Paul McCartney and Wings -- Live and Let Die

 

I mentioned this a little when I posted the ROY article regarding the iconic James Bond theme by Monty Norman & John Barry but my first several years of 007 exposure was through the frequent Sunday night reruns on ABC. It was on the telly where I witnessed Sean Connery, George Lazenby and Roger Moore punch bad guys out and romance the ladies always opening with that assassin's-view shot of the master spy before he swerved around and shot back. In fact, the first time I actually saw a Bond movie on the big screen was in 1985 when Moore had his final go-around as Bond in "A View to a Kill". By that point, Moore had looked a little long in the tooth.

But today for this 007 Reminiscings of Youth article, I'm going to focus on the theme song of Moore's first foray into Bondlore, the 1973 "Live and Let Die". I'll be honest and admit that the opening credits scared the heck out of me when I saw that woman's head turn into a skull on fire...forget about the nudity. One other point about catching Bond movies on TV is that it was often the case that it had used to take about three to five years before a cinematic release finally made its way to television so I probably didn't see "Live and Let Die" until the late 1970s and by that point, I had already made Jane Seymour's acquaintance through "Battlestar Galactica" the original. Had no idea that she was also the femme fatale in Moore's first Bond movie.

The main reason that I'm covering "Live and Let Die" this week as a ROY is that the guy behind the theme song of the same title, Sir Paul McCartney, had just finished a weekend of thrilling concerts just down the highway from me in the city of Hamilton. For a man his age, he has Time Lord energy coursing through his veins and arteries and it appears that "Live and Let Die" is an essential part of the playlist.

It was Moore's first time as Bond but it was also the first time that a rock song was used as a theme for a 007 flick when compared to the swaggering jazz that had been the music for all of those Bond movies in the 1960s. I didn't quite "get" "Live and Let Die" when I first heard it with that crazy mix of rock and orchestra (which would eventually become the template for future Bond themes by pop and rock acts). At the time, I preferred Carly Simon's "Nobody Does It Better" but I'm good with it now and I think it represents the oncoming storm that is 007 when he's ticked off at somebody. And I have to admit that to see and listen to it live has to be one of the major highlights of a McCartney concert, if not the highlight.

"Live and Let Die" reached No. 2 on both the American and Canadian charts. It was nominated at the Oscars for Best Original Song and won a Grammy for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s). The song was released on June 1st 1973 as a single from Paul McCartney & Wings, a few weeks before the movie's American release. What was up at the top of the Oricon charts a few days later on June 4th?

1. Miyoko Asada -- Akai Fuusen（赤い風船）

2. Kenji Sawada -- Kiken na Futari （危険なふたり）

3. Saori Minami -- Kizutsuku Sedai（傷つく世代）