‘007 (Shanty Town)’: Why is reggae music so obsessed with James Bond?
Music has always been a core part of the ever-enduring James Bond franchise, with the artists who have been drafted in to contribute to his themes spanning the spectrum from Paul McCartney to Beyoncé. Some of the greatest Bond tracks, however, never actually appeared in the films.
Since his initial introduction by Ian Fleming way back in 1952, James Bond has certainly cemented himself as a cultural phenomenon, particularly as far as the silver screen is concerned. With over 25 films under his belt, 14 books, and a litany of spin-offs to boot, it is fair to say that the spy has made his mark. Even still, one potentially unexpected realm in which Bond has long since reigned supreme is the landscape of rocksteady, ska, and reggae music.
Some of the most iconic tracks in Jamaica’s extensive musical history, in fact, revolve around the British secret agent; whether it’s Desmond Dekker’s defining ‘007 (Shanty Town)’, The Skatalites and their legendary take on the ‘James Bond Theme’, or Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry and his fairly unambiguous anthem ‘Pussy Galore’ – taking its name from the Goldfinger character. So, why exactly is Jamaican music so seemingly obsessed with James Bond?
Although it is easy to forget, in the shadow of Bond’s countless explosive antics, dry quips, and his arsenal of Aston Martins, James Bond, as a character, has more links to the Caribbean than you might assume.
Back in the days before Bond was an icon of the silver screen, in fact, the entirety of his universe was created in Jamaica. On the north of the island, Ian Fleming owned what came to be known as his Goldeneye resort, a picturesque setting in which he not only conceived the character of Bond for the very first time, but wrote every novel featuring the spy.
This was, of course, during a period in which the nation was still under British colonial rule, but the relationship between Jamaica and Bond didn’t cease when independence was won in 1962.
After all, it was in that very same year that Bond got his first proper screen role, in Dr No, set primarily in Jamaica and largely filmed on location across the Caribbean island. As if that wasn’t enough to cement the relationship between the pair, that inaugural film also features a particularly excellent soundtrack, including the iconic ska and calypso outfit Byron Lee and the Dragonaires, who perform the ‘Kingston Calypso’ track used prominently throughout the film.
Throughout the film series, in line with Fleming’s original novels, Bond has returned to Jamaica on a multitude of occasions over the decades, thereby cementing the connection between the island and the character. Seemingly, too, that has been enough to make James Bond a regular source of inspiration for the national sound of Jamaica, too.
In turn, reggae’s early adoption of Bond as a kind of musical muse then spawned its own offspring. When the sounds of ska were reimagined in the Midlands of England during the 2 Tone revolution, for instance, the spy was never too far away.
The Selecter, perhaps most famously, included a track titled ‘James Bond’ on their debut album Too Much Pressure. Meanwhile, their label-mates The Specials included a cover of Rex Garvin’s ‘Sock It To ‘Em JB’ on their sophomore record More Specials – though that arguably lent further towards soul than ska.
Even today, reggae outfits and those inspired by the sounds of ska continue to use James Bond as a source of musical inspiration, owing both to Ian Fleming’s original ties to the island of Jamaica, and the fact that his character has – unsuspectingly – become an unavoidable recurring figure within that music world.
