Diamonds Are Forever: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]

Perhaps some of John Barry's best work on the Bond series, "Diamonds'" music accurately captures the hazed, odd quality of this movie that makes it one of the most fascinating 007 outings. Shirley Bassey's rapturous title track makes it on this album in its luxurious entirety, along with two other versions (one in Tiffany's flat, the other from the Whyte House) that are equally entrancing. The satellite theme "007 and Counting" makes it here in grand form, and Barry fans will be delighted with the interpretation of Barry's own Bond theme in "To Hell with Blofeld" to close the CD. Also don't miss "Moon Buggy Ride" which has something for everyone: a light, lilting romp, a bombastic chase, and then the lustrous, lascivious sax tones of the title, all rolled into one great track -- and "Q's Trick", an entertaining jingle with a compelling sweet swing.

Now, the bad news: about half the film music didn't make it (a sin when the CD is barely 35 minutes long). Particularly egregious is the complete omission of the pre-title music and almost none of the fight cues, and the absolutely fabulous Wint and Kidd theme is relegated to a bare minute-and-a-half on track 5 "Death at the Whyte House" and a miniature cue on track 8. Bond's stroll around the Whyte House also failed to appear, and there is no Norman Bond theme except for a snippet on track 2. Sacrilege! You can get an almost perfect version of the Wint/Kidd theme on "Bond Back in Action" if you're really desperate (I was), but the rest is seemingly lost unless MGM relents and releases a remaster.

Even as it is, this is great stuff, and worthy of your CD player and hard-earned dollars. But can we please get the rest of the music? Please?

The first six Bond films were played straight. If there was any comedy at all it was delivered in a very subtle and sophisticated manner. It was never diverting or done at the expense of the story line. It was always peripheral to the scene and meant to enhance the scene, not be the focus of it. In fact all the humor of the first six Bond films usually emanated from James Bond himself. He frequently threw off paradoxical droll commentaries to accentuate the scene at hand, but always took his job seriously and was dedicated to the bitter end of each assignment. The music in this film bolstered the new direction. Take Track-12: "To Hell With Blofeld" and you can hear the lightweight tone that Barry used for Bond's final confrontation with Blofeld on the oilrig. Here Barry reverted back to his 007 theme, which he had used to better dramatic effect in THUNDERBALL. Track-3: "Moon Buggy Ride" is extremely lightweight as Bond is chased across the desert outside Las Vegas by Willard Whyte's guards.

Track-1: "Diamonds Are Forever" the Main Title Song sung by Shirley Bassey is fantastic and is a much better recording than the one presented over Maurice Binder's credits in the actual film. You can really hear the power behind Bassey's voice on this album. The villains in DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER with the exception of Joe Robinson as Peter Franks, never present any real threat. They seem to be there for the sole purpose of getting some chuckles like performers in a vaudeville act. Yet in Track-2: "Bond Meets Bambi and Thumper" Barry gives us one of the best cuts from any Bond soundtrack. This is pure Bond full of atmosphere and the Bond mystique as Sean Connery enters Willard Whyte's desert home and is greeted by Bambi and Thumper. This one Track is worth the price of the album. It seems as though this piece was written specifically for Connery.

Many Bond fans were not pleased with Charles Gray's performance as Blofeld. He was not the same Blofeld we saw, or didn't see in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, THUNDERBALL or YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE. He was closer to Telly Savalas' Blofeld in ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE but infinitely much more sophisticated. Given the tone of this film Gray's performance was on target. Track-5: "Death at the Whyte House" is pure atmosphere and sophistication as Bond and Blofeld come face to face in a duel of words. Bruce Glover as Mister Wint and Putter Smith as Mister Kidd, Blofeld's henchmen, are not even pale shadows to Robert Shaw's Red Grant or Harold Sakata's Oddjob yet in Track-8: "Bond Smells a Rat" we hear an imaginative arrengent as they leave Bond to be literally buried alive. Barry returned to a stylistic space march similar to that used in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE in Track-10: "007 and Counting" used as Blofeld's satellite fires a laser beam powered by stolen diamonds around the globe knocking out military targets.

For the Las Vegas scenes Barry seems intrigued by the glamour and glitter of the casinos. Track-4: "Circus, Circus" and Track-11: "Q's Trick" are great examples of the alluring beauty and swing of the gambling tables and machines. Track-6: "Diamonds Are Forever" is a reflective after dinner instrumental rendition used in the suit at the Whyte House reserved by Felix Leiter for Bond and Tiffany Case.

Some great Source Music is heard on Track-9: "Tiffany Case" used for the initial meeting between Tiffany Case and James Bond disguised as Peter Franks. Track-7: "Diamonds Are Forever" is a beautiful instrumental rendition heard on board the ocean liner just before Mister Wint and Kidd wish to leave them in piece. All in all this is a great sounding album worth many repeated a listening. One of the best and it has a nice cover too.