The Bond Collection

Last updated

The Bond Collection
BondCD.JPG
Studio album by
Released1992
Recorded1987
Genre MOR
Label Icon Records
Producer Tony Clarke
Shirley Bassey chronology
Keep the Music Playing
(1991)
The Bond Collection
(1992)
Sings the Songs of Andrew Lloyd Webber
(1993)
Bassey Sings Bond
Singsbond.jpg
Issued on Tring Records

The Bond Collection, a.k.a. Bassey Sings Bond, is a 1987 studio album by Shirley Bassey, notable for having been released without the artist's consent and subsequently withdrawn from sales by court order.

Contents

History

In early 1987, Bassey announced that she was planning to record an album of James Bond themes. The album was due for release 1987 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the first James Bond feature film Dr. No . She promoted the album on the television show Live At The Palladium on May 3, 1987, where she lip-synched "A View to a Kill" and also performed a James Bond medley.

Bassey decided not to release the album, for reasons that remain unclear (it is believed that she was not satisfied with the quality of the recording). However, five years later, the album was released, against Bassey's wishes, by the ICON Records label on September 20, 1992, as The Bond Collection, and again by TRING Records on January 10, 1994, as Bassey Sings Bond. Bassey sued in court, and on May 5, 1995, a permanent injunction was obtained against Icon Entertainment to prevent further manufacture or sales of the album. [1] [2] All existing unsold copies were withdrawn from sale, and the CDs are considered scarce.[ citation needed ] No singles were issued from this album.

Another album, Bassey Sings Bond, was recorded for EMI, featuring new recordings of Bond songs. It was to be released at the end of 2002. However, this project incurred problems shortly after recording, and it has not been released. However, the vocal performance of "You Only Live Twice" recorded for this album was remixed in 2007 for the album Get the Party Started .

Track listing

  1. "A View to a Kill" (Duran Duran, John Barry) (from the 1985 A View to a Kill soundtrack, original recording by Duran Duran)
  2. "Nobody Does It Better" (Marvin Hamlisch, Carole Bayer Sager) (from the 1977 The Spy Who Loved Me soundtrack, original recording by Carly Simon)
  3. "From Russia with Love" (Lionel Bart) (from the 1963 From Russia With Love soundtrack, original recording by Matt Monro)
  4. "We Have All the Time in the World" (John Barry, Hal David) (from the 1969 On Her Majesty's Secret Service soundtrack, original recording by Louis Armstrong)
  5. "You Only Live Twice" (John Barry, Leslie Bricusse) (from the 1967 You Only Live Twice soundtrack, original recording by Nancy Sinatra)
  6. "Diamonds Are Forever" (Don Black, John Barry) (from the 1971 Diamonds Are Forever soundtrack, original recording by Shirley Bassey)
  7. "Live and Let Die" (Paul McCartney, Linda McCartney) (from the 1973 Live and Let Die soundtrack, original recording by Paul McCartney & Wings)
  8. "Moonraker" (John Barry, Hal David) (from the 1979 Moonraker soundtrack, original recording by Shirley Bassey)
  9. "For Your Eyes Only" (Bill Conti, Mick Leeson) (from the 1981 For Your Eyes Only soundtrack, original recording by Sheena Easton)
  10. "All Time High" (John Barry, Tim Rice) (from the 1983 Octopussy soundtrack, original recording by Rita Coolidge)
  11. "Thunderball" (Don Black, John Barry) (from the 1965 Thunderball soundtrack, original recording by Tom Jones)
  12. "Goldfinger" (John Barry, Leslie Bricusse, Anthony Newley) (from the 1964 Goldfinger soundtrack, original recording by Shirley Bassey)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shirley Bassey</span> Welsh singer (born 1937)

Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalists in Britain.

<i>The Best of Bond... James Bond</i> 1992 soundtrack album from the James Bond films by various artists

The Best of Bond... James Bond is the title of various compilation albums of music used in the James Bond films made by Eon Productions up to that time. The album was originally released in 1992 as The Best of James Bond, as a one-disc compilation and a two-disc 30th Anniversary Limited Edition compilation with songs that had, at that point, never been released to the public. The single disc compilation was later updated five times in 1999, 2002, 2008, 2012, and 2021. The 2008 version was augmented with the addition of a DVD featuring music videos and a documentary. Another two-disc edition, this time containing 50 tracks for the 50th anniversary of the franchise, was released in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Barry (composer)</span> British composer and conductor (1933–2011)

John Barry Prendergast was an English composer and conductor of film music.

Since its inception in 1962, the James Bond film series from Eon Productions has featured many musical compositions, many of which are now considered classic pieces of British film music. The best known piece is the "James Bond Theme" composed by Monty Norman. Other instrumentals, such as "On Her Majesty's Secret Service", and various songs performed by British or American artists such as Shirley Bassey's "Goldfinger", Nancy Sinatra's "You Only Live Twice", Paul McCartney's "Live and Let Die", Carly Simon's "Nobody Does It Better", Sheena Easton's "For Your Eyes Only", Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill", Tina Turner's "GoldenEye" also become identified with the series.

<i>Thunderball</i> (soundtrack) 1965 soundtrack album by John Barry

Thunderball is the soundtrack album for the fourth James Bond film Thunderball.

<i>Diamonds Are Forever</i> (soundtrack) 1971 soundtrack album by John Barry

Diamonds Are Forever is the soundtrack by John Barry for the seventh James Bond film of the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goldfinger (Shirley Bassey song)</span> 1964 single by Shirley Bassey

"Goldfinger" is the title song from the 1964 James Bond film of the same name. Composed by John Barry and with lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, the song was performed by Shirley Bassey for the film's opening and closing title sequences, as well as the soundtrack album release. The single release of the song gave Bassey her only Billboard Hot 100 top forty hit, peaking in the Top 10 at No. 8 and No. 2 for four weeks on the Adult Contemporary chart, and in the United Kingdom the single reached No. 21.

