Monty Norman, composer of the James Bond theme, dies at 94

The Bond theme was drawn on a chunk Norman had written for a proposed musical adaptation of V.S. Naipaul’s “A Home for Mr. Biswas”

The Bond theme was drawn on a chunk Norman had written for a proposed musical adaptation of V.S. Naipaul’s “A Home for Mr. Biswas”

Monty Norman, a British composer who wrote the theme tune for the James Bond movies, has died. He was 94.

A press release posted on Monday on Norman’s official web site stated: “It’s with unhappiness we share the information that Monty Norman died on eleventh July 2022 after a brief sickness.”

Born Monty Noserovitch to Jewish mother and father within the East Finish of London in 1928, Norman acquired his first guitar when he was 16. He carried out with massive bands and in a spread double act with comic Benny Hill earlier than writing songs for early British rockers Cliff Richard and Tommy Steele and composing for stage musicals together with “Make Me an Provide,” “Expresso Bongo,” “Songbook” and “Poppy.”

Norman was employed by producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli to compose a theme for the primary James Bond movie, “Dr. No,” launched in 1962.

He drew on a chunk he had written for a proposed musical adaptation of V.S. Naipaul’s “A Home for Mr. Biswas,” shifting the important thing riff from sitar to electrical guitar. The outcome — twangy, propulsive, menacing — has been utilized in all 25 Bond thrillers.

Producers employed composer John Barry to rearrange the theme, and Barry was extensively assumed to have written it — to Norman’s chagrin. Barry, who died in 2011, went on to compose scores for nearly a dozen Bond movies, together with “Goldfinger” and “You Solely Reside Twice.”

Norman went to courtroom to say his authorship, suing the Sunday Instances newspaper for libel over a 1997 article asserting the theme was composed by Barry. He received in 2001 and was awarded 30,000 kilos in damages.

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