The Living Daylights (soundtrack)
The Living Daylights was the final Bond film to be scored by composer John Barry. The soundtrack is notable for its introduction of sequenced electronic rhythm tracks overdubbed with the orchestra - at the time, a relatively new innovation.
The title song of the film, ""The Living Daylights", was recorded by pop group a-ha. 'a-ha and Barry did not collaborate well, resulting in two versions of the theme song.[1] Barry's film mix is heard on the soundtrack and the a-ha greatest hits collection Headlines and Deadlines. The a-ha preferred mix can be heard on their 1988 album Stay on These Roads. However in 2006 a-ha's Pal Waaktaar complimented Barry's contributions "I loved the stuff he added to the track, I mean it gave it this really cool string arrangement. That's when for me it started to sound like a Bond thing".[1]
Originally, British pop band Pet Shop Boys was asked to compose the soundtrack, but backed down when they learned that they should not provide a complete soundtrack but merely the opening theme song.
In a departure from conventions of previous Bond films, the film uses different songs over the opening and end credits. The song heard over the end credits, "If There Was A Man", was one of two songs performed for the film by Chrissie Hynde, of the Pretenders. The other song, "Where Has Everybody Gone", is heard as source music in the film (from Necros's Walkman). The Pretenders were originally considered to perform the film's title song. However, the producers had been pleased with the commercial success of Duran Duran's "A View To A Kill", and felt that a Ha would be more likely to make an impact in the charts. In the event, "The Living Daylights" briefly reached the top ten in both the UK and US chart.
The original soundtrack release featured only 12 tracks. Later re-releases by Rykodisc and EMI added 9 additional track, including an alternate instrumental end credits.
Track listing
- "The Living Daylights" — a-ha
- Necros Attacks
- The Sniper Was A Woman
- Ice Chase
- Kara Meets Bond
- Koskov Escapes
- "Where Has Everybody Gone" — The Pretenders
- Into Vienna — Not used in film
- Hercules Takes Off
- Mujahadin And Opium
- Inflight Fight
- "If There Was A Man" — The Pretenders
- Exercise At Gibraltar
- Approaching Kara
- Murder At The Fair
- "Assassin" and Drugged
- Airbase Jailbreak
- Afghanistan Plan
- Air Bond
- Final Confrontation
- Alternate End Titles — Not used in film
In addition to the above, the film features a number of pieces of classical music — naturally, since it involves an international-standard cellist in Kara Milovy. Mozart's 40th Symphony in G minor (1st movement only) is being performed by the orchestra at the Conservatoire in Bratislava when Koskov defects. As Moneypenny relates to Bond, Kara is next to perform Borodin's String Quartet in D major — 007 joins a small audience and tells Kara afterwards that her performance was "exquisite". Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations and an opera (in Vienna) also feature. And at the end of the film, Kara performs the Dvořák cello concerto in B minor before a rapturous audience including M, General Gogol (but not Kamran Shah, who arrives too late) and Bond — though she does not know it until he surprises her in her dressing room afterwards.