# What is the best theme song to a James Bond movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 9, 2006, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000 "2006-04-09T21:58:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/21 "2006-04-10T02:05:27Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > SIR. We do not blaspeheme what we hold sacrosanct, not even in jest, sir. Tis just not _done._ > > That’d be like me comparing a Tucker to an Edsel. Actually, Edsel’s were unjustly saddled with a rep of being a lemon (sort of like Tuckers). Heck, the president of Edsel was a former Packard president (Tucker used to work for Packard as well). ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/22 "2006-04-10T02:08:59Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > Connory _wasn’t_ the best Bond. 😃 Lazenby got to marry Mrs. Peel. What other way to measure British Spy Greatness? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/23 "2006-04-10T02:09:37Z")
I’ll go with the only theme song done by a Beatle and the first James Bond Movie I saw in the Theater. “Live and Let Die”. I like many of the others, but I love this one. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/24 "2006-04-10T02:10:57Z")
My favorite three: _Live & Let Die_ _Goldfinger_ (even though it’s the ultimate drag queen song) _License to Kill_- Gladys Knight ---
**Author:** ![Lizard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@Lizard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lizard)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/25 "2006-04-10T02:14:24Z")
> [@mobo85](#): > > The only instrumental James Bond theme- _On Her Majesty’s Secret Service_ by John Barry. Au contrair. The music for “Dr. No” had no vocals. > [@May Speaks!](#): > > Nitpick/clarification: Goldeneye was written by Bono and The Edge of U2, and performed by Tina Turner. I was only designating the performers, not the authors. ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/26 "2006-04-10T02:18:53Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > _Live & Let Die_ > > _Goldfinger_ These two, but reverse the order. Shirley had some pipes, man. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/27 "2006-04-10T02:27:46Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Lazenby got to marry Mrs. Peel. What other way to measure British Spy Greatness? Well, considering he promptly sank into oobscurity after the film, while Connory performed with such likes as Uma Thurman (who did girl-on-girl scenes in _Henry & June_), Catherine Zeta-Jones, Julia Ormond, Tia Carrere, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Audrey Hepburn, to name but a few. While singly, many of them can’t compete with Ms. Peel (though I’d argue Audrey in her prime beats Emma hands down), collectively, they win, and I dunno about Lazenby, but at age 70+ Connory _still_ looks like he could kick everyone’s ass. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/28 "2006-04-10T03:15:32Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > I dunno about Lazenby, but at age 70+ Connory _still_ looks like he could kick everyone’s ass. Connery said he did _Name of the Rose_ because the character was an old fat guy, which he was by then. 🙂 I just like the way Lazenby played Bond. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/29 "2006-04-10T05:48:24Z")
Goldfinger rocks. Followed by Nobody does it better, and You only live twice. But my favorite James Bond song is the only one to be used in [five Bond movies\*](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_007_Theme) is [007](http://www.last.fm/music/John+Barry/_/007) Sometimes called the 007 theme according to the Wiki link. \*Yeah I know the JB theme has been used in all of them, other than that I mean. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/30 "2006-04-10T06:18:20Z")
I think that the theme to _On Her Majesty’s Secret Service_ suits the film the best. It actually sounds like they are skiing during the music. However, I’m a big Duran Duran fan, and I particularly like _View to a Kill_. I think that Shirley Bassey’s best is _Goldfinger. Diamonds Are Forever_ is a close second. _Moonraker_ is just awful. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/31 "2006-04-10T06:17:35Z")
I think that the theme to _On Her Majesty’s Secret Service_ suits the film the best. It actually sounds like they are skiing during the music. However, I’m a big Duran Duran fan, and I particularly like _View to a Kill_. I htink that Shirley Bassey’s best is _Goldfinger. Diamonds Are Forever_ is a close second. _Moonraker_ is just awful. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/32 "2006-04-10T09:02:09Z")
I also like Matt Monroe’s “From Russia With Love” and Gladys Knight’s “Licence to Kill” ---
**Author:** ![Antonius\_Block](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/51bf81/32.png) [@Antonius\_Block](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antonius_Block)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/33 "2006-04-10T10:05:29Z")
> [@Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor](#): > > The “Thunderball” in the film is a stolen Hydrogen Bomb. > > The novel is loosely based on the crash of a US Airforce plane off Georgia, & the subsequent disappearance of the two nuclear weapons on board. [nitpick] [“Operation Thunderball”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thunderball) was the name of the MI6/CIA mission to _recover_ the nuclear bombs. The [Tybee, GA incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tybee_Bomb) involved a single H-bomb carried by a B47 bomber, which collided with an F-86 fighter but managed to land safely after jettisoning the bomb in Wassaw Sound near Savannah. [/nitpick] ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/34 "2006-04-10T10:43:49Z")
So, I’m the only A-Ha fan?\* No surprise. Just something about the way Morten sings “Comes the morning…” \*That’s “The Living Daylights” for those who are wondering. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/35 "2006-04-10T15:08:19Z")
My favorites are 1. Nobody Does It Better - Carly Simon 2. Goldfinger - Shirley Bassey I give Carly Simon the win because her _performance_ sells that song. I love the way she ends that with “Baby … you’re the best”, etc. To be fair, there is no question in my mind that Shirley Bassey’s singing “Goldfinger” is a bravura accomplishment. And Paul McCartney’s “Live And Let Die” deserves a mention. That song goes through incredibile changes and captures the spirit of a James Bond movie. ---
**Author:** ![GraceTX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c4cdca/32.png) [@GraceTX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GraceTX)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/36 "2006-04-10T15:17:38Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > So, I’m the only A-Ha fan?\* No surprise. > > Just something about the way Morten sings “Comes the morning…” > > \*That’s “The Living Daylights” for those who are wondering. No, I came in here specifically to mention that song too. As [Weebl](http://www.weebl.jolt.co.uk/paper.htm) says, “That Morten Harket, he make me moist in my special places…” ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/37 "2006-04-10T15:25:30Z")
**Wolf\_meister** speaks for me, too. Right on the money. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/38 "2006-04-10T15:57:17Z")
Nobody Does it Better… than Carly Simon. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/39 "2006-04-10T16:28:36Z")
Sheena Easton singing “FOr Your Eyes Only” in the opening credits. Instant lust. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000/40 "2006-04-10T18:46:52Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > A View to a Kill (by Duran Duran) - which is officially my favourite. My favorite also. It also earns points being the song everyone always forgets during cocktail party discussions, and will earn you major Bond-geek cred for mentioning. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-theme-song-to-a-james-bond-movie/352000.md?page=3)