March 4, 2013

  • Review: Bond for Orchestra

     

    The music for Bond films over the past 50 years has somehow held its own regardless of the changing popular music tastes.  Some of that is due to an indelible sound found in Monty Norman’s Dr. No which introduced the original Bond theme and carried through by John Barry to the present day scores with David Arnold (the recent Skyfall is absent).  This present recording from the Carl Davis Collection label covers mostly the title songs (“Surrender” from Tomorrow Never Days is the exception, and not too badly done) from the films and even includes a little foray into Bacharach’s “The Look of Love” for the first Casino Royale and the “Overture” from On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is included along with that film’s song, “We Have All the Time In the World.”

     

    The Philharmonia Orchestra takes on a pop roll often associated with the National or Royal Philharmonic Orchestras.  They perform new arrangements by Chris Egan and Andy Vinter who capture the essence of these songs and make the more recent pieces, like “You Know My Name” from Arnold’s Casino Royale work quite well in this concept album (sounding a bit like Murray Gold’s orchestral scores).  The idea is that a full rhythm section is set up against the orchestra bringing the rock-influenced tracks closer to their film sounds. The arrangements manage to demonstrate some of the crisp attacks and articulations of the orchestra and the brass are certainly having a great time blasting out important themes and motifs.

     

    The results are often just a cut above instrumental pops albums because sometimes the music feels like a film piece and sometimes it feels like a souped up light pops piece.  The performances are quite brisk which no doubt contributes to squeezing so much music on one album.  Guy Barker’s trumpet work on the Moonraker and Never Say Never Again tracks is exquisite playing.  There are a few themes cast for solo violin, aptly played by Pavel Sporcl and are moderately successful and will take some getting used to over time.  In fact, older fans will be reminded of Laurie Johnson albums perhaps in the way this album sounds and is put together.  It is all under the assured hand of Carl Davis.

     

    There was a time when albums like this were somewhat common and while an all-instrumental album of Bond music will appeal to some, purists will likely be better served with their originals.  They do include rarer themes from Licence to Kill, A View to A Kill, and of course rarer orchestral covers of David Arnold’s themes.  It is worth noting as well that this is also a bit different from the Silva Barry and Bond recordings landing closer to a Boston Pops album, or as a companion to Erich Kunzel’s Cincinnati Pops release Bond and Beyond.