What was the first James Bond theme song to top the charts?
When Ian Fleming published his first James Bond novel, Casino Royale, in 1952, he likely had confidence his work could catch on, but nobody could predict the immortal cultural shockwave that ensued. His literary canon offered 12 James Bond novels and two additional short stories, but it was the movie adaptations that spurred the cultural phenomenon.
Producers Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman purchased the filming rights to Fleming’s novels in 1961 and soon adapted 007 for his cinematic debut in 1962’s Dr. No. Throughout the 1960s, Scottish actor Sean Connery starred in the first five James Bond movies, bringing the franchise into full stride before Roger Moore’s first outing in 1973’s Live and Let Die.
James Bond’s espionage adventures struck a chord with audiences worldwide, thanks to the action-packed plots and recurring, often comical traits, such as Bond’s “Shaken, not stirred” line or his flippant rapport with Miss Moneypenny, Q and M. Another central recurrence in the franchise is a musical title sequence, usually featuring a finale with Bond aiming his down a gun barrel camera view.
Following the seismic popularity of Dr. No, the James Bond theme song became subject to competition rivalling the Christmas number one race. Over the past six decades, we’ve enjoyed classic Bond themes from huge names, including Paul McCartney, Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, Louis Armstrong, Adele and Billie Eilish.
There are certain rules to follow when making a James Bond theme. None of those rules are written in stone, but if you try to produce a song that doesn’t include a moody atmosphere, a vaguely fatalistic lyrical theme, or the signature “James Bond chord”, good luck trying to get away with it.
Stick to some minor chords, belt it out, add an orchestra if you like, but we all generally know what a James Bond theme should sound like in our heads, even if it’s hard to articulate.
The 1965 movie Thunderball proved to be one of the most contentious races, with Tom Jones, Shirley Bassey, Johnny Cash, and Dionne Warwick all competing. Ultimately, Jones’ ‘Thunderball’ made the cut for the fourth Bond movie starring Connery.
Despite James Bond’s immediate popularity in the US, to date, only one theme tune has made it to the top of the Billboard Hot 100. Although Paul McCartney’s 1973 blockbuster ‘Live and Let Die’ topped several major charts, it fell short at number two on the Hot 100. Similarly, Shirley Bassey’s two popular songs, ‘Goldfinger’ and ‘Diamonds Are Forever’ made impressive moves but fell short of the mark.
Remarkably, the first and only US number one Bond theme arrived in 1985, 23 years into the franchise’s history, courtesy of the Birmingham synth-pop proponents Duran Duran. Led by singer Simon Le Bon, the band recorded ‘A View to a Kill’ in 1985 for the movie of the same name starring Roger Moore in his seventh and final appearance as James Bond.
Meanwhile, the UK Singles Chart wasn’t topped by a James Bond theme until 2015, when Sam Smith recorded ‘Writing’s on the Wall’ for the fourth Daniel Craig instalment, Spectre. The previous highest-charting Bond themes in the UK were Adele’s ‘Skyfall’ and Duran Duran’s ‘A View to a Kill’, both reaching number two.
Listen to Duran Duran’s ‘A View to a Kill’ and Sam Smith’s ‘Writing’s on the Wall’ below.
