse Bond song.

BAIN123

I don't mind AWTD that much but to say its better than Adele's melancholic, haunting Bond theme - which screams 007 - is a statement so insane that the person who made it should be locked up and made to watch DAD over and over again. Getafix doesn't have a foot to stand on in regard to the lyrics, the tune and even the singers. I'll enjoy hearing his case though.

HASEROT

Alicia Keys could still do a wonderful Bond theme - those who question her voice really have no clue as to what they are talking about, and must not know her music beyond AWTD... but combining her with Jack White was a big mistake.. they come from 2 different musical backgrounds, and that clash of style was felt during this song, as it was musically all over the place, plus White's random guitar licks out of nowhere were jarring to say the least - and it was reported that they didn't get along too well while recording the song.. clash of style maybe?... White is the one who truly ruins the song, but Keys is always the one to get blame, while White skates by blameless... if you took White out of the equation, and just left Keys to do her own Bond theme, it would be decent/good... if it were just White, i highly doubt it would match even the worst Bond theme out there.. White wrote AWTD, arranged AWTD, and did practically everything on AWTD... Keys was there to simply sing and play piano (which was hardly used)... so blaming her for the ruin of the song makes total sense..

I would welcome Keys back to a Bond theme with open arms.. her with Arnold and Don Black could do great work... - but White can stay far far away..

CommanderRoss

First off: @Springsteen78, nice find! Lovely article, and quite funny. I enjoyed reading it and I agree that SF is a good Bond song.
Comparing DF to AWTD is like comparing scratching on a blackboard to Wagner. You may not enjoy the second one, but it won't improve the first, not even allow it to be called 'music'.
Alicia Keys may have made some good songs, this one wasn't a song (to be honest I prefer scratching on a blackboard over this recording). I also don't think her style fits Bond, but that's something else completely. There's no melody, there's no on-key singing, as there's no songong. There's something of a rythm, and a lot of noise.

The argument that 'in yesteryear the Beatles were also considered noise by older people' doesn't hold up, as the Beatles did use the basic essentials that make music music. There's quite a lot of music I don't like, but I stil lrecognise as music. And all in all, at 32 I'm not THAT old.

Getafix

TheWizardOfIce wrote:

Getafix wrote:

Also, there isn't really a melody to speak of. It's not very hummable.

Yet in your previous sentence you say you prefer AWTD which is less a melody and more just a collection of random screeches as if Alicia was having her toenails pulled out by the Gestapo. Make your mind up.

Had Richard Keys done it I doubt we could have had a worse Bond song.

As I said, AWTD at least has a bit of attitude. Adele's song is soporiphic and underpowered.

thelordflasheart

Getafix wrote:

TheWizardOfIce wrote:

Getafix wrote:

Also, there isn't really a melody to speak of. It's not very hummable.

Yet in your previous sentence you say you prefer AWTD which is less a melody and more just a collection of random screeches as if Alicia was having her toenails pulled out by the Gestapo. Make your mind up.

Had Richard Keys done it I doubt we could have had a worse Bond song.

As I said, AWTD at least has a bit of attitude. Adele's song is soporiphic and underpowered.

I wouldn't say that Adele's song is a lullaby that's going to put anyone to sleep. I do find it powerful in it's own way. Does she belt it out with a forceful gusto like, say, Bassey singing Goldfinger? No, but it's still got a lot of oomph to it. And Adele's performance performance works very well with the tone of the film.

Interestingly, I was in a store yesterday buying a suit when this song came on. The store had a fantastic sound system and the buildup and power of the song really came out. Funny how everyone stopped talking and listened to the song once it started, and then started talking again after it was over! To me that speaks volumes about how good the song is.

LeChiffre

Skyfall is without doubt IMO one of the best. I dont care what anyone else says!

