When the song does pick up around the 2-minute mark, we’re made aware that Bond (enjoying a quiet retirement from active duty in Jamaica) is about to enter the espionage game once again. However, the more I listened to Eilish’s haunting delivery, the more I began to think of her song as a lullaby of sorts - a soothing elegy meant to put Craig’s 007 to bed. At first, I thought “No Time to Die” was a little too quiet and soft for a Bond movie, especially one meant to close out a 14-year epoch. “Another Way to Die” - Quantum of Solace (Jack White & Alicia Keys): When Bond faces off with Silva (Javier Barden) in the climax, Skyfall literally becomes a place “where worlds collide and days are dark.”ģ. He had a rather humble existence before he became the globe-trotting, larger-than-life secret agent we all know and love. “Skyfall is where we start.a thousand miles and poles apart” draws a parallel between James’s upbringing and current profession. Looking at the lyrics, you have a reference to the fact that James ends up returning to his family home in Scotland. Adele is the kind of artist you hire for multiple 007 films, so I hope she’s asked to return for an entry or two in the post-Craig future. It’s comforting, nourishing, and soulful in a way I can’t fully describe. In this instance, Adele sounds like a modern day Shirley Bassey, who sang some of the greatest Bond themes like “Goldfinger,” “Diamonds Are Forever,” and “Moonraker.”įrom its opening horns, to the more calming piano bits, “Skyfall” hits that sweet spot of tragedy, scope, nostalgia, and sing-ability.
#Bond bond song movie#
The movie was hailed as a return to form for the franchise (it brought back the spy-fi gadgets, classic Aston Martin, villain-owned islands, etc.) and the title song certainly fits into that description. Skyfall was the first James Bond movie I ever saw in theaters (I was a doe-eyed college freshman at the time), so it will always hold a dear place in my heart, but that’s not the only reason its eponymous composition ranks so high on this list. You wanna talk iconic? Adele absolutely crushed “Skyfall” and rightfully took home a an Oscar for it. There is no rest or normal life in the cards for James, a fact that reaches its expected conclusion in the titular track for No Time to Die. It’s basically exposing the very nature of 007’s very existence: he’s a hardened killer (hence “The coldest blood runs through my veins”) who always has a target on his back. The song is also cognizant of Vesper Lynd’s ultimate betrayal, stating: “Arm yourself because no-one else here will save you. In other words, Bond is setting off down a path that only leads to bloodshed and heartbreak.
#Bond bond song license#
The song title alone is a clever nod to the way 007 has introduced himself throughout the series.Ĭasino Royale is an origin story about James earning his license to kill, a fact that is directly referenced with the lyrics: “If you take a life do you know what you'll give? Odds are you won't like what it is.” Bond is pretty much the rock star of espionage, so why not give him an audacious rock song that reflects that?įrom the get-go, Cornell (who sadly passed away in 2017) lays out the film’s story and its thematic elements in the traditionally stylized opening credits.