Composed by David Arnold

Orchestrated and Conducted by Nicholas Dodd

Produced by David Arnold and Randy Gerston

Release Date: November 25, 1997 / January 11, 2000

              A&M Records                                Chapter III Records

     With the announcement that David Arnold would be called in to score the second Pierce Brosnan Bond flick, the film score community held its breath. Eric Serra's score to Goldeneye wasn't well accepted, especially by the league of fans who see no future for Bond scores outside of John Barry. Bringing an impressive list of credentials to the project, Arnold proved himself up to the task of scoring for the world's best known secret agent.

     The differences between Serra and Arnold are apparent from the first opening notes of the Bond theme. While Serra utilized an electronic approach that was really funky (in a bad sort of way), Arnold brings back the big, jazzy orchestral rendition that Barry utilized. And, thankfully, Arnold was willing to utilize some previous Barry moments in his score. The musical quotes from such films as From Russia With Love and Goldfinger never fail to evoke a knowing grin. His main title song ("Surrender") also brings back the spirit of Barry's work, but it's the far inferior Sheryl Crow song that made it in the movie. Arnold isn't content to just mimic Barry, however. He never loses his unique style, and he does utilize synth in a variety of ways. Most of the time it remains in the background and provides a little seasoning to the orchestra, but in Backseat Driver, the synth takes on a life of its own. This track can only be described as techno meets orchestral jazz and it is great fun. I'm sure it will turn some people off due to this style, but I found it very enjoyable as one of the most intense Bond action cues I've ever heard.

     One problem with this score pertains to this release by A&M. David Arnold spent six months writing this score, all throughout the production of the film. Because of this, the original A&M release contained only music that appeared in the first third of the film. Fans of Arnold's score had to wait until the excellent Special Edition DVD of the film was released before they could finally hear the cues that were absent from the OST (since the DVD thankfully had an isolated score track). Chapter III Records set out to rectify the shortcoming of the original release, and while their attempt is admirable, it is not without its flaws. The first half of the album contains material that was already present on the A&M CD with three notable exceptions: the two songs, Tomorrow Never Dies and Surrender, and the Station Break cue. The first two omissions are slightly forgivable as there were probably sticky licensing issues to wade through, but the loss of the Station Break cue is a real shame. These three oversights alone are guaranteed to make you want to purchase the original disc. Another disappointment is that no new cues or alterations have been added to the previously released material. The second half of the White Knight cue is still missing, and the wild fanfare of the Bond theme at the end of Back Seat Driver is still absent among others. The seven tracks of previously unreleased material are all good (especially the Motorcycle Chase and All In A Day's Work tracks), and while the interview with David Arnold is interesting, the eleven minutes it takes up really should have been used to provide more of the score.

      The Chapter III album is a good release, but not a great one. For those of you who really enjoyed this score and don't have a DVD player, this is probably the only way that you will get to enjoy the cues that were unavailable for the first release. Even if you already have the A&M CD, you might want to check this one out as you'll still need the original if you want to listen to the   

                 two songs or the Station Break cue.

Full Original Score:

Original A&M Release:

Expanded Chapter III Release:     

A&M Release

1 - Sheryl Crow "Tomorrow Never Dies" (4:47)

2 - White Knight (8:30)

3 - The Sinking of the Devonshire (7:07)

4 - Company Car (3:08)

5 - Station Break (3:30)

6 - Paris and Bond (1:55)

7 - The Last Goodbye (1:34)

8 - Hamburg Break In (2:52)

9 - Hamburg Break Out (1:26)

10 - Doctor Kaufman (2:26)

11 - *-3-Send (1:17)

12 - Underwater Discovery (3:37)

13 - Backseat Driver (4:37)

14 - k.d. lang "Surrender" (3:56)

15 - Moby "James Bond Theme" (3:12)

Chapter III Release

1 - White Knight (8:29)

2 - The Sinking of the Devonshire (7:06)

3 - Company Car (3:07)

4 - Paris & Bond (1:55)

5 - The Last Goodbye (1:33)

6 - Hamburg Break In (2:53)

7 - Hamburg Break Out (1:24)

8 - Doctor Kaufman (2:27)

9 - *-3-* Send (1:15)

10 - Back Seat Driver (4:34)

11 - Underwater Discovery (3:36)

12 - Helicopter Ride (1:34)

13 - Bike Chase (6:44)

14 - Bike Shop Fight (2:42)

15 - Kowloon Bay (2:27)

16 - Boarding the Stealth (4:38)

17 - A Tricky Spot For 007 (2:48)

18 - All In A Day's Work (5:09)

19 - Interview with David Arnold