Getafix

BAIN123 wrote:

I don't mind AWTD that much but to say its better than Adele's melancholic, haunting Bond theme - which screams 007 - is a statement so insane that the person who made it should be locked up and made to watch DAD over and over again. Getafix doesn't have a foot to stand on in regard to the lyrics, the tune and even the singers. I'll enjoy hearing his case though.

Brosnan fans should be careful about who they throw accusations of insanity at.

BAIN123

Getafix wrote:

BAIN123 wrote:

I don't mind AWTD that much but to say its better than Adele's melancholic, haunting Bond theme - which screams 007 - is a statement so insane that the person who made it should be locked up and made to watch DAD over and over again. Getafix doesn't have a foot to stand on in regard to the lyrics, the tune and even the singers. I'll enjoy hearing his case though.

Brosnan fans should be careful about who they throw accusations of insanity at.

I stand firmly by my statement! Adele's at least manages to incorporate a variation of the Bond theme into the tune.

connerybond

Agree, it is better than the last few films.

Getafix

connerybond wrote:

Agree, it is better than the last few films.

I'm not saying it's awful - just disappointing. I personally prefer YKMN, particularly as it is worked into the soundtrack. I am aware that like QoS, AWTD is widely derided - I happen to think the film and the title track are both significantly underrated. AWTD is a long way from being a classic, but I think it actually works, just.

thelivingroyale

I prefer YKMN to the SF theme by a large distance but AWTD? Personally I think that's the worst Bond theme. Only DAD comes close to it in terms of crapness.

Getafix

I prefer AWTD to SF, but I don't think either are classic title tracks. AWTD is obviously particularly contentious. I happen to think it works quite well with MK12's title graphics. It is an awkward sounding song, but that was presumably deliberate and I think the approach does work. It has a bit of life to it, but I fully appreciate why some dislike it. For me, SF is durge-like and lacks any sense of urgency, excitement or real emotion. I was one of those who was enthusiastic about Adele doing the title track but I just find the end result lacking. As I said before, it's not attrocious like most of the Brosnan era efforts - it is just very underwhelming. What I find strangest about SF is that it feels like it is an intro to something bigger - it sort of builds interestingly to start with but then never reaches its destination. Like Newman's soundtrack it is perhaps a bit too restrained. I think it was John Barry who said that a Bond soundtrack is not the place for too much subtelty.

I agree though that YKMN is superior to both. If Arnold returns I'd like to see him involved with the title track again. It is a shame Surrender was relegated to the end titles of TND. IMO, YKMN and Surrender are the two best Bond songs of the past 25 years.

thelivingroyale

I'd say the best songs of the past 25 years and YKMN and TWINE, but I like Surrender.

ultrabox

Though AWTD isn't one of my favorites by any stretch, I do think that it's underrated. Many people say it's the worst, but how can you say that with a straight face? People who say it's the worst are either using hyperbole or haven't hear DAD. If it's the former, consider yourself lucky.

I used to hate AWTD but it's grown on me through the years. Although I do prefer SF by a large margin, I do find SF a bit disappointing because I feel like it could've been better. It maybe just a taste in music, but I do like a lot of Adelle's work, so I don't think that's a big factor. I just found it to be a little repetitive with no major payoff.

Don't get me wrong though, it's still probably in my top seven themes in the series.

0BradyM0Bondfanatic7

ultrabox wrote:

Though AWTD isn't one of my favorites by any stretch, I do think that it's underrated. Many people say it's the worst, but how can you say that with a straight face? People who say it's the worst are either using hyperbole or haven't hear DAD. If it's the former, consider yourself lucky.

I used to hate AWTD but it's grown on me through the years. Although I do prefer SF by a large margin, I do find SF a bit disappointing because I feel like it could've been better. It maybe just a taste in music, but I do like a lot of Adelle's work, so I don't think that's a big factor. I just found it to be a little repetitive with no major payoff.

Don't get me wrong though, it's still probably in my top seven themes in the series.

