Best non-John Barry /non-David Arnold soundtrack

Charmed & Dangerous

IMO, John Barry and David Arnold are the best composers of Bond music.

However other composers have contributed, such as George Martin, Marvin Hamlisch, Bill Conti, Michael Kamen, Eric Serra and now, Thomas Newmann. All very different but each aiming to capture the essence of Bond.

Which gets your vote as best soundtrack and most capturing the spirit of Bond?

MooseWithFleas

Marvin Hamlisch for me.

Nobody Does It Better is my all-time favorite theme. Bond 77 is such a tremendously catchy and fun tune and the way he uses it throughout the film is perfect.

I know it gets a ton of flack but I also love Eric Serra's soundtrack. Goldeneye Overture is such a unique sound that I had not heard before and was definitely a basis for the Goldeneye 007 for N64 soundtrack which I still listen to today

Thunderpussy

Marvin Hamlisch for me Too.

Although I seem to be one of the few who Liked Thomas Newman's score for Skyfall. )

Stawaz

Michael Kamen or Marvin Hamlisch. Although, I really like Eric Serra's Goldeneye Expanded Score ''Run,Shoot And Jump/Tank Chase Through St. Petersburg [Unreleased]"

Stawaz

Thunderpussy wrote:

Marvin Hamlisch for me Too.

Although I seem to be one of the few who Liked Thomas Newman's score for Skyfall. )

And I bought the Skyfall soundtrack -{

Barbel

George Martin's LALD then Hamlisch's TSWLM. I don't rate any other non-Barry, non-Arnold score at all.... exceot Bacharach ! )

Charmed & Dangerous

Barbel wrote:

George Martin's LALD then Hamlisch's TSWLM. I don't rate any other non-Barry, non-Arnold score at all.... exceot Bacharach ! )

I think George Martin's sound certainly differed from John Barry's and helped differentiate Sir Rog''s Bond, giving it a more contemporary feel. IMO it worked best in the Voodoo scenes, parts are really superb.

But I love both Bond77 from TSWLM and Runaway from FYEO as single pieces, and their respective soundtracks contain some other real gems, like Ride to Atlantis.

Btw -yes, I'd forgotten about the Bacharach numbers!

BIG TAM

Thomas Newman & Marvin Hamlisch. I think the former gets a pretty raw deal.

Barbel

BIG TAM wrote:

Thomas Newman & Marvin Hamlisch. I think the former gets a pretty raw deal.

I don't think the SF soundtrack is bad, just... uneventful? Few memorable melodies.

Peppermill

George Martin and Marvin Hamlisch for me.

Higgins

I still like Conti's FYEO very much though am aware that many find it outdated.

Charmed & Dangerous

Barbel wrote:

BIG TAM wrote:

Thomas Newman & Marvin Hamlisch. I think the former gets a pretty raw deal.

I don't think the SF soundtrack is bad, just... uneventful? Few memorable melodies.

I think that hits he nail on the head, Barbel. Some nice pieces but few memorable and none as Bondian as David Arnold's pieces.

DelicatessenInSteel

Live & Let Die is probably the best one because its awesome and consistent and sounds surprisingly modern on Bluray. But For Your Eyes Only has one of the best Gunbarrels with the cowbell & I love the Escape from Gonzales place music cue where I can't tell if its a synth or electric guitar, and the Cortina music is beautiful, and the Submarine Synth Bond theme is genius, ooh and the ski chase music...but the happiest is the music when he pulls the cable on the helicopter and frees himself from Blofeld.

AndrewJK007

Don't hate me, but Thomas Newman's Skyfall is my absolute favorite movie score of all time. I've listened to it more than any other album I own, even beating The Rolling Stones' Forty Licks. I think the actual album release is missing a proper Bond track and Adele's song, but I blame that on the record company. Truly my favorite.

NeverSayDie

Licence to Kill and Goldeneye

lotus

I am listening to live and let die at the moment .its
My own edited version ive used multi track audio software
To put together the gun barrel all the pre credit music
And then blended in the main theme just like in the film

I love this soundtrack its one of my favourites.

Smithers500

With the passage of time I really rate the Licence to Kill soundtrack. I think the gun barrel piece is a superb opener and it has a Latin American vibe running through the score. I didn't much care for Kamen's scores at the time,but now whenever I watch the Lethal Weapons or Die Hards I find them really involving. Kamen's death a few years back was a sad loss to movies...

