Thunderball: Original Motion Picture Sound Track
The filmGoldfingerfirmly established the James Bond franchise as a box-office juggernaut, while the pop success ofShirley Bassey's title song only helped focus attention on the film's score and composer John Barry's key musical contributions in setting the mood for the series. But it was the next installment in the British spy's saga,Thunderball, that stands as Barry's most evocative and memorable Bond score.Tom Jones's rendition of the title track has all the muscular bombast of Bassey's previous effort, but Barry's scoring quickly shifts the mood to one of dark mystery. The brassiness of theGoldfingerscore is supplanted here by jazz-inflected winds and Barry's distinctive, haunting string arrangements; a nigh-perfect cocktail of action, adventure, and suspense elements.--Jerry McCulley