Worst Bond song

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  • TripAces wrote: »
    BAIN123 wrote: »
    I remember reading a quote from Barry in which he described A-Ha as "a pain in the arse".[/i

    :))

    Although it's strange. I never hear TLD on the radio but occasionally I hear "Take on Me". Whenever I do it makes me think of Timothy Dalton :p

    The issue, if memory serves, had to do with the mix. Barry wanted a different sound than the band. So there are two versions: one for the TLD soundtrack and one that a-Ha put on their own album. Years later, a-Ha relented and sent Barry an apology and said he was right: his mix was far better. In subsequent versions of the album and the band's greatest hits (as if there were a bunch?) it was Barry's version that was used.

    For more:

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=g_5oDF567IE

    Great find! Thanks. I've never seen this documentary before. The narrator is serious as a heart attack haha. He makes it sound like an episode of unsolved mysteries.

    A-Ha had a greatest hits album? Let me guess the album consisted of Take On Me and…….uh…….let me get back to you.

  • edited December 2014 Posts: 11,189
    Great clip. That narrator btw is good ol' Geoffrey Palmer too (aka the admiral from TND).

    Love Barry's comment:
    "They thought they were having a good time wow....what planet were they on"
  • brinkeguthriebrinkeguthrie Piz Gloria
    Posts: 1,400
    The worst? I've been listening to the soundtracks in my iTunes collection- IMO Madonna and the QOS theme are the two worst, just awful. And I just broke my own rule and watched Never Say Never Again---that score and song is bottom of the barrel.
  • SarkSark Guangdong, PRC
    Posts: 1,138


    The Experience of Love is pretty damn dire. Insipid lyrics. So totally, completely unfitting for a Bond film. I usually turn off films right at the credits so I don't have to listen to it.

    Another Way to Die is aggressively bad. I read someone once that said it's a song that it's impossible to whistle, that it has no tune. I like Jack White, but he is far to experimental for Bond. Bad, bad choice (particularly when Amy Winehouse was still alive). I get especially annoyed when I compare it to No Good About Goodbye by Arnold and Bassey (apparently it wasn't finished in time). Lyrics that perfectly match the film and it's classic Bond as Bassey always is.

    Honorable mention: Do you know how Christmas Trees are Made. When I first heard that one on the 50 years of Bond album I had to wrack my brain to remember what it was from (when Lazenby is at the ice-skating rink on the run from Blowfeld). Totally ruins the mood if you're listening to Bond songs and this stinker comes on.

    There's lots of pretty blah songs from Moore and Dalton's tenures. Both of Dalton's themes were placeholders at best. But none of them are as in-your-face bad.

    DAD gets a bad rap. As a standalone song it's actually decent. I wouldn't skip it at the gym or anything.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    We have a new winner. Unless we are counting "The Experience of Low Quality" from Goldeneye.
  • Posts: 1,098
    QOS song, truly awful.

    What's even more unbelievable was that there were some terrific songs written for the film.

    Whoever was responsible for picking this song for the film, seriously needs there brain examined.
  • Hey, hey, hey, Bondmaniacs! Prepare to kill yourselves because DJ Uncle Bigly amb dos parells de collons is here with his Top 5, ready to make your ears bleed and your lungs explode between piercing screams with these pieces of rubbish (King Of The Rumble, but not voiced by Alexei Sykes today, awfully sorry). OOOOOON WITH THE LIST!!!