Barbel

IMHO the LTK score is a weak point, both in the film itself and in Bond scores in general.

Paul Andrew MacLean

I love Marvin Hamlisch's SWLM, but the action cues are very "70s". I think Michael Kamen's LTK has stood the test of time far-better. It's one of the less-melodic Bond scores (and not one of the best for standalone listening) but it works incredibly well in the film itself (particularly in the teaser).

Barbel

Welcome to AJB! Hope you enjoy yourself here.

hehadlotsofguts

I am partial to Eric Rogers's score for Dr No, ALTHOUGH, I thought the music during No's death is a bit much.

Napoleon Plural

Eh? I thought Monty Norman did all that stuff? BTW On a BBC4 prog on movie soundtracks last night, it was pretty much openly stated that Barry did the middle 8 to the Bond theme, ie the chorus really, the punchy 'Ta Da Da-Da, Da-Da Daaaaa' that is the most famous part of it. I always assumed that, though Norman based the furtive spy opening bit on a former song of his, but Barry's arrangement transformed a sow's ear into a silk purse. So why isn't it co-written Barry/Norman?

Best cues, prob Bond 77, also Bond meets Solitaire (hanggliding bit) and a few others, the climax on the dish in GE is stirring stuff but not Serra I believe.

hehadlotsofguts

Sorry, i meant Monty Norman's score for Dr No. Eric Rogers conducted the score.

I was listening to the LALD soundtrack just now. I think Trespassers Will Be Eaten in the best cue in the soundtrack. I particularly like the bass in this and the use of bongo drums.

Barbel

Napoleon Plural wrote:

On a BBC4 prog on movie soundtracks last night, it was pretty much openly stated that Barry did the middle 8 to the Bond theme, ie the chorus really, the punchy 'Ta Da Da-Da, Da-Da Daaaaa' that is the most famous part of it. I always assumed that, though Norman based the furtive spy opening bit on a former song of his, but Barry's arrangement transformed a sow's ear into a silk purse. So why isn't it co-written Barry/Norman?

Mr Norman is very protective over his credit for that tune, quite likely to take to court anyone who does not respect his legal right to claim sole authorship, and has done so on more than one occasion. I can personally vouch for this, being involved on more than one of those occasions, and for legal reasons can say no more.

lotus

Eric Rogers score is mint ............I wish they would find the tapes.

SilentSpy

I tend to like all the Bond soundtracks. The Goldeneye one has the most different feel. I don't listen to that one at all anymore.

I'm not sure of best from other composers right now. But The Spy Who Loved Me is up there. It goes well with the Moonraker soundtrack. Both have a fantasy type feel. I love the action music in TSWLM. And the part when they arrive at Atlantis.

Napoleon Plural

Barbel wrote:

Napoleon Plural wrote:

On a BBC4 prog on movie soundtracks last night, it was pretty much openly stated that Barry did the middle 8 to the Bond theme, ie the chorus really, the punchy 'Ta Da Da-Da, Da-Da Daaaaa' that is the most famous part of it. I always assumed that, though Norman based the furtive spy opening bit on a former song of his, but Barry's arrangement transformed a sow's ear into a silk purse. So why isn't it co-written Barry/Norman?

Mr Norman is very protective over his credit for that tune, quite likely to take to court anyone who does not respect his legal right to claim sole authorship, and has done so on more than one occasion. I can personally vouch for this, being involved on more than one of those occasions, and for legal reasons can say no more.

Oh, I know, but Barry himself was rather cryptic about it and you'd think his word would have counted for something when he was alive.

Barbel

Napoleon Plural wrote:

Oh, I know, but Barry himself was rather cryptic about it and you'd think his word would have counted for something when he was alive.

When it came time for Barry to put his side of the case, he had been suffering from pneumonia and had spent a few days in bed eating antibiotics. He was 70 and not at his best.
Norman's lawyer had no difficulty in making Barry's memories of 30 years previously seem vague and contradictory.

James Suzuki

For me it has to be Bill Conti's FYEO. People may say it is a bit dated but I love it. For me the best tracks are Runaway and Drive in the country. The latter is so quirky and cool I usually find myself humming it.

hehadlotsofguts

George Martin. I love his arrangement of the gunbarrel theme. Trespassers Will Be Eaten is the best, particularly the part when Bond runs across the crocs.