Under the Covers with James Bond - "Thunderball"
It goes without saying that James Bond is the man. And when it comes to male vocalists who left their mark on the history of James Bond music, Tom Jones is the man. Frankly, Tom Jones would be the man had he not sung the title piece of 1965's Thunderball. Which could be why there are so few vocal covers of this classic James Bond title song.
First, let the pipes of Mr. Tom Jones remind you why he is the singing equivalent of 007 and why so many women over the years have thrown their panties at him while on stage.
After numerous dives into the murky waters of the Internet, I could one recover one cover with vocals of Thunderball worthy of mention. It comes from the quite epic, Shaken and Stirred: The David Arnold James Bond Project album and features Martin Fry, vocalist of the New Romantic era's ABC.
A solid cover which doesn't stray too far from the original. There are however a couple of interesting instrumentals of Thunderball. The first is by an Italian group called Gli Stereo from their 1965 album, Centochitarre.
A perfectly apropos sound (and very clean recording) for a cover released on the heels of the film itself. Diving a little deeper reveals another rare relic of instrumental Bondage, in the form of Brazilian instrumental rock band, The Jet Blacks.
This is now my favorite cover of Thunderball, for its ramping up of the tempo and Brazilian-meets-surf rock style.
It is very interesting how few vocal covers there are of Thunderball. Frankly, if I were a singer, I'm not sure I would want to try and fill the very big shoes of Tom Jones, even if the throwing of knickers were involved.
The music of James Bond will return in You Only Live Twice.
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