    1 (with a difference) - Only Myself To Blame. I only listened to it for aboud half a minute before deciding "never again".
    2- Writing's On The Wall still hasn't catched on in me. I guess it will never do.
    3- Wedding Party: Three of my fav Bond songs (LTK, If You Asked Me To, Dirty Love) in my fav Bond movie and they had to put this stinker Miami Sound version of Underneath The Mango Tree.
    4- The QOS theme. I don't even remember its name. No pun on Chris Cornell intended, mind you.
    5- Tomorrow Never Dies. On close competition with TMWTTG, I liked this back then, but like Lulu's song, it has a problem: it's tiresome.
  • Id say that Die Another Day is definitely the worst bond song I've ever heard. Besides that I'm not to thrilled about Writing's on the Wall. It just seems a little to depressing to me. I feel like a bond song should get me hyped up for the movie not make me feel bummed out. Plus he sings way to high for a man, it just seems kinda weird to me.
  • I don't know why we're even discussing this . Die Another Day wins by a country mile.
  • Agent_007 wrote: »
    Id say that Die Another Day is definitely the worst bond song I've ever heard. Besides that I'm not to thrilled about Writing's on the Wall. It just seems a little to depressing to me. I feel like a bond song should get me hyped up for the movie not make me feel bummed out. Plus he sings way to high for a man, it just seems kinda weird to me.
    It does sound much better with a female singer though.
  • ForYourEyesOnlyForYourEyesOnly In the untained cradle of the heavens
    Posts: 1,984
    I felt Another Way To Die was just... abysmal.
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited February 2016 Posts: 12,480
    for me, my bottom 5

    Die Another Day (the worst and then slightly better follow)
    Another Way to Die

    then a jump up ...

    Man with the Golden Gun
    The Living Daylights
    Writings on the Wall
  • SarkSark Guangdong, PRC
    Posts: 1,138
    I don't know why we're even discussing this . Die Another Day wins by a country mile.

    I listen to it far more often that AWTD, WOTW, TND, TMWTGG and several others. Maybe it's not entirely appropriate as a Bond song, but as a pop song it's not bad.

  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    edited February 2016 Posts: 9,020
    Sark wrote: »
    I don't know why we're even discussing this . Die Another Day wins by a country mile.

    I listen to it far more often that AWTD, WOTW, TND, TMWTGG and several others. Maybe it's not entirely appropriate as a Bond song, but as a pop song it's not bad.

    A very good point, you made there!

    There is a difference for me in judging, let's say, YKMN as a Bond song or as a pop/rock song in general.

    I like Chris Cornell, I even bought his album back in 2006. I like the pop version of YKMN and I still think the re-done version for the movie was not good enough as a Bond song.
    I do like the implementation of the melody into the score, though.

    As for Madonna's Die Another Day, I think even for Madonna standards, that was up to that point one of her weakest single releases ever and certainly just wrong for a Bond movie.

    Alicia Keys, as much as I adore her, was just bloody wrong for Bond too. And what the hell did they think to book Jack White for a Bond tune?

    At least EON got a grip and chose two truly memorable and classic Bond songs for Skyfall and Spectre.
    I don't like Adele's Skyfall, but I can see that it was the right choice for the movie.

    The best song ever definitely is A View To A Kill, be it for Bond or just in general.
    A true classic 80's song from a still going strong band Duran Duran. Just listen to their last two albums (2011, 2015), they are still (again) unbelievably good.

    One of the songs that always gets bashed is TMWTGG.
    It is actually one of my favourites!

    Writings On The Wall, showed perfectly how a classic Bond song can be very successful in the charts (which it was! and even still is in many countries) and how successful it can be fused with the main titles of the movie.
    Spectre has by far, the best title sequence ever. Even after seeing it 11 times it still gets me teary-eyed when seeing/hearing it.
  • w2bondw2bond is indeed a very rare breed
    edited February 2016 Posts: 2,252
    Sark wrote: »
    Another Way to Die is aggressively bad. I read someone once that said it's a song that it's impossible to whistle, that it has no tune. I like Jack White, but he is far to experimental for Bond. Bad, bad choice (particularly when Amy Winehouse was still alive). I get especially annoyed when I compare it to No Good About Goodbye by Arnold and Bassey (apparently it wasn't finished in time). Lyrics that perfectly match the film and it's classic Bond as Bassey always is.

    @Sark
    I believe No Good About Goodbye was never on the books as a theme song, but it certainly is a lot better than AWTD, no competition there. Arnold's themes are pretty good - not classics - but have a very Bondian vibe. Surrender is excellent. TWINE while not a favourite sounds like Bond.

    I might be alone in this but AWTD minus lyrics is not bad, and I like how the opening bars mirror YKMN

  • TMWTGG is definitely the worst.

