Composed by John Barry
Ian Fleming’s novel From Russia with Love made President John F. Kennedy’s top ten book list. It was thus natural that it would be one of the first James Bond novels to make it to the big screen. The movie sported twice as large a budget as its predecessor Dr. No and it shows in more visually appealing locations and a little more in the way of action scenes. From Russia with Love is one of my top three Bond films. It’s tightly placed, actually improves on the novel’s plot, and starts to nail down the franchise formula while still being a proper spy thriller. It was also the first movie to be officially scored by the franchise’s number one composer, John Barry.
Barry had assisted with Dr. No, allegedly being the one to properly arrange the James Bond theme. For From Russia with Love he does not quite nail down his own consistent style for the franchise, but makes great strides towards it. Most of the music is more properly orchestral this time around. There is still ethnic source-style material on the album, such as the atmospheric “Guitar Lament” and the playful yet somehow suspenseful “Leila Dances.” John Barry also seemed inspired by Istanbul when it came to scoring many pieces. But there is also proper themes and variations that were woefully absent from Dr. No.
Barry’s first outing saw the first of the proper main theme songs. In most cases the main theme song would be created in cooperation with the film’s composer. As a result it would feature a melody (sometimes more) that would also serve a thematic purpose in the actual score. “From Russia with Love” is a love song sung by Matt Monro. Unlike the other major songs of the franchise, this piece was not a title song. It that actually plays in the middle of the movie on the radio and at the film’s end. Barry mostly uses it as Love theme thought it does appear outside this context a couple times.
The opening titles themselves are scored with an instrumental number, a fast-paced, percussion-backed cue that starts with a gripping, bombastic motif. David Arnold would later use this motif in his soundtracks for the Pierce Brosnan entries. An instrumental version of the song plays before segueing into the James Bond theme, and the opening motif returns to close it out. The James Bond theme itself finally gets to be utilized throughout the score, though not often in high-octane fashion. Outside of “Opening Titles: James Bond is Back,” the theme only blares out in “James Bond with Bongos” before the titular instruments take over.
Barry fashioned two others themes. The man highlight is the 007 theme, an alternate theme for James Bond. It has hints of peril, but is otherwise more light-hearted and cuts down on the cool factor. This is not to say it’s bad. I like this theme a lot and would love to see another composer bring it back with a twist. It would become a secondary identity for Sean Connery’s Bond, playing in all of his following entries except Goldfinger. The final thematic addition is a dark, mischievous motif for Spectre (“Spectre Island”). It is not a bombastic theme, as the villains are manipulating everything from afar. It continually appears whenever Spectre’s plot hits another successful stage.
After the awesome “Opening Titles,” it’s on to “Tania Meets Klebb.” After a fanfare, the Love theme appears in truncated form. The rest of the track is suspense with an interesting percussion bit that sounds like a radio signal. “Meeting in St. Sophia” utilizes church bells between suspenseful strings as Bond enters an old church. Istanbul’s flavor is further explored in the unused “Golden Horn,” a light-hearted brass piece that’s a fan favorite despite only appearing on album. “Girl Trouble,” the first action piece, sounds very perilous for what is a glorified cat-fight. “Bond Meets Tania” has the Love theme appear in lovely fashion for when 007 and the film’s main girl finally meet. The tracks ends on a dark note with the Spectre motif.
“007” introduces the titular theme while “Gypsy Camp” intersperses playful woodwinds and guitars. “Death of Grant” starts with a blast of brass peril. Around 0:20 the first four notes of the Love theme repeat slowly amidst suspenseful plucking. The Love theme then plays with a few notes of Bond’s theme. Over one minute is a suspenseful action piece that was cut from the film. In fact, Barry would often willingly leave action scenes unscored save for their climaxes, letting the sound designers have their time in the sun or, as in the case of Bond vs. Grant, letting the brutal physicality of a fight scene sink in without dramatic music.
“Spectre Island” is a straightforward presentation of the villains’ theme. “Man Overboard-Smersh in Action” starts with a sweeping bit utilizing the rhythm from the James theme, then goes into Spectre’s theme again. “James Bond with Bongos” accompanies the hero’s arrival at Istanbul. It’s a really cool scene that shows the opening moves of Spectre’s plot against Bond. “Stalking” encompasses the pre-title sequence (or as Bond fans call it the gunbarrel sequence). As would be the case with most original album releases, Barry did not include the actual Gunbarrel theme at the start. “Stalking” is stealthy music with pieces of the Bond theme, erupting into brass violence.
“Death of Kerim” starts with an ostinato motif for the Zagreb express. Here it quickly segues into a straightforward playing of the Love theme. Around 0:40 there is bridging suspense with ominous drums overlaying a long string line. Spectre’s theme makes one final appearance. “007 Takes the Lektor” has the longer version of the new secondary theme and makes for a good ending, though personally I would have placed “From Russia with Love” there. It feels odd having the film’s titular song placed in the middle of the album.
With From Russia with Love, John Barry moved the music of the franchise forward by leaps and bounds. Really, only a couple pieces, like the use of the mains song over the opening credits, have yet to fall into place. The music does feel “early” if that makes sense. Barry hadn’t quite nailed down his style and he would go more all-out on the themes and action pieces with his subsequent entries. But by no means skip this. It’s got some amazing highlights in “Opening Titles” and “007,” as well as a solid main theme.
Rating: 8/10
- Opening Titles: James Bond is Back/From Russia with Love/James Bond Theme (2:24)
- Tania Meets Klebb (1:27)
- Meeting in St. Sophia (1:08)
- The Golden Horn (2:28)
- Girl Trouble (2:25)
- Bond Meets Tania (1:18)
- 007 (2:45)
- Gypsy Camp (1:15)
- Death of Grant (2:00)
- From Russia with Love – performed by Matt Munro (2:35)
- Spectre Island (1:15)
- Guitar Lament (1:09)
- Man Overboard-Smersh in Action (2:18)
- James Bond with Bongos (2:29)
- (2:01)
- Leila Dances (1:57)
- Death of Kerim (2:29)
- 007 Takes the Lektor (3:00)
raymondusrex 