Every James Bond Theme Song, Ranked

Bond aficionados and the Broccoli family will fight tooth and nail to erase Never Say Never Again from memory. Hailed as an “unofficial 007 film” (the John Barry score, the Walther PPK pistol, and the Aston Martin were all off-limits), it managed to bring Sean Connery out of his James Bond retirement and was essentially a pointless Thunderball remake. But it exists, alongside its’ greatly derided theme song. Originally written for Bonnie Tyler, she woefully turned the opportunity down, calling the song “naff.” The “Total Eclipse of the Heart” vocalist made the right call in rejecting this limp, easy-listening schmaltz. Unknown singer Lani Hall (best known for her marriage to Herb Alpert) accepted the gig, but even she later criticized the song, saying it “wasn’t right for the opening.”

Much like the film itself, “The Man with the Golden Gun” is remembered as a great miss. Lulu’s shout-y vocals, the corny lyrics, and John Barry’s edgy, feverish arrangement (like the rest of the film’s score) all make the song feel like it was rushed to make deadline — which it was. In the 2006 special, James Bond’s Greatest Hits, Barry openly disowned the theme, saying, “It’s the least interesting Bond song. It’s the one I hate the most. It’s the one thing I think was really… bad. It was bad.” Lulu had her own reservations, adding, “I felt it was really more of a Shirley Bassey song, but I also felt I did a really bad impression of Shirley.” According to Alice Cooper, his 1973 song of the same name featuring Liza Minnelli, the Pointer Sisters and Ronnie Spector on backing vocals was the original choice.

Even on paper, it’s difficult to see what the studio had in mind pairing these two up. The blues-obsessed, garage rock maestro and then-White Stripe, and emboldening R&B singer may have struck some as an intriguing collaboration, but together they simply made a mess of things. Jack White wails away on his guitar with the distorted pomp left over from Icky Thump, clashing with the imposing string arrangement as if they’re battling for control. His howling vocals push Alicia Keys to more of an assertive tone, and her whole performance feels wasted. It’s easy to imagine how much better it could have been had producers simply chosen Alicia Keys and her piano, bolstered by the orchestra. Quantum of Solace was a pretty uneven film itself, but it deserved better than something this awkward and erratic.

Timothy Dalton’s two-film stint as 007 was met with indifference by most fans and critics. Neither film did much to advance the franchise. John Barry was unavailable to do the score due to surgery, so the job was given to Michael Kamen (Queen, Pink Floyd) to produce. Originally, there were talks for Eric Clapton and Vic Flick to collaborate on a rework of Barry’s iconic theme, but nothing materialized. Instead, producers leaned more into the safe, radio-friendly R&B sound of the time, awarding Gladys Knight the theme and Patti LaBelle’s “If You Asked Me To” (later a hit for Céline Dion) the end credits. By incorporating Barry’s iconic original, “Licence to Kill” retains the familiarity we’ve come to expect from these songs, but there’s no denying just how dated it sounds by today’s standards.