The James Bond legacy is one that is made up of lots of stories spanning through the various actors that have played the macho hero to the cars that have been driven by Mr. Bond as well as the music compilations that have been strung into our ears for many years.
Recently, Barbara Broccoli of the Bond series sat down for a documentary about the legacy that the films have had and the influence that they have held over pop culture. Much of the documentary, of course, details the history of the Bond songs, with interviewees including Billie Eilish, Sheena Easton, Lulu, Garbage, and Duran Duran members Simon Le Bon and John Taylor.
The film also relates how both Radiohead and the late Amy Winehouse both came close to producing tunes for the franchise. Today, Broccoli recalls sitting down with the troubled Winehouse about the proposed plan that she record the song for 2008’s Quantum of Solace.
Broccoli stated: “Well, that was a very very distressing meeting, she was not at her best and my heart really went out to her,” says the producer. “She was very fragile emotionally and, you know, you understood how she could create such moving material, because she has a great depth of feeling and it was very very tragic. What an incredible talent, what an incredible voice, what an incredible person she was and it was very very sad.”
The Academy Awards took a while to start nominating Bond songs but in recent times Adele’s “Skyfall,” Sam Smith’s “Writing’s on the Wall,” and Billie Eilish’s “No Time to Die” have all won Oscars, much to the two producers’ satisfaction.
Broccoli continued: “It’s really pleasing to us. It was so great when Adele won, and then Sam Smith, and then Billie and Finneas (O’Connell, who co-wrote “No Time to Die” with Eilish), so we couldn’t be more pleased really. It’s been a fantastic time at the Oscars for our music.”
