For Your Eyes Only CD soundtrack

soundtrack review

The For Your Eyes Only score sees Bill Conti take over the reigns from John Barry with the result still being an good CD soundtrack. Sheena Easton sings the slow romantic 'For Your Eyes Only' and becomes the first singer to be prominently features in the title theme visuals.

For Your Eyes Only marked a return to a more serious Bond for Roger Moore and this is present straight away in the serious tones of 'Gunbarrel/Flowers for Teresa/Sinking the St. Georges'. Conti also introduces a strong disco/pop/funk style into many of the action chases that really spices things up giving it a more modern feel. This is especially apparent in 'Gonzales Takes A Dive' and 'A Drive In The Country' which also introduce Greek locale music. The softer and more romantic notes also work well in 'Take Me Home', with 'For Your Eyes Only' (Instrumental) really working well with its scene in the film. The tension starts to mount in 'Goodbye, Countess/No Head for Heights/Dining Alone' and 'Submarine' (which features the James Bond Theme) with a climax coming in the form of 'Recovering the ATAC' and 'Sub vs. Sub'.

Highlights have to be the adrenalin-pumping 'Runaway', the suspense-filled 'Run Them Down/The Climb' and 'St Cyril's Monastery'. The dance tones get faster and faster in the former track, and just when you think the track is coming to a close, it starts up again pushing you on. The pressure is on once again in the latter tracks with the tension mounting as you can picture Bond climbing up the rock face. This track generates real suspense and proves that you do not need special-effect explosion fuelled climaxes in Bond films to do the same job.

This For Your Eyes Only CD soundtrack is quite controversial, in the sense it does greatly differ from previous works. This will always mean there are people who love this soundtrack and people who don't and prefer more traditional Bond soundtracks. It is worth having a listen and making up your own mind, you may find you have stumbled on a hidden gem.

play listing

A number of cues on this CD are difficult to position. The below playlist is only approximate and based on personal preference, so you may wish to move a couple of the tracks around. The only way to get this better would be to chop up the cues and recreate the playlist.

Gunbarrel/Flowers for Teresa/Sinking the St. Georges (2:54)
1. For Your Eyes Only (3:07)
4. Melina's Revenge (2:18)
7. Make It Last All Night (3:31)
5. Gonzales Takes a Dive (3:14)
2. A Drive in the Country (2:25)
14. Unfinished Business/Bond Meets Kristatos (1:53)
11. Cortina (1:45)
15. Ski...Shoot...Jump (5:16)
8. Runaway (3:54)
3. Take Me Home (2:32)
16. Goodbye, Countess/No Head for Heights/Dining Alone (3:20)
10. For Your Eyes Only (1:35)
9. Submarine (2:39)
17. Recovering the Atac (2:28)
18. Sub vs Sub (3:16)
19. Run Them Down/The Climb (2:58)
6. St. Cyril's Monastery (4:40)
12. The P.M Gets the Bird/For Your Eyes Only - Reprise