Live and Let Die

Live and Let Die

Paul McCartney

From the album

Hot Night In Charlotte (1993)

Written by

Paul McCartney, Linda McCartney

Key:G major
Duration:4:33

Listen to the Song

Summary

Written by Paul and Linda McCartney for the 1973 James Bond film, 'Live and Let Die' reunited McCartney with former Beatles producer George Martin. The first rock song to open a Bond film, it broke new ground by blending a delicate piano ballad with thunderous orchestral passages and a reggae interlude, becoming the most successful Bond theme of its era.

James Bond themeWingsorchestral rockfilm soundtrack70s classic

Musical Analysis

The harmony of 'Live and Let Die' is defined by its dramatic contrasts rather than chord complexity. The parallel major-to-minor shift at the chorus is the song's most distinctive device, transforming an intimate ballad into an orchestral assault. George Marti…

Chords

verse:G - Bm - C - D - G
chorus:Gm - C

History

Before screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz had even finished the screenplay, Bond producers Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli invited Paul McCartney to write the theme. McCartney asked for a copy of Ian Fleming's novel, read it, and wrote the song that same aftern…

“Producer Harry Saltzman originally wanted Shirley Bassey or Thelma Houston to perform the song instead of Wings”

Full Musical Analysis

The harmony of 'Live and Let Die' is defined by its dramatic contrasts rather than chord complexity. The parallel major-to-minor shift at the chorus is the song's most distinctive device, transforming an intimate ballad into an orchestral assault. George Martin's arrangement amplifies these harmonic shifts with full orchestra, creating a through-composed structure unusual for a pop single. The reggae interlude adds yet another harmonic color, making this one of the most structurally adventurous Bond themes ever recorded.

Before screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz had even finished the screenplay, Bond producers Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli invited Paul McCartney to write the theme. McCartney asked for a copy of Ian Fleming's novel, read it, and wrote the song that same afternoon. He later described it as 'a job of work' since writing around a pre-set title was not the easiest task.

Written by Paul and Linda McCartney for the 1973 James Bond film, 'Live and Let Die' reunited McCartney with former Beatles producer George Martin. The first rock song to open a Bond film, it broke new ground by blending a delicate piano ballad with thunderous orchestral passages and a reggae interlude, becoming the most successful Bond theme of its era.

Deep Analysis Available

Detailed analysis of this section is not yet available for this song.

Song DNA

Genre

Rock

Era

70s

Mood

Aggressive

Tempo

Mid-tempo

Key

Major

Texture

Orchestral

Sound

Piano-led

Feel

Syncopated

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Listen & Learn

Statistics

953K

Plays

282K

Listeners

100%

Popularity

4:33

Duration

4/4

Time

Credits

Written by

Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney

From the album Hot Night In Charlotte

Live albums

  • Back in the U.S. Live 20022002
  • Back in the World2003