Casino Royale [SOUNDTRACK]

James Bond Films (Related Recordings), Burt Bacharach

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 15, 2002)
• Original Release Date: April 28, 1967
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Label: Varese Sarabande
• ASIN: B00006LWRD
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #47,314 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The Austin Powers series was hardly the first to spoof James Bond. At the very height of '60s Bondmania, this sprawling, big-budget parody turned the trick, complete with an all-star cast of multiple, dueling Bonds and a bubbly romp of a musical score by Burt Bacharach. Indeed, this swingin' slice of '60s pop kitsch seems to have inspired much of Mike Myers's own later Powers musical tack. Anchored by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass' jaunty main theme and the Brazilian jazz inflections of Dusty Springfield's sublime interpretation of Bacharach's evergreen "The Look of Love," the collection bounds merrily from blaring orchestral action flourishes through Bacharach's own savory takes on jazz-pop and musical send-ups of everything from vaudeville to international pomp and circumstance. It's a dizzy, lighthearted delight from first track to last. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Soundtracks of the 1960s, April 19, 2003

By	Gary F. Taylor "GFT" (Biloxi, MS USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The 1967 film CASINO ROYALE did less than big business at the box office, and it would be a decade or so before the public really learned to appreciate its charms and turn it into a cult-favorite--but even while the film was struggling in theatrical release the Burt Bacharach soundtrack was very much admired, and to my mind it remains one of the best film soundtracks of that decade.

This is not the 1960s of Haight-Ashbury, Jimi Hendrix, and Grace Slick; it is instead the playboy-ish, tuxedoed-swinger 1960s: hip, sophisticated, and playful. And Bacharach not only does an over-the-top riff on the scores for the Sean Connery "Bond films," he also cleverly gives the whole pastiche a surprisingly retro feel; with such hits as "Winchester Cathedral" popular on the radio, 1920s musical idioms were all the rage in 1960s instrumental music, and Bacharach neatly filters those idioms into his "swinging spy" tone to create some truly unique musical moments.

Like most good soundtracks, the music for CASINO ROYALE rings changes on a precious few themes--and in this case there are three basic ones: the "Casino Royale Theme," recorded by Herp Albert and The Tijuana Brass, which pops with a harpsichord lead-in to one of the most memorable trumpet solos going; the "Miss Moneypenny Goes for Broke" theme, which uses hard brass and percussion to create a slightly humorous, slightly sleazy tone; and the soundtrack's centerpiece: the absolutely stunning Dusty Springfield interpretation of "The Look of Love." This is a knockout piece of music with a great lyric, and Springfield's full-throated, dreamy, and super-steamy vocal is quite possibly the single best thing she ever did in her long and distinguished career.

I did have a few issues with the CD, however. The selections are not in the sequence in which they are used in the film; at least one of the more memorable bits of music--the vocal for the closing titles--is not included; and the titles of the selections (and the way they are described in the otherwise amusing notes) are somewhat misleading re how they were actually used in the film. But on the whole, this is one knockout CD. If you're a fan of the film, or of Burt Bacharach, Herp Albert, or Dusty Springfield, it's also a must-have for your collection.

--GFT (Amazon Reviewer)--

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bacharach's Bad Luck With Cinema Soundtracks, May 29, 2004

By	Dean Anderson (New York, New York) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It took a rebel like Butch Cassidy and a drunk like Arthur to cure it, but back in the Swinging 60s long before those two showed up, Burt Bacharach, who was the toast of the music publishing world and the pop charts, really couldn't get a song on a bona fide hit film.

Case in point: "Casino Royale," a film that was the sloppiest of messes, with directors quitting in the middle of the project, and two stars who hated each other working on the movie! But the calm and evocative centerpiece was the score that Bacharach crafted, in all its super spy spoof superbness!

The disc will give you the bulk of the music cues from the film, though not completely in order. But the true test of a soundtrack recording is can you enjoy it without having seen the film? The answer here is a resounding yes! In fact, you might enjoy it MORE if you haven't viewed the movie.

The orchestrations are top notch, and very espionage evocative! Plus you get Dusty Springfield crooning what could be the sexiest mainstream pop song in history: "The Look Of Love!"

The disc isn't perfect, but it's a lot better than the film turned out to be! It's one of the more unique efforts and Bacharach fans must have this disc in their collection!

Recommended.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This soundtrack stays true to the original recordings used., September 9, 1998

By	[e-mail] (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Casino Royale: An Original Soundtrack Recording (Audio CD)

As soon as you listen to the main theme, performed by Herp Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, you know straight away this music is anything but serious. Burt Bacharach's zany score is the perfect addition for Charles K. Feldman's 1967 James Bond spoof "Casino Royale". This soundtrack, released in 1990 by Varése Sarabande, contains most of all the original score used. The main thing that makes this music successful is that is it the exact opposite of what you would expect in a real Bond film. If a real "Casino Royale" film were made, you would expect the smart, stylish, serious and suspensful music by John Barry as in all the other "serious" Bond films. Here, Bacharach goes the exact opposite way by composing the music as silly as possible. This is best demonstrated at the end of the film were all the patrons at the Casino Royale have a massive fight along with Indians, Cowboys and a flying roulette wheel that sprays laughing gas everywhere before exploding. Also, the music takes a rather sleazy tone when 007 (one of them, anyway) is brought into a gymnasium full of gorgeous women and he is supposed to resist them. The music also has a tacky 1960s feel to it which adds to the spoof (the film makes fun of the horrible 60s fashions).

Also, the hit song "The Look Of Love" by Dusty Springfield fits in well amongst everthing else.

The booklet, which has 4 pages to it, features the famous 007 girl on the front which was used in most of the movie posters. Inside, there is a page of very odd commentary by Mort Goode (I have no idea who this is) and 4 monochrome photos - David Niven (Sir James Bond) and Terence Cooper (another James Bond), Peter Sellers (Evelyn Tremble), Woody Allen (Dr. Noah/Jimmy Bond) and the guests at the Casino Royale during the end fight scene, Peter Sellers and Ursula Andress (Vesper Lynd). The back contains the credits for the film.

My only disappointment with this CD is that not all songs are present. This really annoys me and whats worse is that I never know why they do this! The song at the end where someone sings "Seven James Bonds at Casino Royale..." and then a vocal version of the main theme isn't present which is a shame because I think this was just a memorable as the main theme itself. This and a few other songs are missing.

This CD, however, is a MUST for any fan of the film and the music. But beware to the people who saw Casino Royale and hated it... you'll probably hate the music even more.