76 replies to this topic

[Athena007]

From CBn's Main Page...

Title Song Performers of the Dalton Era a-ha and Gladys Knight

[00-FAN008]

A-ha! Nice article.

[TheSaint]

I was extremely surprised at the choice of Gladys Knight to sing the theme song, as she had not had a hit in quite some time.

[spynovelfan]

I wish they'd bring someone more like Knight back, though. She was clearly the 'bit like Bassey' option, but it was nice to have a song that sophisticated attached to the series, and in the charts. I'd love Diana Krall or Norah Jones or someone like that to do CASINO ROYALE. As for Knight's song, it's quite catchy and it oozes Bond. The lyrics don't make much sense, but it's not the most heinous offender. It's slightly marred by having that extremely generic title, followed by the even more generic and predictable "And you know I'm going straight for your heart". But Gladys Knight is pure class. Check out her bizarre version of I HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE, released a couple of years before Marvin Gaye's version and - until his version - Motown's biggest-selling single, trivia fans. It's bizarre because she sings the whole thing as if she's ecstatic. Really strange now we're used to Gaye's sinister little RIDERS ON A STORM vamp. Works, though.

aHa were always under-rated, and their theme is, I'm sure, the one Ian Fleming himself would have liked the most of all of them. I always thought their lead singer, Hoxton Market, would have been a decent Bond. I'm actually quite serious about that. I'm sure he can't act or get the accent right, but he looks *exactly* like James Bond should look, in my opinion. Recent photos:

http://www.mrx.no/al...Award.sized.jpg

http://www.nrk.no/img/233795.jpeg

Join my Hoxton Market for Bond campaign! Sign the petition at www.hoxtonmarket007.com! Tell all your friends.

Edited by Qwerty, 29 April 2005 - 11:11 AM.

[Byron]

I really wonder what the Eric Clapton "LTK" theme song would have been like.
Similar to the final one sung by Gladys or totally different?

That must be one of the most obscure pieces of Bond ephemera if only one copy of this song remains in existence.

[Qwerty]

Great article Righty. I'm a fan of both songs.

[Loomis]

aHa were always under-rated, and their theme is, I'm sure, the one Ian Fleming himself would have liked the most of all of them. I always thought their lead singer, Hoxton Market, would have been a decent Bond. I'm actually quite serious about that. I'm sure he can't act or get the accent right, but he looks *exactly* like James Bond should look, in my opinion.

I voted for "The Living Daylights", although I also like "Licence to Kill" (which song I find a great mixture of "the lush and the tacky", to quote something I once read about the Pet Shop Boys' music). Do you really think Fleming would have liked Hoxton Market and co.'s Bond tune, spy? *Searches in vain for a "suspicious face" smilie.* Personally, I think that if he were still with us he'd be deeply into rap (homophobia, sex, guns, snobbery over brands and labels, etc.).

I once bought a-Ha's greatest hits for a couple of quid from a bargain bin, purely to get "The Living Daylights". Apart from TLD, it was hands down the worst CD I've ever purchased. Sorry, Athena.

[spynovelfan]

I was, of course, being ironic about Fleming liking aHa. But, actually, quite serious about Market. I think he looks very much like a cross between Moore and Brosnan, and very much like James Bond. He *looks* the part to me in a way people like Gerard Butler, Julian McMahon, Jude Law, Ewan McGregor and hell, even Clive Owen don't. I know it sounds silly, and of course a has-been Norwegian pop star isn't going to get the part. But he now looks much less pretty and plastic than he did when aHa weren't in bargain bins, and I think Fleming might well have looked at the following photograph of him and thought 'Yes, he could be my character'. Odd as that concept is.

Edited by spynovelfan, 29 April 2005 - 12:22 PM.

[hrabb04]

Aha's song totally blows. None of the lyrics made sense. It is no wonder John Barry hated working with them. Saw Aha once. They were working at a mall nearby, working at the Gap. Nice to see they have gone onto other things. License to Kill's song is not that great, either. Rips off the opening of Goldfinger. LTK needed a theme like Clapton, Flick, and Kamen were going to come up with. It needed to be lean and mean. Not the ballad we ended up getting.
Is it any wonder these songs never charted in the US?

[Bon-san]

I really had little love for either of these songs for many years. In the past year I have listened to them a lot in the car, as my 3 year old daughter is a full-on James Bond junkie already, and she likes to listen to the Bond Collection CD whilst I drive a tad too fast. In any event, both songs have grown on me somewhat. I dig the synthy, OHMSS feel to TLD, although the lyrics really are utter crap. And I quite like Knight's vocals on LTK, as well as Kamen's music (it may be Goldfinger redux, but it gets my blood pumping). I voted for LTK, edging out a win.

Don't see Hoxton Market as Bond. Looks too inescapably Scandanavian, and like the creepy kind of guy one sees at weddings, desperately trying to hook up with any female he can, in a doomed effort to overcome his extreme insecurity. He may not be that, but he looks it.

