Look away now Shirley! Live and Let Die is named best Bond theme of all time but Bassey's Goldfinger hit only makes third place

The 007 movies have spawned a host of classic soundtracks - but Live And Let Die has been named as the greatest ever James Bond theme.
Sir Paul McCartney's track, which he recorded with his band Wings, topped a poll of BBC Radio 5 Live and Radio 2 listeners.
Taken from the 1973 Bond film of the same name, Live And Let Die pulled in more than a quarter of the votes in the poll to find fans' favourite 007 theme tune.

Classic: The title track to classic Bond flick Live and Let Die - which starred Roger Moore as 007 (above with Gloria Hendry) - was recorded by Sir Paul McCartney when he was with Wings

Carly Simon's Nobody Does It Better, taken from The Spy Who Loved Me, was the runner-up, while Dame Shirley Bassey's Goldfinger came third.

 

The winning track - which provided the climax to the the Queen's Diamond Jubilee concert in June - was unveiled by Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo during a Bond-themed edition of the film review show on BBC Radio 5 Live today.
The poll and the performances were to mark 50 years since 007 first appeared on cinema screens with Dr No.
The choice of Live and Let Die was DJ Simon Mayo's selection while he opted for Eric Serra's GoldenEye as his favourite musical score.
Meanwhile Kermode's preferred Bond tune was On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

TOP TEN CLASSIC JAMES BOND THEME TUNES

1. Live and Let Die: Paul McCartney and Wings, 1973
Full of drama and powerful guitar-riffed excitement, the spine-tingling tune is instantly recognisable
2. Nobody Does It Better: (The Spy Who Loved Me), Carly Simon, 1977
Smooth and seductive, the pace of the song is totally different to Live and Let Die, but equally as anthemic
3. Goldfinger, Shirley Bassey, 1964
The big-voiced Welsh crooner made this a soulful, epic classic. When Bassey belts out this number nobody is in any doubt of Bond's extraordinary talents
4. A View to a Kill: Duran Duran, 1985
This is the only Bond theme to have reached the top of the UK charts. A classic Duran Duran track it combines rock-and-roll with a foot-tapping inducing drumbeat.
5. Another Way to Die: (Quantum of Solace), Alicia Keys and Jack White, 2008
The edgiest 007 theme so far, shaken not stirred with its funky rhythm and bluesy slick harmony of Keys and White

6. The World Is Not Enough: Garbage, 1999
Garbage lead singer Shirley Manson’s stirring lyric made this one of the most popular theme tunes on the list, holding its own with other favourites

7. Diamonds Are Forever: Shirley Bassey, 1971
Seven years after she belted out Goldfinger the diva was asked to sing the title track to the 1971 Bond offering, which was not quite, but nearly, as good
8. You Only Live Twice: Nancy Sinatra, 1967
Dreamy, haunting, and completely mesmerizing
9. For Your Eyes Only: Sheena Easton, 1981
An alluring ’80s Bond ballad that entices fans to belt it out in the bathroom
10. You Know My Name (Casino Royale), Chris Cornell, 2006
Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell takes a shot at a spy serenade and pulls it off with his Seattle-grown growl and gusto

Commissioned specifically for the movie and credited to Paul McCartney and his wife Linda, Live and Let Die reunited McCartney with Beatles producer George Martin, who both produced the song and arranged the orchestral elements.
Live and Let Die was one of Wings' most successful singles, and the most successful Bond theme to that point, charting at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number nine on the UK Singles Chart.
It has been covered by several bands, with Guns n' Roses' version being the most popular and both versions were nominated for Grammies.
There’s more Bond on Radio 2 later this evening in Friday Night is Music Night: Bond and Beyond, which features a concert of Bond themes recently given by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra on BBC Radio 2 at 8pm.

Winning track: Sir Paul McCartney recorded Live And Let Die with the band Wings for the 1973 Bond film