› ›

'Star Wars' Theme Voted Top in BBC Radio 3 Vote....No Bond or Barry though?

WillyGaloreWillyGalore
edited September 2013 in Music Posts: 6,396
A poll conducted by the BBC Radio 3 found that listeners had voted John Williams theme to Star Wars their favourite, ahead of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and West Side Story.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24272523

The full poll has not yet been made available (despite the BBC providing the link), however there appears to be no mention made to the Bond theme or any work composed by the late John Barry. Django Unchained and Hans Zzzzzzzimmer's by-the-numbers score for The Dark Knight appears on the list. Will it be a travesty if neither Bond or the great Barry feature in the top ten?

The full list of top twenty themes will be played live on air on BBC Radio 3 this afternoon from 2pm. I will update this thread accordingly.

Comments

  • SirHenryLeeChaChingSirHenryLeeChaChing
    edited September 2013 Posts: 3,494
    I will be waiting to hear the full list and it would be an utter travesty. If not one even Bond song is in the poll's top 20, the Brits who were polled ought to be found and then be summarily flogged in public for poor taste.
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    To be honest those three are all excellent examples of great music. And all very recognisable in themselves.
  • RogueAgentRogueAgent
    Posts: 12,506
    I would be surprised if there were no Bond songs? Horrified if there was not one piece by John Barry?!!! That certainly would be an injustice!
  • pachazopachazo Make Your Choice
    Posts: 7,314
    I think that most people have heard of James Bond but not John Barry. That's really a shame.
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    edited September 2013 Posts: 7,653
    RogueAgent wrote:
    I would be surprised if there were no Bond songs? Horrified if there was not one piece by John Barry?!!! That certainly would be an injustice!

    For me that depends on the chosen pieces of music.
  • SoundofthesinnersSoundofthesinners
    Posts: 3,236
    SaintMark wrote:
    RogueAgent wrote:
    I would be surprised if there were no Bond songs? Horrified if there was not one piece by John Barry?!!! That certainly would be an injustice!

    For me that depends on the chosen pieces of music.
    What about the Bond theme?
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    Soundofthesinners wrote:
    SaintMark wrote:
    RogueAgent wrote:
    I would be surprised if there were no Bond songs? Horrified if there was not one piece by John Barry?!!! That certainly would be an injustice!

    For me that depends on the chosen pieces of music.
    What about the Bond theme?

    There have been more than 20 great themes created in the last century, I would put the James Bond theme with those 20, also because I am a fan. But because this is a poll for the general audience we shall see.

    While I am a great fan of the 007 music I do allow other people having a different taste.

    And I find the Good, the BAd & the Ugly a brilliant piece of music, as do I enjoy West side story...........And SW is a classic as well.

  • WillyGaloreWillyGalore
    Posts: 6,396
    Here are the results of the poll in full:

    1. Star Wars
    2. The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
    3. West Side Story
    4. Lawrence of Arabia

    5. Vertigo
    5. The Dark Knight Rises
    5. The Third Man

    8. The Sound Of Music
    8. Grease
    8. Apocolypse Now

    11. Django Unchained
    11. Psycho
    11. Mary Poppins

    14. Billy Elliot
    14. There Will Be Blood
    14. The Wizard Of Oz

    17. Bombay
    17. Planet Of The Apes
    17. Sholay
    17. 8 1/2

    So no Bond and no John Barry.

    Discuss...

  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    TDKR - You've got to pulling my leg
    Django Unchained - Really

    Some of these choices I can follow, some of them I simply do not know and that might be a lapse in my musical knowledge. But the two I mentioned are both easily a matter of WTF when compared with John Barry on each day of the week. And do make me question the knowledge and musical taste of those involved in this survey. And when talking JB it does not matter if it is the James Bond theme or any of his other work.
  • WillyGaloreWillyGalore
    Posts: 6,396
    ^ Yes those two stick out like a sore thumb don't they! I'm getting sick of this "Zimmer love in" at present.
  • SirHenryLeeChaChingSirHenryLeeChaChing
    edited September 2013 Posts: 3,494
    Zimmer couldn't wipe Barry's ass on his very best day. Let the flogging begin! Tone deaf idiots >:)

    A shameful day in British history.
  • YojimboYojimbo
    Posts: 22
    When I saw the top three, with you're original post; honestly, I wasn't surprised the Bond theme made the list. As recognizable as it is, you can't argue with the others (...maybe West Side Story).

    But when you posted the full list, I'm miffed as well. I honestly couldn't hum TDKR theme if it killed me (guess I need to watch the movie again if it't really that great), and all of Django Unchained's music is borrowed from other movies (I think it's a great score, but not an original theme, and also not worthy of a top 20 list).

    I am very surprised that the James Bond theme didn't even make the list (I understand top 3, but top 20?). To make things worse, its a BBC poll (not an American station). Seeing as one of Britain's biggest pop culture icon's and probably greatest film icon didn't make the list is kind of baffling.

    There may be a reason though...

    The three latest Bond movies, and by far best known to the newer movie going audiences, don't make much use of Barry's Bond theme. There are bits and pieces of it here and there, but only us long-standing Bond films will pick them up as parts of a greater theme.

    For those of you on these threads who say that the gun barrel is dated and not important any more, I offer that the gun barrel made the Bond theme unforgettable. You know why Star Wars made the top of the list? It's not just because the theme is great (The Bond Theme is on par), but because who can forget each film starting with silence followed by the bombastic blast and Star Wars written big as life on the screen. The gun barrel served the same purpose, and we picked up on it later when it plays in the film and we got excited about the action that was happening during that scene because we related it to the excitement of the gun barrel and it became memorable. That's how the brain works. It draws these connections.

    Most of today's audiences probably haven't seen the original 20, and are familiar with these last three only and haven't gotten a taste of a Bond Theme laden soundtrack. And yes, the gun barrel was at the end of the last two, but let's be honest, the rushed gun barrel sequences shoehorned at the end are anything but memorable. They just signify the beginning of the credits and that it's time to leave the theatre.

    Wow, that turned out to be a much longer post than I was planning...



    Also - a little surprised Braveheart and Last of the Mohicans didn't make the list
  • WillyGaloreWillyGalore
    Posts: 6,396
    BBC Radio 3 though is for the more, shall we say, cultured and mature listener so it's a real surprise that A) Bond doesn't feature and B) Zimmer's TDKR does.

    Perplexing is the word I'm looking for.

    But what about John Barry's other masterpieces? Midnight Cowboy, Born Free, Out of Africa. Not even a sniff!
  • RogueAgentRogueAgent
    Posts: 12,506
    That list in places is an absolute farce!
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    So glad The Good, The Bad and The Ugly is there, but Whaaat?
    No The James Bond Theme and no The Godfather Waltz? Blasphemy. Or at least poor taste.
Sign In or Register to comment.