They should have put isolated scores in Dolby 5.1 on the DVD and bluray so we can least listen to the score isolated in discrete.
Still one of the best Bond of the 70's. "All those feathers and he still can't fly"
I think the ball is MGM's court more than it is UMG's at this stage. Hell, considering the neglect the UA-Liberty catalog has had since the collapse of EMI, they may not even own it any more.
The "current downloads" are probably pre-2013, before UMG sold the Parlophone catalog (which effectively gutted Old Capitol) to Warner. CD is currently out of print.
Hey guys thought I'd jump back in here and bring up a newer soundtrack, Goldeneye. I was feeling nostalgic for the film as I thought it was a terrific reintroduction for the 1990's of Bond. And Pierce Brosnan was well served in the script for the most part, he made a great debut.
However, when I saw the film the first time, the music left me feeling wanting. It wasn't a very good score. I hated that the traditional arrangements were not there. Instead it was a very techno score. But the more I think about the film, they are inseparable now. The music after all this time just now fits the film for the most part. So I thought I'd revisit a soundtrack CD I don't listen to much. I had a quick listen to it yesterday. And I can now hear the James Bond theme in there, it's just subtle and buried by the more modern adaptation. So I'm starting to re-evaluate it. It's too bad the soundtrack CD did not include the reworked tank chase piece, we only get Eric Serra's version. I just might listen to it a couple of more times and watch the film the next chance I get. What do you guys think? I'm thinking you guys did not care for it too.
But FYEO had similar "today's music tastes" in it. It's an individual perspective, but I feel like the more they make a Bond film hip and contemporary, the less "blood" the film has coursing in its veins. The series formula is anachronistic, and requires a light touch to pull off. Anything glommed on with a trowel tends to smother it. (That holds true for SPECTRE, too. I can't remember anything about the music in that film. Every scene having a heavy, atmospheric, curated seriousness to it made the film sag into the mud, for me.)Tidbit: the originally intended title track, "Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," can be played with the film by switching to one of the commentary tracks (the second, IIRC). I kinda prefer it.
I thought the soundtrack release DID have the symphonic tank chase music on it...? I'm going by the Google Play Music version, though.
I only wish I had the music from the trailer(s). I loved the "still one man" mystery reveal that opened it. I need to find a VCR, because my memory is that my FRWL VHS tape only had the reveal, "You were expecting someone else?" and the title, no clips from the film. Very short teaser. I'm probably wrong. But it certainly set up some great anticipation of the new film.
I have mixed feelings about the film. It felt contemporary, but retained a lot of flavor of the Moore and Dalton era Bond films. Dalton could've starred in it; Moore, not so much. Brosnan brought some of the coldness and sadism that Moore disliked. He had very sudden, birdlike moments that might look tough, but are actually pretty silly. An attempt to make him Very Athletic. :-|
But to the subject ... in retrospect, Serra's score seemed a reasonable decision to bring Bond up to date, but some of it is oh SO dated. Playing the Bond theme guitar with tympani is interesting, and doesn't grate on my ears, but Serra's other coloration seems like something a young 'un would do on an Amiga or Sega or something. That end title song ... WTF. I know the Dalton Bonds ended with a separate song, and I consider it a anachronistic touch. The films classically end with an arrangement of the opening song, making the score consistent.
The car chase. It's all been said.
Tidbit: the originally intended title track, "Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," can be played with the film by switching to one of the commentary tracks (the second, IIRC). I kinda prefer it.
