casino royale bond theme orchestral score

You can only sit and listen as the Horn’s five-note riff plucked on the double bass explodes into the groundwork for 007 Takes The Lektor, which then packs in stabs of brass to create that familiar, gigantic big band feel. Oh yes, Mr Barry got rhythm and he knew how to use it. Play The Golden Horn alongside Count Basie’s cover on the album Basie Meets Bond and there’s barely any difference, despite one being straight and the other being swing.

Goldfinger’s Into Miami is one of the rare times Bond music deviates from a four-four time signature, but that’s because Barry’s jazzy beats could fit anywhere. That’s the sound of Barry: the complex rhythms that charge underneath, not to mention the xylophone, sing of his rhythm and blues roots. The Golden Horn, possibly the greatest bit of composition in Bond music history, starts off fast and quiet, a syncopated tambourine and timpani duo, then rushes into a sumptuous string-led tune that could almost belong in a western. Barry keeps doing that same thing throughout the soundtrack, setting up expectations then knocking them down. The opening theme sets the tone, beginning with a brash staccato version of the Bond theme before suddenly sliding into a smooth swagger.

Exciting, symphonic and instantly hummable, From Russia With Love’s score is nothing short of a masterpiece.

Casino royale bond theme orchestral score