Bond Theme Songs

Bond Theme Songs

In addition to 007, villains and femme fatales, the Bond franchise has become notorious for its catchy songs by some of the biggest names in the music industry. From 1962’s “Dr. No” with Sean Connery to the latest “Casino Royale” with Daniel Craig, we take a look at some of the infamous Bond theme songs.

Dr. No (1962)

The one that started it all! For the first time we get to hear the theme music that characterizes James Bond to this day. The James Bond theme was performed by John Barry and an accompanying orchestra. Barry not only went on to work on the musical scores for other Bond films but won Oscars for his work on “Born Free” (1966), “The Lion in Winter” (1968), “Out of Africa” (1985) and “Dances with Wolves” (1990).

From Russia With Love (1963)

The song from this Bond movie was also entitled “From Russia With Love”. Matt Monro, who went on to sing the theme songs for “Born Free” (1966) and “The Italian Job” (1969), sang the song.

Goldfinger (1964)

Performer Shirley Bassey sang the theme song “Goldfinger” for this 1964 007 film. Bassey’s other song credits include “History Repeating” from the 1998 hit comedy “There’s Something About Mary”.

Thunderball (1965)

Legendary singer Tom Jones has had a number of memorable hits and even an appearance in the 1996 movie “Mars Attacks”. Jones sang the song “Thunderball” for the 1965 Bond flick of the same name. His other songs include “It’s Not Unusual” which was heard in “Edward Scissorhands” (1990), “Lake Placid” (1999) and the recent “The Matador” (2005); “If I Only Knew” appeared in the 2003 romantic comedy “Intolerable Cruelty” and he also sang “What’s New Pussycat” for the 1965 film of the same name.

You Only Live Twice (1967)

Many moviegoers are familiar with Nancy Sinatra’s song “Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” from Kill Bill Vol. 1 and the ever popular “These Boots are Made for Walking” which appeared in such films as “The Mexican” (2001), the first Austin Powers movie and “Full Metal Jacket” (1987). Sinatra also sang “You Only Live Twice”, the theme song from this 1967 Bong flick.

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)

Not only was there new theme music for “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”, there was also a new 007. George Lazenby took over the role of James Bond from Sean Connery in this film. However, it was the legendary Louis Armstrong that sang the movie’s theme song entitled “We Have All the Time in the World”. Armstrong’s timeless “What a Wonderful World” has appeared in several movies including “Good Morning, Vietnam” (1987) and “Twelve Monkeys” (1995). His song “La vie en Rose” appeared in the movies “French Kiss” (1995) and “Something’s Gotta Give” (2003).

Diamonds Are Forever (1971)

Sean Connery returned to the helm of this Bond movie. It also saw the return of Shirley Bassey who sang the song “Diamonds are Forever” for the film.

Live and Let Die (1973)

Roger Moore was the new bond for 1973’s “Live and Let Die”. The movie’s theme song, also titled “Live and Let Die”, was written and performed by the legendary Paul McCartney and his band Wings. McCartney would receive an Oscar nomination for the song. Having starred with fellow Beatles, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, in the movies “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964) and “Help!” (1965), McCartney also wrote and performed the theme songs for “Spies Like Us” (1985) and “Vanilla Sky” (2001 – for which he received another Oscar nomination). His song “Band on the Run” can be heard in the movie “The Killing Fields” (1984).

The Man With the Golden Gun (1974)

A TV and movie actress in her own right, Lulu was also a popular singer. Prior to singing “The Man with the Golden Gun” for the 1974 Bond film of the same name, Lulu co-starred in and sang the theme song for the movie “To Sir, With Love” (1967).

The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)

Carly Simon performed the song “Nobody Does It Better” for the 1977 Bond film “The Spy Who Loved Me”. The song would again be used in the 2004 film “Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason”. Simon won an Oscar for her song “Let the River Run” that appeared in “Working Girl” (1988).

