Rank Bond actors according to their collective soundtracks
I was thinking about this the other day: which Bond actor had the strongest overall run of film scores/soundtracks?
Not just the best individual theme song or the single best score, but the actor whose era had the most consistently great music across their time as Bond.
It ended up being way harder to rank than I expected because Bond music changes so much with the times. Some are timeless and others feel trapped in their era.
1 Lazenby
This almost feels unfair because he only had one, but OHMSS earns the top spot by default. John Barry absolutely peaked here, and it still holds up today. I can listen to this on loop all day.
2 Dalton
This might be my hottest take. TLD for me is right up there with OHMSS as one of the greatest Bond soundtracks ever. It was Barry's final outing and it's just such a beautiful score to listen to. LTK is the only reason Dalton isn’t #1. I actually enjoy parts of Kamen’s score, but compared to Barry’s work it loses some of that timeless Bond identity and leans more into late 80s action scoring.
3 Connery
Once John Barry entered the franchise, the musical tone of Bond was basically born.
That said, Dr. No definitely sounds the most dated to me and lacks the polish, but that is to be expected on the first go. But from FRwL through Thunderball especially, the franchise’s sound became iconic. YOLT might honestly be one of the most beautiful scores in Connery's entire run.
- Craig
I know this ranking might annoy some people, but I revisit the Craig era scores more than almost any other. Casino, Skyfall and NTTD all feel cinematic in a very modern way while still respecting classic Bond themes. Arnold deserves a ton of credit for evolving the Bond sound without losing its identity. Much like the Connery era, these scores actually help tell the story and shape the emotional tone of the films.
5 Moore
This one was difficult because Moore probably has the widest range. Some of these are incredibly fun, but many feel very tied to the decade they were made in. For example, TSWLM is iconic, but parts of it scream “1977” in a way that takes me out of it sometimes, but in a way makes it great! if that makes sense.
- Brosnan
Sorry Brosnan fans, but this is the era I revisit the least. They feel too caught in the 90's/00's trends. I just cannot get into these as much as any other Bond tracks.
Curious to see where everyone else lands on this.