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LTK unused Eric Clapton instrumental possibly found? (UPDATE: authenticity confirmed)

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Comments

  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,425
    Well Kamen never minded a synth orchestra: if you listen to Edge of Darkness it’s all synth strings, and indeed there are synth strings in a few LTK tracks.
    The brass I’m less sure about: to me that actually sounds real, if only a few players. I might be wrong but it sounds better than 1989 synth brass I can remember.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,188
    Pretty detailed account:

    https://www.mi6-hq.com/sections/articles/music-eric-clapton-lost-session-song-licence-to-kill-revealed?id=05032
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,425
    Ah finally! I’ve been waiting for this after Mr Paige teased it :)
  • mattjoesmattjoes Julie T. and the M.G.'s
    edited March 2022 Posts: 7,021
    gIEDiYV.gif

    I have updated the first post with this latest and hopefully final development.
  • George_KaplanGeorge_Kaplan Being chauffeured by Tibbett
    Posts: 686
    Good article. I'm quite surprised by the news as I'd more or less accepted it wasn't real. I think what threw me was the brassy stuff at the start, which I assume is some sort of synthesiser. That really does sound like something from an 80s video game. But the rest is pretty good. I'm not really a Clapton fan but the bluesy stuff is nice and I reckon it could've suited the film.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,188
    George_Kaplan wrote: »
    Good article. I'm quite surprised by the news as I'd more or less accepted it wasn't real. I think what threw me was the brassy stuff at the start, which I assume is some sort of synthesiser. That really does sound like something from an 80s video game. But the rest is pretty good. I'm not really a Clapton fan but the bluesy stuff is nice and I reckon it could've suited the film.

    I think the synthesizer was just a placeholder for when Kamen would later dub in an orchestra. Keep in mind, this is only a demo. A rushed one at that with musicians just throwing things onto the wall to see what sticks.
  • George_KaplanGeorge_Kaplan Being chauffeured by Tibbett
    Posts: 686
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    George_Kaplan wrote: »
    Good article. I'm quite surprised by the news as I'd more or less accepted it wasn't real. I think what threw me was the brassy stuff at the start, which I assume is some sort of synthesiser. That really does sound like something from an 80s video game. But the rest is pretty good. I'm not really a Clapton fan but the bluesy stuff is nice and I reckon it could've suited the film.

    I think the synthesizer was just a placeholder for when Kamen would later dub in an orchestra. Keep in mind, this is only a demo. A rushed one at that with musicians just throwing things onto the wall to see what sticks.

    I think you're right. It's a shame it got tossed aside. I think with a bit of work it could've been a truly epic piece.
  • moneyofpropre2moneyofpropre2 France
    Posts: 859
    Without saying anything he streamed a file to us named: “Bond Theme (1989)”.

    Problem is that the artitcle doesn't anywhere if this “Bond Theme (1989)” theme is the same or not of the one that end up on internet...
  • mattjoesmattjoes Julie T. and the M.G.'s
    edited March 2022 Posts: 7,021
    moneyofpropre2 wrote: »
    Without saying anything he streamed a file to us named: “Bond Theme (1989)”.

    Problem is that the artitcle doesn't anywhere if this “Bond Theme (1989)” theme is the same or not of the one that end up on internet...

    The beginning of the article says the authors can confirm the SoundCloud track is genuine, and they first heard the piece in September 2020. Later in the article, they explain that in September 2020, McLaughlin streamed it for them.
  • moneyofpropre2moneyofpropre2 France
    Posts: 859
    Oh, Thanks.
  • chrisesqetcchrisesqetc London
    Posts: 46
    Might be a stupid q - but does anyone have a copy of the piece of music. Can't seem to see a link and assume it's been taken down. Would love to hear!
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,425
    chrisesqetc wrote: »
    Might be a stupid q - but does anyone have a copy of the piece of music. Can't seem to see a link and assume it's been taken down. Would love to hear!

    Here you go, it seems to be floating around now:

  • chrisesqetcchrisesqetc London
    edited May 2022 Posts: 46
    mtm wrote: »
    chrisesqetc wrote: »
    Might be a stupid q - but does anyone have a copy of the piece of music. Can't seem to see a link and assume it's been taken down. Would love to hear!

    Here you go, it seems to be floating around now:


    Thanks! I am not sure what I was expecting but it wasn't necessarily that. Cheers for sharing :)
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    I disliked it at first, but it s grown on me. Segments of it remind me of YKMN.
  • EmilioLargoEmilioLargo Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 15
    I really like Kamen's Licence to Kill but the newly discovered demo is not really doing it for me. I appreciate Clapton's talent but this piece just seems a bit meandering to me. Still, I appreciate the chance to hear it anyway.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,188
    To be fair, it’s only a demo, so who really knows how the finished version would have played like.
  • StirredNotShakenStirredNotShaken Toronto
    Posts: 2,402
    Doesn't work for me as an instrumental theme song. Is it supposed to be the main theme? Maybe if it had some lyrics?

    I also think that stuff that plays over the gunbarrel is awful. Flat out awful.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,425
    EmilioLargo wrote: »
    I really like Kamen's Licence to Kill but the newly discovered demo is not really doing it for me. I appreciate Clapton's talent but this piece just seems a bit meandering to me. Still, I appreciate the chance to hear it anyway.

    Yeah I think that was the issue with it. The criticism at the time seems to have been that Kamen didn't really put any time towards it and they pretty much busked it on the day.
  • SIS_HQSIS_HQ At the Vauxhall Headquarters
    edited September 2022 Posts: 3,789
    The guitar work was great but it doesn't sound Bondian, still prefer the Gladys Knight one, very Bondian sound (it's a mix of drama and seriousness that really fits the film's tone, but still keeping it's grandeur in a Bond way, the elegance, the sophistication).

    Could have been a good rock song, but not a Bond theme, that's not what I want in a Bond theme.

    You Know My Name was even more of a Bond sound than this one, because it's a bit more grand (the playing of notes, the fast beat and the great blending with the orchestra), that makes it great and more fantastical than this one.

    I could easily imagine this song for something like Scarface or Die Hard though.

  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,188
    Keep in mind this is only a demo we’re judging. Had they kept working on it we certainly would have heard a full orchestra backing and some refinements in the structure. I think it’s too bad we’ll never hear it in its full potential, and that is a key reason we have never heard the demo in any capacity until now: it was never meant to be released.
  • HildebrandRarityHildebrandRarity Centre international d'assistance aux personnes déplacées, Paris, France
    Posts: 482
    The goal of a demo is to show potential, to leave the target audience with wanting more. Unfortunately, that’s not what this particular recording achieves. And I’m the first one to be sad about it. If anything, it could have brought more attention to Vic Flick, who was not really given his proper due. The demo does indeed start promisingly with the James Bond Theme riff, then Clapton delivers some typical 80s Clapton extended solo that could have been used on the soundtrack of a Lethal Weapon sequel without many changes. That’s quite the issue, as it’s not really distinctive, or Bondian, despite the initial riff. It’s not even Clapton playing an extended solo properly based on the JB Theme, he’s simply moving from one of his usual licks to another. No orchestral refinement or re-recording could have turned it into something actually exciting.

    I’m far from being a fan of the actual theme song. I think it’s a waste of Gladys Knight’s talents, given that the lyrics are far too repetitive and the production is bland, but at least, even without the nod to Goldfinger, it’s much more at home on a Bond soundtrack than this instrumental.
    For the record, Gladys Knight shares a weird similarity with Bond. She had in the 70s and early 80s a gambling addiction (fed by performing at casinos) where her favourite game was baccarat.
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