Moonraker (1979)

“Moonraker” starred Roger Moore as 007. Shirley Bassey returned for a third time to perform the song “Moonraker” for the film.

For Your Eyes Only (1981)

Actress and songstress Sheena Easton not only sang the title song to 1981’s “For Your Eyes Only” but also briefly appeared in the movie’s opening sequence. Easton’s song “Morning Train” appeared in the 2004 film “Eurotrip”.

Octopussy (1983)

Another singer/actress to perform a Bond song was Rita Coolidge. Coolidge sang the song “All Time High” for 1983’s “Octopussy”. Her song, “Love Came for Me” appeared in the 1984 romantic comedy “Splash”.

A View to a Kill (1985)

Duran Duran’s music has been a staple in TV shows and films. Their songs include “Ordinary World” featured in the movie “Layer Cake” (2004) starring the current Bond, Daniel Craig; “Notorious” featured in “Donnie Darko” (2001), “All She Wants Is” featured in “Monster” (2003) and “Hungry Like the Wolf” from the 2002 comedy “Old School”. The band performed the title song “A View to a Kill” for the film.

The Living Daylights (1987)

This trio from Norway is probably best known for their song “Take On Me” which was not only a worldwide hit but has been featured on TV shows and in films such as “Corky Romano” (2001) and “Grosse Point Blank” (1997). A-Ha also performed “Velvet” which was featured in “One Night at McCool’s” (2001). The band sang the title song for 1987’s “The Living Daylights” which featured Timothy Dalton as Bond.

License to Kill (1989)

Legendary singer Gladys Night performed the title song for 1989’s “License to Kill”. Knight’s songs have also been featured in “Ghost Dad” (1990) and “Forrest Gump” (1994). Also a TV and movie actress, Knight appeared in the 2003 film “Hollywood Homicide”.

Goldeneye (1995)

Pierce Brosnan took over the role of James Bond in 1995’s “Goldeneye”. Not only was the film’s title song written by Bono and The Edge from the rock band U2, it was performed by iconic songstress Tina Turner. Turner, whose song “Break Through the Barrier” was featured in 1990’s “Days of Thunder”, has also starred in 1975’s rock opera “Tommy” and in 1985’s “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome” (along with her song “We Don’t Need Another Hero”). A biopic film about her life, “What’s Love Got to do With It”, was released in 1993.

Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

This Bond movie also featured an updated theme which was recorded by Moby. The movie’s song, also titled “Tomorrow Never Dies” was performed by Sheryl Crow. Crow’s songs have been featured in a number of movies including “Point Break” (1991), “Big Daddy” (1999), “Bridget Jones’ Diary” (2000), “Erin Brockovich” (2001) and “Must Love Dogs” (2005).

The World Is Not Enough (1999)

The band Garbage performed the song “The World is Not Enough” for this 1999 Bond film. Garbage’s song “Stupid Girl” was also featured in the 2005 movie “In Her Shoes”.

Die Another Day (2002)

Who isn’t familiar with Madonna’s work? Not only did she sing the titled theme song for “Die Another Day”, she also made an uncredited appearance in the movie. Madonna’s songs have appeared in a number of movies including “The Devil Wears Prada” (2006), “13 Going on 30” (2004), as well as the popular “Beautiful Stranger” for Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. She has also starred in several films including “Desperately Seeking Susan” (1985 – which featured her song “Into the Groove”), “Who’s That Girl” (1987), “A League of Their Own” (1992) and “Evita” (1996).

Casino Royale (2006)

This time around the license to kill goes to actor Daniel Craig. The movie’s song “You Know My Name” will be written and performed by Chris Cornell, from Soundgarden and Audioslave fame. Cornell’s songs with Soundgarden have appeared in “Say Anything” (1989), “Wayne’s World” (1992) and “Blast from the Past” (1999). The song “Shadow of the Sun” with Audioslave was featured in the movie “Collateral” (2004).

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