[spynovelfan]

[quote name='Bon-san' date='29 April 2005 - 13:42']Don't see Hoxton Market as Bond.

Edited by spynovelfan, 29 April 2005 - 01:49 PM.

[Bon-san]

Guess I'll go re-read the books, as apparently I've missed a certain perspective.

And the picture is LOL. Nice.

[JB webmaster]

There are some untruths about John Barry in this article.

On not doing Goldeneye: "Some say he chose not to return because of his bad experience with a-ha, but maybe it's just because eleven James Bond scores was enough for him."

Neither have ever been confirmed and are probably rumours. Barry was busy doing other things - he was also in Africa on holiday and enjoying being 'daddy'; his son was born November 2, 1994.

John Barry did *not* have oesophagus cancer. In fact, the cause was, as can be read in the upcoming book "John Barry - The Man With The Midas Touch" (Leonard, Walker, Bramley): "an imported health drink Barry had been (...) consuming. According to Barry, it was made from about 60 different berries and tasted like bad red wine.

[North Scorpion]

Gee, I wonder out of the two which one Athena would vote the better song?

I always thought it was a nice coincidence that two of the biggest Euro-pop sensations of the day (Duran Duran and a-ha) did back to back title songs. Serendipity, I suppose. I also thought these two were the best songs of the 80's Bond films because they captured both the present and a kind of forboding darkness of the times.

The LTK theme song was probably one of the truly great themes that had a hint of Shirley Bassey in the later films.

[SnakeEyes]

...License to Kill's song is not that great, either.  Rips off the opening of Goldfinger.  LTK needed a theme like Clapton, Flick, and Kamen were going to come up with.  It needed to be lean and mean.  Not the ballad we ended up getting. 
Is it any wonder these songs never charted in the US?

In a rare instance, I agree with at least half of Chandlers post. A Clapton LTK would have (probably) blown my socks off (excuse the smell).

[Athena007]

Gee, I wonder out of the two which one Athena would vote the better song? 

It's a real brain stumper... a-ha!

Oh and... his name is not Hoxton Market! You guys are driving me NUTZ! LOL... Morten Harket.

[Darth_Xenia]

[quote name='Athena007' date='1 May 2005 - 02:31'][quote name='North Scorpion' date='29 April 2005 - 19:08']Gee, I wonder out of the two which one Athena would vote the better song?

[Mr. Somerset]

Afraid I voted on Gladys for this one. Except, the version in the movie is shortened greatly, and ill-used!
I've liked a-ha since TLD was released, and had their albums back in the day. Haven't heard their new stuff, though. East of The Sun, West Of the Moon was my favourite album of theirs. As for MORTEN HARKET for Bond, although he's the right age, and looks great next to that DAD poster, he still reminds me too much of a kid I knew back in middle school to be agent OO7. Very dapper, though.

[Kingdom Come]

For me a-ha was the Madonna of the songs. Knight's song was close to the best of the series. Talk about summing up Bond's world in ONE song! Pity Binder designed the titles as Kleinman's music video montage to accompany the song was V A S T L Y S U P E R I O R.

[Qwerty]

a-ha winning not too surprisingly.

[Mister Asterix]

[mra]I like them both, but Knight

[trumanlodge89]

both are very different. i enjoy a-ah's a touch more, becuase it is much more original. LTK is a great cover of GF, and knights vocals are top notch. there is a weird faux key change in the middle of LTK that always freaks me out a little.

[tdalton]

I liked both, but a-ha's "The Living Daylights" is the better song. I would have loved to hear what Eric Clapton's version of LTK would have been like. He should definitely be given the chance to do another theme song. It would be nice to get a good guitar in the theme song, something we haven't seen in a long time.

[Moore Not Less]

Regardless of their differences in opinion, A-ha and John Barry produced a great title song which is only beaten by Barry's title theme for OHMSS, in my opinion. Gladys Knight's soulful rendition of LTK is pleasant enough, but it doesn't quite fit with the more grittier nature of the film itself.

[Agent 76]

The Living Daylights

[tdalton]

Gladys Knight's soulful rendition of LTK is pleasant enough, but it doesn't quite fit with the more grittier nature of the film itself.

I actually think that Patti Labelle's "If You Asked Me To" from the end credits would have made a much better title song for Licence To Kill than the actual title song, although I enjoyed both songs.

[Skin 17]

I voted for Gladys Knights performance. However I did enjoy Aha's song. I also agree that If You Asked Me To was a great song.

[Qwerty]

What does everyone think of The Living Daylights's end-title, If There Was A Man?

[Bond_Bishop]

I dunno. It is a little dull or something. I like "Where has everybody gone" better
Anyway, it is A.ha's song that is the better one.

[ChickenStu]

I'd have to say "The Living Daylights" cause it's so damn catchy and has enourmous sing along value! I quite like the Gladys Knight tune aswell. Lyrics are quite dark, don't ya think?