September 19 — A day late but a buck heavier

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Bond Themes by Famous Musicians

The genius of Ian Fleming (author) and Albert R. Broccoli (producer) in the writing and making of the James Bond films cannot be overstated. The music of James Bond has always been a subject of interest for me, and to my own surprise while listening to this Apple Music playlist, it dawned on me how famous the musicians of Bond film theme songs actually were. From Paul McCartney to Louis Armstrong and Jack White to Madonna, I had somehow overlooked this longstanding history of perfectly matched musician, style, film and story.

Here’s a rather subjective list of the top 15 all-time, most famous musicians and their corresponding Bond film theme songs, crafted by me using a medley of large language models that live on my computer and are completely disconnected from the outside world:

1. Paul McCartney & Wings – Live and Let Die (1973) : Arguably one of the most influential and successful bands in history.
2. Madonna – Die Another Day (2002) : A global superstar with a career spanning over four decades, known for her iconic songs, albums, and music videos.
3. Adele – Skyfall (2012) : A highly acclaimed singer-songwriter with multiple Grammy Awards and record-breaking album sales.
4. Duran Duran – A View to a Kill (1985) : A British band that rose to fame in the 1980s and is still popular today, known for their catchy synth-pop sound.
5. Tina Turner – GoldenEye (1995) : A legendary rock-soul singer with a career spanning over five decades, known for her powerful voice and iconic songs like “What’s Love Got to Do with It”.
6. Shirley Bassey – Goldfinger (1964), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), Moonraker (1979) : A British singer-songwriter who has been active in the music industry for over 70 years, known for her powerful voice and iconic Bond themes.
7. Louis Armstrong – On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969) : A jazz legend with a career spanning over six decades, known for his unique trumpet playing style and classic songs like “What a Wonderful World”.
8. Tom Jones – Thunderball (1965) : A Welsh singer-songwriter who rose to fame in the 1960s and is still active today, known for his powerful voice and hits like “It’s Not Unusual” and “Green Green Grass of Home”.
9. Carly Simon – Nobody Does It Better (1977) : An American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over four decades, known for her pop-rock sound and introspective songwriting style.
10. Chris Cornell – You Know My Name (2006) : An American musician and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of Soundgarden, Audioslave, and a successful solo artist, known for his powerful voice and iconic songs like “Black Hole Sun”.
11. Jack White (ft. Alicia Keys) – Another Way to Die (2008) : An American musician and producer who rose to fame in the 2000s with his band The White Stripes, known for his energetic live performances and eclectic musical style.
12. Garbage – The World Is Not Enough (1999) : An American-Scottish alternative rock band that rose to fame in the 1990s, known for their dark and moody sound.
13. Sheryl Crow – Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) : An American singer-songwriter who rose to fame in the 1990s with her pop-rock sound, known for hits like “All I Wanna Do” and “Strong Enough”.
14. Sam Smith – Writing’s on the Wall (2015) : A British singer-songwriter who rose to fame in the 2010s with his soulful voice and introspective songwriting style.
15. Billie Eilish – No Time to Die (2020) : An American singer-songwriter who rose to fame in the 2010s with her unique sound and chart-topping hits like “Bad Guy” and “When the Party’s Over”.

A proverb

If you drive a convertible, never anger a person who owns a cement truck.

Wisdom, knowledge, and the D-Day Memorial

It is said: Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit; Wisdom is knowing not to put a tomato in a fruit salad.

In 1994, John Robert “Bob” Slaughter an otherwise unknown man from Roanoke, Virginia – a war veteran in the Second World War’s infamous D-Day beachfront (and in-land airborne) invasion of occupied Normandy, France, against the Nazi German Army – had the honor of celebrating the battle’s 50th anniversary in Normandy with then-president Bill Clinton. But how did he come to receive this great honor? Of all the D-Day veterans still alive and well, why was he selected? Five years earlier, in 1989, Slaughter founded the National D-Day Memorial Foundation, to advocate for a D-Day monument in the United States. The D-Day veterans got their recognition, and their monument.

While reading this article from WORLD Magazine it occurred to me that Slaughter had the foresight to know it would take time to found this organization and grow its recognition to catch the President’s attention – all in advance of the 50th anniversary of D-Day, a hard deadline. He didn’t wake up the Sunday before D-Day’s 50th and think, Hey I’d love to do something to celebrate such a monumental day. He got to work 5 whole years earlier.

That’s because the wisdom of age will tell you a few important things. Inspiration comes and goes. And however much time you thought you needed for preparation, isn’t enough. Give yourself more time to prepare.

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