(Credits: Far Out / Duncan Raban)
Mon 17 November 2025 22:00, UK
Through the highly anticipated release of a James Bond film, there worlds of music and film get to collide in a completely unique way.
In fact, the speculation as to who will provide the Bond song is often as intense as who may make up the ensemble cast of whatever film. This is simply because, across the spectrum of culture, we all have a separate idea of what we think a Bond film should look and in the case of music, sound like.
Grand soundscapes and operating vocals are usually a safe bet, which is why Shirley Bassey’s ‘Diamonds Are Forever’ lives fondly in the memory of conventional Bond fans, while the likes of Chris Cornell’s ‘You Know My Name’ and Madonna’s ‘Die Another Day’ offer a more unique and refreshed twist on the idea.
But in 1995, a musical pairing was forged whereby every tasting note of a Bond song could be hit. Rock royalty U2 collaborated with soulful powerhouse Tina Turner to write the soundtrack for GoldenEye. The track received a warm reception and provided somewhat of a career segue for Turner, given its slightly different sonic profile.
It was more of a menacing ballad than she was used to, and showcased how pairing two artists from different worlds could create a sense of musical intrigue. She explained, “I actually liked the way that ‘GoldenEye’ transformed my singing. I had never done a song like that, and it really gave me a chance to be creative in terms of taking these rough fragments and turning them into a smooth and expressive song that worked for the movie”.
For U2, this was a chance to work with an artist of truly iconic status and whose voice offered something completely different to Bono’s when it came to writing a melody. “When we heard it was Tina, we got really excited,” Edge explained. Adding, “We’ve never had a chance to work with her, and we both really loved her singing.”
The overall success of the end product was potentially down to the warm atmosphere that existed within the studio. This wasn’t just a wide-eyed U2 entering the studio and obeying whatever demands their hero placed on the session. They saw that with their skill set, combined with Tina’s was an opportunity to do something different for both of them.
“It was a matter of getting the right song, and that was U2. I feel good about it. It was good company and it was good to come back this way rather than just with a new album” Turner explained.
Clearly, the group got along and so the studio session would have been a great time for U2 to sit and allow Turner to hold court. Let her reel off a myriad of stories that predated their existence as a band and bask in the wonder of being in the presence of an icon. But that wasn’t the way. No, Bono’s charm prevailed and he kept the mood in the studio buoyant, by reversing the roles and being the one who held court in between songs.
Turner added, “And Bono, he is an entertainer. You can sit and hear him talk, and he entertains you forever and ever.”
Like many other stories that exist through the lineage of songwriting history, ‘GoldenEye’ goes to prove that some of the best songs come from a state of work hard, play hard. Which I guess you could say, is one of the modus operandi of 007 himself.
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