SUMMARY: RUNNING TIME: 5:15 Min.
From the soundtrack of 1989’s Licence to Kill starring Timothy Dalton this James Bond tune was recorded by Gladys Knight. This song has since been re-released on some compilation albums, primarily multiple updates of the Best of Bond … James Bond (which includes the franchise’s theme songs to date).
Note: Best of Bond .. James Bond includes a 40th anniversary edition in 2002 and a subsequent update in 2008 for Chris Cornell’s “You Know My Name” from Daniel Craig’s Casino Royale.
REVIEW:
While Gladys Knight’s classy vocals and a grandiose R&B melody are assets, the Bond tradition of making the movie title part of the opening song’s lyrics is problematic. Earning her paycheck, Knight does her best with the surrounding lyrics. What Knight can’t overcome is the recurrence of the phrase, ‘Licence to Kill,’ – heard once would have been fine, but far too times makes this reference, at best, awkward. It’s easy to infer a woman playing for keeps in a love affair, but describing her intense jealousy as a ‘licence to kill’ is hardly a welcome metaphor. That isn’t by any means Knight’s fault, but her songwriting committee should have reconsidered the lyrics’ unsettling ramifications.
Ironically, as heard over the film’s closing credits, Patti LaBelle’s gentle “If You Asked Me To,” proves a far superior R&B love song to this main title theme. At most, ,“Licence to Kill” is a weak precursor to Tina Turner’s sultry 1995 “Goldeneye” title song.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 4½ Stars