    I genuinely don't think Eric Serra's end song is that bad. It's a nonissue.
  • w2bondw2bond is indeed a very rare breed
    Posts: 2,252
    I must be one of the few who like TMWTGG. It's far from the worst
  • GBFGBF
    Posts: 3,197
    w2bond wrote: »
    I must be one of the few who like TMWTGG. It's far from the worst

    I also like it. Don't understand the hate it gets. It is funny and funky and Lulu sings it well. Honestly I like most Bond songs so it's difficult to compare them.

    Here is my current list:

    23. Die another day
    22. Moonraker (very unmemorable and boring)
    21. Another way to die
    20. Writing's on the wall
    19. From Russia with love (not a bad song but it's just a little too slow)
    18. Tomorrow never dies (great song, awfull voice)
    17. Golden Eye
    16. Nobody does it better (great lyrics but too slow IMO)
    15. All time high (I like the romantic style of it, especially the intro)
    14. License to kill
    13. For your eyes only
    12. OHMSS theme (great, but difficult to compare it to the other songs)
    11. Thunderball
    10. You know my name
    09. The man with the golden gun
    08. Skyfall
    07. The wolrd is not enough
    06. A view to a kill
    05. Goldfinger
    04. The living daylights (very underrated IMO, very catchy)
    03. You only live twice
    02. Diamonds are forever
    01. Live and let die


  • ForYourEyesOnlyForYourEyesOnly In the untained cradle of the heavens
    Posts: 1,984
    @GBF - How exactly is For Your Eyes Only or A View To A Kill (with all its interruptive pauses) faster than Nobody Does It Better?
  • Posts: 7,431
    Its Die Another Day!! Move on, nothing else to say!
  • GBFGBF
    Posts: 3,197
    You're right. I don't know. Maybe I should say it is not too slow but too soft. NDIB is a good song. However for me personally it rather sounds like a Fleetwood Mac song from their 1977 "Rumours" LP (which I like) and except for the lyrics it does not really feel like a Bond song to me. I know many people love this song and I appreciate it. It is a very good song but just not my personal favourite.
  • ForYourEyesOnlyForYourEyesOnly In the untained cradle of the heavens
    Posts: 1,984
    @GBF - Yes, I've heard that before. That's fair enough. However, I'm not sure why FYEO would suddenly be more appealing to you.
  • Posts: 406
    The experience of love is one that immediately jumps out, only myself to blame, wedding party, another way to die. I was never a fan of yolt either
  • GBFGBF
    Posts: 3,197
    Yes there are probably only few people who prefer FYEO over NDIB. I think these are good songs that do not really sound like Bond songs (both not composed by Barry). I like them both and maybe just slightly prefer FYEO (this might change from day to day) since I really like the catchy Bridge when Sheena Easton sings: "You can see so much in me, so much in me that's new".
  • ForYourEyesOnlyForYourEyesOnly In the untained cradle of the heavens
    Posts: 1,984
    @GBF - Ah, fair enough. I prefer the piano backdrop to Nobody Does It Better myself.
  • GBFGBF
    Posts: 3,197
    That is indeed a very great part of the song.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    What do you newcomers think?
  • JamesBondKenyaJamesBondKenya Danny Boyle laughs to himself
    Posts: 2,730
    Die another day is painful to listen to, and the one from the end of goldeneye what ever its called
  • ForYourEyesOnlyForYourEyesOnly In the untained cradle of the heavens
    edited July 2017 Posts: 1,984
    Currently, I think it's a tough contest between The Man With The Golden Gun, Die Another Day and Another Way to Die. The latter might just escape being my bottom pick because its lyrics aren't as offensively bad as the other two. And TMWTGG, even with all the cat lady vocals, has a more "fun" and energetic tone. DAD is just appalling all over, so it's the worst for me.
  • JamesBondKenyaJamesBondKenya Danny Boyle laughs to himself
    Posts: 2,730
    Currently, I think it's a tough contest between The Man With The Golden Gun, Die Another Day and Another Way to Die. The latter might just escape being my bottom pick because its lyrics aren't as offensively bad as the other two. And TMWTGG, even with all the cat lady vocals, has a more "fun" and energetic tone. DAD is just appalling all over, so it's the worst for me.

    Agreed TMWTGG is a lot of fun
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