One of the hardest things to do is follow up a series of scores by a famous composer with one of your own. And this was never more true than with the James Bond motion picture franchise. Thus far, John Barry had composed almost every Bond film that had been made. If you were chosen compose a score after him, you were simply asking for trouble. Composers such as Bill Conti, Eric Serra, and the like tried but were not as appreciated. Most of the non-Barry scores have been not lived up to the standards set by Barry's work, but Licence to Kill is different; it's actually quite good. Michael Kamen was a very logical choice, really, given his record of action film scores.
The score is very typical in terms of Kamen's style, on the plus side, Kamen integrates the Bond theme very well, and gives it a wonderful Latin feel at times, actually putting more variation on it than John Barry ever did. The Latin rhythm and sound is what makes this soundtrack so special. It adds a variation to the typical Bond sound, (which is why I like For Your Eyes Only). As I said, Kamen uses the Bond Theme in various locations and they are all performed to the proper level. The first three tracks are non-Kamen tracks, Pam the first by Kamen and is a joy to listen to. Ninja starts off with a great, crashing section before calming down a little. And the final track, Licence Revoked, is full of all the exciting features that distinguished John Barry's Bond scores.
The score hits a slightly sour note at some points, sounding too much like Die Hard. However, on the whole it is not a bad score, and I don't think it is too far from what Barry would have done with the score. The four non-Kamen tracks aren't so great, even the title song Licence To Kill isn't one of the best Bond songs although it had promise. Patti LaBelle's rendition of If You Asked Me To is alright but I have come to prefer Celine Dion's version which is a little more lilting. Overall, this is well-worth checking out, and doesn't deserve the bad press it's received over the years (the same could be said of the film itself).
Total time: 45:38
1: Licence to Kill (5:13)
- Gladys Knight
2: Wedding Party (3:53)
- Ivory
3: Dirty Love (3:45)
- Tim Feehan
4: Pam (3:50)
5: If You Asked Me To (3:58)
- Patti LaBelle
6: James and Felix on their way to Church (3:53)
7: His Funny Valentine (3:26)
8: Sanchez is in the Bahamas / Shark Fishing (2:06)
9: Ninja (6:03)
10: Licence Revoked (9:11)
Review copyright � 1997 Jay Tipnis. Comments always welcome!