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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Monty Norman goes to Jamaica, June 10, 2007
If ever a movie desperately NEEDED an "upgraded" version of a soundtrack album, DR. NO (1962) is it! Only 7 of the 18 tracks on the album actually appear in the film, and most of the music in the film is not on the album! The current "soundtrack album" is more like one of those modern items that say "Music inspired by the film" (like the one Prince did for BATMAN in 1989).
Monty Norman did 2 recording sessions for the film: the first, a lightweight, bouncy & moody score rich in Jamaican styling; the second, a sombre, intense, exciting "orchestral" score in the classic "crime jazz" style. One of his compositions, "The James Bond Theme", based on his own "Good Sign Bad Sign" (from an unproduced play) turned up here and there in the score, but it was also re-recorded at the request of the producers by John Barry, and this version was so satisfying, it wound up being used at least 5 times over the course of the picture, and reappeared in every Eon Production since. The album breaks down as follows:
1)"James Bond Theme"-- by The John Barry Seven; surely the best recording of this ever made, it appears in the film's opening and closing credits; when Bond leaves the casino and arrives at his office; as Bond drives to Miss Taro's house (before he's ambushed); and when he arrives at Miss Taro's house. This recording was even reused as-is in OHMSS (the assault on Piz Gloria) and on some prints of THUNDERBALL (the end credits). For decades it was disputed whether Norman or Barry really wrote it, but it has apparently been proven in Norman's favor (and if one listens carefully, snippets of it can be heard in other pieces in the film-- none of which appear on this album, unfortunately).
2)"Kingston Calypso"-- by Byron Lee & The Dragonaires; this variation on "3 Blind Mice" is heard during the opening credits as 3 killers stroll toward their target.
18)"Love At Last"-- you have to listen VERY carefully to hear this, buried in the soundtrack as Bond makes inquiries at Strangways' club and meets Prof. Dent for the first time.
14)"Under The Mango Tree"-- vocal by Monty Norman, this is heard earlier as James follows Quarrel to Pusfella's club.
4)"Jump Up"--a really upbeat, catchy dance tune performed at Pusfella's club when James has his talk with Felix & Quarrel. Performed onscreen by Byron Lee & The Dragonaires, a band who've been around since 1956 and became a huge force in Jamaican music-- still around today!
6)"Under The Mango Tree"-- sung by Diana Coupland, this is heard on the record player at Miss Taro's house while James prepares for Prof. Dent's arrival.
13)"The Island Speaks"--the most ominous, moody bit here, heard as James & Quarrel approach Crab Key Island. This is the ONLY piece from the "orchestral" session included on the album!
The rest of the tracks do not appear in the film-- not necessarily a loss, but really... "Jamaican Rock", "Audio Bongo" and "The Is Boy Chase" (3,5,15) are more irritating than anything else (and I wonder where they were intended to go?). Several tracks are alternate versions, perhaps recorded to give the producers a choice of what to use where. These include "Jamaican Jazz", an instro. version of "Jump Up" (8), while (10) is an alternate take with a different singer & lyrics; (12) and (16) are both alternates of "Kingston Calypso", one with Diana Coupland singing and the other instrumental (the latter oddly re-named "Dr. No's Fantasy"); (9) is an instro of "Under The Mango Tree". 2 more versions of this appeared in the film, a more uptempo instro at the end of the film, and the scene on the beach where Bond meets Honey, sung by Diana Coupland (dubbing Ursula Andress) and Sean Connery himself-- but neither of these appear on the album. And why isn't it "UnderNEATH The Mango Tree" (as in the lyrics and various cover versions)?
Perhaps most intriguing are (7,11,& 17), three different versions (under 3 different names) of what may well have been the original, UNUSED "James Bond Theme". "Twisting With James" (7) would have fit at the nightclub; "Dr. No's Fantasy" (11) reminds me of something from THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN; and "The James Bond Theme" (17) could have fit well in the jungle (or somewhere in the film LIVE AND LET DIE); but NONE of the 3 versions of this catchy tune turn up in the film!
In addition to the obvious mess described above, the LP only had Norman's name listed in tiny type on the back (absurd, considering he wrote ALL the music on it); there were no credits indicating "Arranged & Orchestrated by Burt Rhodes"; "Conducted by Eric Rogers"; that track 1 was "Arranged by John Barry" and recorded by the John Barry Seven; and no listings for the vocals by Diana Coupland, Byron Lee & The Dragonaires or Monty Norman! (The latter was confirmed when I visited Norman's website; on a new recording of "Mango Tree", it's obviously the same singer!) Nor was there a credit for "Album Producer: Noel Rogers", but with all that's wrong here, I'm not surprised nobody wanted to take the blame for this!
I've just put together my own "custom" version of this from tracks on the album plus the "missing" music (with dialogue) from the movie; but I would hope that some day, someone at Eon would see to it that an "official" release like that may see the light of day!
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Definitive BOND Theme and Colorful Jamaican Flavor, February 17, 2003
When the filmmakers decided on a musical score for DR. NO they had to decide on the direction the music would take. Would they seek out a score typifying an action-detective yarn, science fiction, mystery or all of the above? Would they focus on the plot elements, the characters or locale for inspiration? There had been spy films before, but not like this one. They quite possibly could have turned to the Ian Fleming novels for their initial inspiration. Fleming's world was one of globe trotting exploits relying heavily on his knowledge of the local flavors that Bond traversed. If you listen to "Dr. No's Fantasy" this may have been Monty Norman's original version of a James Bond theme. The guitar riff is very reminiscent of the foreign intrigue sound that was evident in scoring films of that era. Ultimately Norman's innovative JAMES BOND THEME (Track-1) orchestrated by John Barry created a definitive sound for the British agent with a "Licence-to-Kill" full of energy and intrigue. Track-13: "The Island Speaks" appears to be the only cut of actual background scoring on this CD. The rest of the tracks seem to fall into the category of "source music" and unused music that has shown up in various Movie Trailers, TV Specials and on some of the James Bond DVD extras. Of the pieces of "source music" Track-3: "Kingston Calypso," Track-4 "Jump Up" Track-6: "Under The Mango Tree" are quite nostalgic and full of the Jamaican flavor from that era filling out our introduction into the cinematic world of James Bond.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful music that captures the Jamaican spirit, August 30, 2004
It's true that this is not a true 'soundtrack' in the manner of the other 007 ones. It doesn't contain orchestral stuff, and does have lots of music that didn't even appear on the film itself. Called 'source' music, it's still composed by Monty Norman so well worth having.
THere are some great, fun, danceable tunes, enough to make you enjoy this as a stand-alone album rather than as a 007 film soundtrack.
My only complaint is that the digital 'remastering' doesn't seem to have done anything at all, at least as far as reducing the noise. The hissing and crackling background sounds exactly the same as my 22 year old vinyl album!!!
cheers
S
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~ Various Artists
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~ John Barry
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by Monty Norman 