<i>Something</i> (Shirley Bassey album) 1970 studio album by Shirley Bassey

Something is a 1970 album by Shirley Bassey. With her career having been in decline since the latter part of the mid 1960s, Something proved to be Shirley Bassey's comeback when it was released in August 1970. The title track single became her biggest UK hit for many years, reaching No.4 and spending 22 weeks on the chart. This was actually the second single featured on the album, "The Sea and Sand" having already been released earlier. The album was similarly her biggest hit for many years in the album charts, reaching No.5 and spending 28 weeks in the top 50.

<i>Goldfinger</i> (soundtrack) 1964 soundtrack album by John Barry

Goldfinger is the soundtrack of the 1964 film of the same name, the third film in the James Bond film series, directed by Guy Hamilton. The album was composed by John Barry and distributed by EMI. Two versions were released initially, one in the United States and the United Kingdom, which varied in terms of length and which tracks were within the soundtrack. In 2003, Capitol-EMI records released a remastered version that contained all the tracks within the film.

<i>Moonraker</i> (soundtrack) 1979 soundtrack album by John Barry

Moonraker is the soundtrack for the eleventh James Bond film of the same name.

<i>The Shirley Bassey Singles Album</i> 1975 compilation album by Shirley Bassey

The Shirley Bassey Singles Album is a compilation album released in 1975 by British singer Shirley Bassey.

<i>I Am What I Am</i> (Shirley Bassey album) 1984 studio album by Shirley Bassey

I Am What I Am was the only studio album recorded by Shirley Bassey for the Towerbell Records label. Several other tracks were also recorded at this label and issued as singles only. The recording sessions took place at Olympic Studios, Barnes, London, in July and August 1984. Following the success of the previous album All by Myself, this album peaked at number 25 in the UK album chart and reached Gold status. This release was the first digitally recorded album made by Shirley Bassey and was issued on vinyl, cassette and CD. Consisting of mainly re-recordings from Shirley Bassey's back catalogue and two new songs, this album was recorded 'live' with The London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Carl Davies. The album also reunited Shirley Bassey with Norman Newell, who had served successfully as her producer throughout the 1960s.

<i>Live in Japan</i> (Shirley Bassey album) 1974 live album by Shirley Bassey

Live in Japan is a double album by Shirley Bassey, recorded July 8, 1974 at Kosei-Nenkin Kaikan Hall in Tokyo, Japan. The album was released in Japan only, and the reverse of the cover listed the songs in English and Japanese. Live at Carnegie Hall had been released just a year prior, with nine of the same songs from Live in Japan, and it is believed that this is at least partly the reason Live in Japan didn't gain a worldwide release. Japan was an important growing market for many artists in the 1970s and many recorded live albums exclusively for release in Japan.

<i>Four Decades of Song</i> 1996 compilation album by Shirley Bassey

Four Decades of Song is a three-CD compilation from Shirley Bassey issued in 1996. This set features 54 songs recorded between 1959 and 1993. In 2008 EMI repackaged and retitled this boxset as Shirley Bassey The Collection; the new version had six extra tracks.

<i>Bassey – The EMI/UA Years 1959–1979</i> 1994 box set by Shirley Bassey

Bassey – The EMI/UA Years 1959–1979 is a 5-CD boxset compilation from Shirley Bassey issued in 1994, this set features 94 studio recordings on four CDs, recorded for EMI/United Artists between 1959 and 1979. Disc five features a previously unreleased live recording from Carnegie Hall. The boxset was reissued by EMI in 2010 in a standard jewel case set.

<i>Shirley Bassey Sings the Movies</i> 1995 studio album by Shirley Bassey

Sings the Movies is a studio album by Shirley Bassey, released in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Only Live Twice (song)</span> 1967 single by Nancy Sinatra

"You Only Live Twice", performed by Nancy Sinatra, is the theme song to the 1967 James Bond film of the same name. The music was by veteran Bond film composer John Barry, with lyrics by Leslie Bricusse. The song is widely recognized for its striking opening bars, featuring a simple 2-bar theme in the high octaves of the violins and lush harmonies from French horns. It is considered by some to be among the best James Bond theme songs, and has become one of Nancy Sinatra's best known hits. Shortly after Barry's production, Sinatra's producer Lee Hazlewood released a more guitar-based single version.

<i>The Shirley Bassey Collection</i> 1972 compilation album by Shirley Bassey

The Shirley Bassey Collection is a double compilation album released in 1972 by British singer Shirley Bassey. The album charted at #37 in the UK charts in January 1972.

Eric Arthur Tomlinson was an English recording engineer, who recorded and mixed the scores to more than 120 movies.

<i>25th Anniversary Album</i> 1978 compilation album by Shirley Bassey

25th Anniversary Album is a compilation album by Shirley Bassey. Released in 1978 to mark her 25th year in show business, the album was a double set, comprising 40 tracks. The songs included span just 20 of the 25 years from 1957 to 1976, however, her first professional contract is dated 1953. Bassey had toured extensively throughout 1978 to mark her 25 years. This collection, including her biggest hits and some lesser-known recordings, became one of her biggest in the UK, where it reached No.3 and spent 12 weeks on the album chart.

References

  1. Bassey v. Icon Entertainment plc (1995) EMLR 596
  2. Bassey v. Icon CH (1994) B No. 425