With Skyfall I was waiting for the music that seemed to be in crescendo to finally hit a peak where Adele would really belt out the lyrics, but that moment was never reached, leaving me just a tad disappointed by it. I still really like it though, don't get me wrong. Like Sam sings in Casablanca: "with all your faults, I love you still." Besides, if we can't criticize the things we love most we aren't giving them the full attention and examination they deserve. Nothing on this earth is perfect, after all.

ultrabox

0BradyM0Bondfanatic7 wrote:

ultrabox wrote:

Though AWTD isn't one of my favorites by any stretch, I do think that it's underrated. Many people say it's the worst, but how can you say that with a straight face? People who say it's the worst are either using hyperbole or haven't hear DAD. If it's the former, consider yourself lucky.

I used to hate AWTD but it's grown on me through the years. Although I do prefer SF by a large margin, I do find SF a bit disappointing because I feel like it could've been better. It maybe just a taste in music, but I do like a lot of Adelle's work, so I don't think that's a big factor. I just found it to be a little repetitive with no major payoff.

Don't get me wrong though, it's still probably in my top seven themes in the series.

With Skyfall I was waiting for the music that seemed to be in crescendo to finally hit a peak where Adele would really belt out the lyrics, but that moment was never reached, leaving me just a tad disappointed by it. I still really like it though, don't get me wrong. Like Sam sings in Casablanca: "with all your faults, I love you still." Besides, if we can't criticize the things we love most we aren't giving them the full attention and examination they deserve. Nothing on this earth is perfect, after all.

Except YKMN, IMO, of course. ;)

Goldeneye95

This was an enjoyable article! :)

CrabKey

The best Bond themes are bombastic and powerful. The soft, slower songs don't exactly announce an exciting film ahead. Another factor for me is whether or not I can actually recall the song or even hum it. Can't do that with a single Brosnan film QoS.

Gambit

Enjoyable reading for sure,thanks for sharing.

CommanderRoss

Getafix wrote:

I prefer AWTD to SF, but I don't think either are classic title tracks. AWTD is obviously particularly contentious. I happen to think it works quite well with MK12's title graphics. It is an awkward sounding song, but that was presumably deliberate and I think the approach does work. It has a bit of life to it, but I fully appreciate why some dislike it. For me, SF is durge-like and lacks any sense of urgency, excitement or real emotion. I was one of those who was enthusiastic about Adele doing the title track but I just find the end result lacking. As I said before, it's not attrocious like most of the Brosnan era efforts - it is just very underwhelming. What I find strangest about SF is that it feels like it is an intro to something bigger - it sort of builds interestingly to start with but then never reaches its destination. Like Newman's soundtrack it is perhaps a bit too restrained. I think it was John Barry who said that a Bond soundtrack is not the place for too much subtelty.

I agree though that YKMN is superior to both. If Arnold returns I'd like to see him involved with the title track again. It is a shame Surrender was relegated to the end titles of TND. IMO, YKMN and Surrender are the two best Bond songs of the past 25 years.

Personally I find in AWWTD nothing that would make me think it was meant as music, let alone pretend it has nything to do with Bond. I found DAD appalling and thought they couldn't do worse, they've proven me wrong. But indeed, it fits the MK12's titles, which I find terrible as well. Thankfully, on the dvd it's exactly one chapter, so I can skip both. QoS does improve considerably without titles and title song.

I can understand why you'd be dissapointed in SF as a song, but that's no reason to compare it with AWTD. That's like comparing a hyundai with a ferrari. And remember, YOLT is considered one of the best Bond songs, but in no way is it bombastic like the Bassy songs, or Tom Jones.

timmer

Adele's song is growing on me, but I can't elevate it above anything other than the two abominations (DAD and AWTD). That's not a knock on Adele. It's just that I do quite like all 19 of those main-title/title-song themes that preceded hers. Adele's track may have to stay settled at #20 for the time being, until it starts to impact my consciousness the way everything from FRWL to YKMN has.