''Live and Let Die'' is the soundtrack to the eighth

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

film of the same name. It was scored by

George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the " Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the ...

. The title song was written by

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

and Linda McCartney and performed by

Paul McCartney and Wings Wings were a British-American rock band formed in 1971 by former Beatle bassist Paul McCartney, his wife Linda McCartney on keyboards, session drummer Denny Seiwell, and former Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine. Wings were noted for their com ...

. It was the first Bond film score not to involve John Barry.

History

The music for most of the Bond films up until '' Diamonds Are Forever'' had been scored by John Barry. Due to his working on a musical, and having fallen out with Bond producer

Harry Saltzman Herschel Saltzman (; – ), known as Harry Saltzman, was a Canadian theatre and film producer. He is best remembered for co-producing the first nine of the ''James Bond'' film series with Albert R. Broccoli. He lived most of his life in Den ...

over the last title song, Barry was unavailable to score ''Live and Let Die''. Producers Saltzman and

Albert Broccoli Albert Romolo Broccoli ( ; April 5, 1909 – June 27, 1996), nicknamed "Cubby", was an American film producer who made more than 40 motion pictures throughout his career. Most of the films were made in the United Kingdom and often filmed at ...

approached Paul McCartney to write the theme song and McCartney in turn asked Martin to record it for him. Impressed with the orchestration for the finished track, Saltzman and Broccoli considered Martin for the film's score. Martin worked closely with director

Guy Hamilton Mervyn Ian Guy Hamilton, DSC (16 September 1922 – 20 April 2016) was an English film director. He directed 22 films from the 1950s to the 1980s, including four James Bond films. Early life Hamilton was born in Paris on 16 September 1922, w ...

who described what the music should convey in each scene as it unfolds. Only very minor changes to the finished score were asked for. Martin felt that this was as much for Hamilton's accurate briefing. The orchestra was conducted by Martin and recorded at

AIR Studios Associated Independent Recording (AIR) is an independent recording company founded in London in 1965 by record producer Sir George Martin and his business partner John Burgess, after their departure from Parlophone. The studio complex was founded ...

. The soundtrack was also released in

quadrophonic Quadraphonic (or quadrophonic and sometimes quadrasonic) sound – equivalent to what is now called 4.0 surround sound – uses four audio channels in which speakers are positioned at the four corners of a listening space. The system allows for th ...

Title song

Having recorded McCartney's performance, Martin was taken aback when Saltzman asked him who he thought should sing the film's title song, suggesting to him

Thelma Houston Thelma Houston ( Jackson; born May 7, 1946) Retrieved . is an American singer. Beginning her recording career in the late 1960s, Houston scored a number-one hit record in 1977 with her recording of " Don't Leave Me This Way", which won the Gramm ...

. Saltzman had envisaged a female soul singer. Martin said that it should be McCartney. The recording contract had specified that McCartney would "perform the title song under the opening titles". Martin nonetheless scored a soul arrangement to accompany singer

B. J. Arnau Brenda Arnaud (born Brenda Burton; June 1941 – November 1989), known as B. J. Arnau, was an American-born female singer and actor active in the UK and the US from the late 1960s to the early 1980s. Biography Very little is known about the a ...

for a nightclub sequence in the film. ''Live and Let Die'' was the first time that a

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

arrangement was used to open a Bond film. It was also the first time that McCartney and Martin had worked together since ''

Abbey Road ''Abbey Road'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It is the last album the group started recording, although '' Let It Be'' was the last album completed before the band's break-up in April 1970. It was mostly ...

'' in 1969. McCartney had been considered as title song composer for the previous Bond film, '' Diamonds Are Forever''. The song was nominated for an Academy Award but lost to "

The Way We Were ''The Way We Were'' is a 1973 American romantic drama film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford. Arthur Laurents wrote both the novel and screenplay based on his college days at Cornell University and his ...

". The ″Live and Let Die" single was a major success in the U.S. and UK and continues to be a highlight of McCartney's live shows.Track listing for "Back in the US" (2002) or "Good Evening New York" (2009) Chrissie Hynde covered the song for Bond composer

David Arnold David Arnold (born 23 January 1962) is a British film composer whose credits include scoring five James Bond films, as well as ''Stargate'' (1994), '' Independence Day'' (1996), ''Godzilla'' (1998) and the television series ''Little Britain'' ...

's compilation album '' Shaken and Stirred: The David Arnold James Bond Project''.

Track listing

The original soundtrack LP ended with track 14, ''James Bond theme'', and this version was released on CD in 1988. The digitally remastered CD re-release, 2003, as well as adding eight additional tracks, extended several of the original ones, such as ''Bond Meets Solitaire''. Except as noted, all tracks composed by George Martin. # " Live and Let Die (Main Title) (Paul and Linda McCartney)" –

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

# "

Just a Closer Walk with Thee "Just a Closer Walk with Thee" is a traditional gospel song and jazz standard that has been performed and recorded by many artists. Performed as either an instrumental or vocal, "A Closer Walk" is perhaps the most frequently played number in the ...

(Trad. Arr. Milton Batiste) /New Second Line (Milton Batiste)" – Harold A. "Duke" Dejan & The Olympia Brass Band # "Bond Meets Solitaire" # "Whisper Who Dares" # "Snakes Alive" # "Baron Samedi's Dance of Death" # "San Monique" # "Fillet of Soul – New Orleans/Live and Let Die/Fillet of Soul – Harlem" –

# "Bond Drops In" # "If He Finds It, Kill Him" # "Trespassers Will Be Eaten" # "Solitaire Gets Her Cards" # "Sacrifice" # "

James Bond Theme The "James Bond Theme" is the main signature theme music of the James Bond films and has featured in every Eon Productions Bond film since '' Dr. No'', released in 1962. Composed by Monty Norman (with arrangements for film provided by John Bar ...

" (Monty Norman)contains the "

", originally composed for the ''Dr. No'' soundtrack # "Gunbarrel/Snakebit" # "Bond to New York" # "San Monique (Alternate)" # "Bond and Rosie" # "The Lovers" # "New Orleans" # "Boat Chase" # "Underground Lair"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Live And Let Die (Soundtrack) Soundtrack albums from James Bond films

Soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack ...

Albums produced by George Martin 1973 soundtrack albums United Artists Records soundtracks Albums conducted by George Martin Albums arranged by George Martin

History

Title song

Track listing

See also

References