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Comments
I agree... that is controvercial!
I love Sheryl Crow's music, but her contribution is ponderous, clunky and utterly forgettable (IMO). The only good thing I can say about it, is that it's better than Madonna's putrid attempt in DAD.
On the other hand AWTD is more catchy than NGAG to my ears and full of tawdry drama, so I can understand why it could be chosen over the more restrained Bassey number (restrained by Bassey standards anyway)
As with "Octopussy" no-one was brave enough to face up to the challenge of working the phrase "Quantum of Solace" into the lyrics...
I can definitely understand why both main songs were picked over these ones. I think ultimately both feel 'bigger' and more appropriate for the opening of a movie. I really don't think either Surrender or Nothing Good About Goodbye are ultimately very good songs though.
I'll also say this - Crow's Tomorrow Never Dies isn't that far off of Adele's Skyfall in my opinion. It's a very atmospheric and lyrically interesting song (and honestly, musically, more creative than Surrender). And for all its flaws AWTD gives QOS that Bondian rock song they wanted. NGAG would have been all wrong.
Has anyone ever seen George Lazenby's contribution to the Hitchcock Half Hour reboot in the 80s? Where he played a sort of version of James Bond and even got a knock off Shirley Bassey esque theme song?
Honestly, that theme song at 0:35 is basically half a step away from both Surrender and Nothing Good About Goodbye for me. I genuinely can't unhear it - the strange cliched wordiness and underwhelming chorus (and generic Bondian chords that seem like they've been copy pasted from other themes).
I agree, Surrender especially is just too much of a pastiche. I enjoy it, but I think the film might actually have been taken less seriously if it had been the main theme, it would have seemed like the Bond series eating itself to some extent. It's like putting the Life of Brian song on the opening of a Bond film! :)
Crow's song is a more original number.
I do like the verse melody to Surrender being used in the score of the film though, it works very well there. I think the verse is more successful than the chorus.
If I had to pick one to be the main theme, I'd probably go for No Good About Goodbye. It's a more interesting song and has grown on me a lot recently. I still prefer AWTD though.
The one I would absolutely take over the chosen one in a heartbeat is Radiohead's Spectre. I keep meaning to find a fanedit which adds it in actually.
It wasn't chosen over NGAG, NGAG wasn't written until after the movie.
AWTD is awful, perhaps only Madonna's effort was worse. The London Music Works/Prague Philharmonic editions of both make them sound quite a bit better, but that doesn't change the fact that the vocals of AWTD make it a weird.
No Good about Goodbye is far better than AWTD, and probably better than at least two of Bassey's Bond efforts. And also, I feel would help Quantum of Solace distinguish itself a bit more from being a "Casino Royale II" with general audiences. Of course, this being in the main titles may impact the decision for Skyfall, which is a much better song in turn...
Both are used excellently in the films, but I think I'll go for No Good About Goodbye. If "I Will Return" fully existed, I'd probably choose that however.
I said "could" not "was"
In another timeline / continuity / multiverse... (perhaps the same one where Craig-Bond didn't die in NTTD?)