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Licence to Kill (soundtrack)

Licence to Kill
Soundtrack album by
Michael Kamen
Released1989
Recorded1989
LabelMCA Records
ProducerJoel Sill
Michael Kamen chronology
Renegades
(1989) 		Licence to Kill
(1989) 		Lethal Weapon 2
(1989)
James Bond soundtrack chronology
The Living Daylights
(1987) 		Licence to Kill
(1989) 		GoldenEye
(1995)
Singles from Licence to Kill
  1. "Licence to Kill"
    Released: 30 May 1989
  2. "If You Asked Me To"
    Released: 12 June 1989

The soundtrack to Licence to Kill, the 16th Eon Productions James Bond film, was released by MCA Records in 1989.

Because the usual James Bond composer John Barry (who had scored almost every film from From Russia with Love onwards) was not available at the time as he was undergoing throat surgery after suffering a rupture of the esophagus in 1988, the soundtrack's more upbeat and suspenseful score was composed and conducted by Michael Kamen.

Initially Eric Clapton and Vic Flick were asked to write and perform the theme song to Licence to Kill. The theme was said to have been a new version based on the "James Bond Theme". The guitar riff heard in the original recording of the theme was played by Flick.[1] A track purporting to be the unused Clapton/Flick theme was uploaded to the music sharing website SoundCloud in January 2022 and was later confirmed to be genuine.[2]

The prospect, however, fell apart and Gladys Knight's song and performance was chosen, later becoming a Top 10 hit in the United Kingdom. The song was composed by Narada Michael Walden, Jeffrey Cohen and Walter Afanasieff, based on the "horn line" from Goldfinger, which required royalty payments to the original writers.[3] At 5 minutes 13 seconds it is the longest Bond theme, though 45 single releases featured a shorter edit, running 4 minutes 11 seconds. The version used in the movie itself was edited to 2 minutes 53 seconds. Uniquely, the credits for the song (writers and performer) are not included in the opening titles. The music video of "Licence to Kill" was directed by Daniel Kleinman, who later took over the reins of title designer from Maurice Binder for the 1995 Bond film, GoldenEye.

All the instrumental tracks are amalgams of various sequences and musical cues from the film rather than straight score excerpts. The end credits of the film feature the song "If You Asked Me To" sung by Patti LaBelle. Though the song was a top ten R&B charter and a minor pop hit for LaBelle, in 1992, the song was covered by and became a much bigger hit for singer Céline Dion. The track "Wedding Party", used during the wedding of Felix Leiter to Della Churchill, makes reference to the track "Jump Up" from the first Bond film, Dr. No.

In January 2025, La-La Land Records released a remastered and expanded edition of the score, commemorating the film's 35th anniversary.

Track listing

[edit]

1989 Original Release

  1. "Licence to Kill" – Gladys Knight
  2. "Wedding Party" – Ivory
  3. "Dirty Love" – Tim Feehan
  4. "Pam"
  5. "If You Asked Me To" – Patti LaBelle
  6. "James & Felix on Their Way to Church"[A]
  7. "His Funny Valentine"
  8. "Sanchez Is in the Bahamas/Shark Fishing"
  9. "Ninja"
  10. "Licence Revoked"[A]


2025 Expanded Release

DISC 1

  1. Gun Barrel / Cray Cay Landing[A]
  2. His Funny Valentine (Film Version)
  3. Sanchez Is In The Bahamas / Shark Fishing (Extended Version)[A]
  4. Bond Hooks Sanchez[A]
  5. James & Felix On Their Way To Church (Film Version)[A]
  6. Licence To Kill (Performed by Gladys Knight)
  7. Sanchez Escapes
  8. Della’s Goodbye
  9. Torturing Felix
  10. He Disagreed With Something That Ate Him
  11. Let’s Go Shark Hunting
  12. Ocean Exotica Break-In[A]
  13. You Earned It
  14. Hemingway House
  15. Licence Revoked (Film Version)
  16. Bond Aboard* / Sharkey Dead
  17. Seaplane Escape[A]
  18. Pam (Film Version)[A]
  19. Enter Ms. Kennedy / Enter Lupe / Sanchez’s Office
  20. Uncle Q / Let’s Get Some Rest[A]
  21. Planting The Explosives[A]
  22. Kwang[A] / Assassination Attempt
  23. Ninja (Film Version)
  24. Sanchez’s Home
  25. Bond Sneaks Out[A]
  26. Bond Confronts Pam
  27. Framing Krest[A]
  28. Leaving Harbour
  29. Bond And Lupe
  30. Q In Disguise

DISC 2

  1. The Lab* / The Process[A]
  2. The Conveyor Belt
  3. Dario Sees Pam / Chewed Up
  4. Escape From The Compound
  5. Tanker Downhill[A]
  6. Truck Chase[A]
  7. Problem Eliminated / Get In
  8. Pam And Bond
  9. Bridal Chorus
  10. Für Elise
  11. Olimpatec Meditation Institute
  12. Casino Source I
  13. Casino Source II
  14. Party Version I
  15. Party Piano
  16. Pam (Wild Guitar Excerpt)

Tracks 17-26 are the same as the 1989 Release.

[A]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Rogers, Jude (31 October 2008). "For your ears only". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 24 May 2010.
  2. ^ Chowdhury, Matthew Field and Ajay (2022-03-22). "The truth behind the Eric Clapton". MI6-HQ.COM. Retrieved 2022-10-29.
  3. ^ Walden, Narada Michael (2006). James Bond's Greatest Hits (Television). UK: North One Television.