Track Listing

1. Main Title - Goldfinger - Shirley Bassey
2. Into Miami
3. Alpine Drive - Auric's Factory
4. Oddjob's Pressing Engagement
5. Bond Back in Action Again
6. Teasing the Korean
7. Gassing the Gangsters
8. Goldfinger [Instrumental]
9. Dawn Raid on Fort Knox
10. Arrival of the Bomb and Count Down
11. Death of Goldfinger - End Titles
12. Golden Girl [*]
13. Death of Tilley [*]
14. Laser Beam [*]
15. Pussy Galore's Flying Circus [*]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1611 in Music
• Released on: 2003-03-04
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .21 pounds
• Running time: 41 minutes

Customer Reviews

The most famous Bond score of all -- expanded!
This CD release of "Goldfinger," the most famous of all James Bond scores and without a doubt one of the most influential soundtracks ever produced, expands the album for the first time for U.S. buyers to the original length of the U.K. album. The U.K. album had four extra tracks ("Pussy Galore's Flying Circus," "Golden Girl," "Laser Beam," and "Death of Tilley") that were mysteriously cut from the original Stateside release. These four tracks later appeared on a compilation CD, but this is the first time all the tracks have been released on one CD for American consumption. The CD is also wonderfully re-mastered, far superior to the old CD release that was muffled and even had misaligned track markers! (The sound difference is most notable on the brassy, hard swingin' instrumental cover of the theme song, which on the original CD sounded scratchy, as if it were lifted directly from an old vinyl record!) This album, however, is missing a track that would have been a nice extra: Anthony Newley's original demo recording of the theme song, smooth and low-key, which makes for an interesting contrast to Shirley Bassey's hard jazz-pop rendition heard in the film.

What is there to say about this music that hasn't been said a million times in books, documentaries, reviews, and Internet forums? It's the quintessential 'spy jazz' album, and it changed action film music forever. John Barry had worked (mostly un-credited) on "Dr. No," did the full score for the remarkable "From Russia, With Love," but here he absolutely explodes with an original vibrant style for the series and charted the way for every score to follow. Barry took his experience as a jazz/rock trumpeter and bandleader (he headed the popular British group "The John Barry Seven") and expanded it into a tremendous orchestral juggernaut. The melody "Goldfinger" (with lyrics by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse) becomes a screaming, sexy jazz anthem, with Shirley Bassey's sassy and snarling reading of the lyrics making the piece into an instant, unforgettable classic chart-topper. It's the most famous title song from the Bond films, and deservedly so.

Throughout the rest of the score, Barry uses the theme song in interesting ways. "Alpine Drive" presents the lyrical, laid back John Barry. The instrumental version of the theme song (which isn't in the film) is gritty and guitar-driven, and also includes music from "Dawn Raid on Fort Knox." "Oddjob's Pressing Engagement" makes great up-tempo use of the Goldfinger theme as well. The famous James Bond theme appears in "Bond Back in Action" (the music for the pre-credits sequence). Barry uses very mysterious, sexy music for "Teasing the Korean" (lots of musical jokes and stings on this one), "Golden Girl," "Auric's Factory," "Gassing the Gangsters," and the extremely tense "Laser Beam."

The score highlight, however, is the lengthy, pounding "Dawn Raid on Fort Knox," which starts with a slow building military march on snare-drums and gradually grows into an explosive version of the Goldfinger Theme and concludes with dramatic, tense vibraphone and brass punctuations as Goldfinger's private army lasers its way through the doors of Fort Knox. This is followed up with "Arrival of Bomb and Countdown," where a thundering hypnotic brass piece builds up the 'seconds-to-doom' finale. ("A few more ticks and Mr. Goldfinger would have hit the jackpot.")

This really is a quintessential film music album. It's jazz. It's lounge. It's swing. It's rock. It's lyrical. It's JAMES BOND in a single CD, and it will transport you back to the mid-sixties when Bond, martinis, divas, and loud sexy trumpets seemed to rule the world. Tip your razor-bladed bowler hats to John Barry, the Bond musical master -- and buy this album!

Goldfinger is Bond music at it's best.
This is perhaps the most popular and most well scored of the 007 movies with John Barry's orchestration and the title singing of Shirley Bassy all working in unison to tell the story of the film from the point of only the music track, and the lyrics.

Definitive Musical Establishment of a Screen Icon
I don't think any other soundtrack did for a film or film series what GOLDFINGER did for James Bond. Now, the definitive CD of all the currently available music from GOLDFINGER has been re-mastered and assembled for this CD. The main title of GOLDFINGER performed by Shirley Bassey is the definitive theme that sets the benchmark for all of James Bond's cinematic adventures. Not just the melody but the very sound and delivery musically identifies what a James Bond film is all about. Composer John Barry and lyricists Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley have the gratitude of many generations of James Bond fans. Musically I believe it is essential to have a strong main title to a Bond film, which goes in tandem with the James Bond Theme when properly juxtaposed. The film and how it fits into the world of James Bond relies on a delicate balancing act of musical scoring. In many ways GOLDFINGER is also the definitive James Bond score. If you listen to John Barry's eloquent and stimulating compositions: "Alpine Drive" and "Oddjob's Pressing Engagement" you can hear this juxtaposition of the "Goldfinger" main title and the "James Bond Theme" composed as a counterbalance to the battle of wits that Bond and Goldfinger engage in on the screen. Track 4: "Bond Back in Action Again" can not go unmentioned because this again is another innovative use of the "James Bond Theme" that clearly defines James Bond from the opening gun barrel right through the pre-titles opening sequence. For this CD "Golden Girl," "Death Of Tilley," "The Laser Beam," "Pussy Galore's Flying Circus" and "Goldfinger (Insturmental Version)" are all available for once in a single compendium of music for this film representing the era and fervor whence it was composed. "Pussy Galore's Flying Circus" is a bawdy showpiece of scoring from that time. The important "Golden Girl" firmly establishes the emotional drive behind James Bond that he himself is a blunt instrument for seeing good vanquish evil in a world where such notions of gallantry were clearly becoming blurred. This is an essential James Bond soundtrack.