The James Bond movies have been running since 1962, but the early ’90s saw a six-year hiatus between movies. When “Goldeneye” was released, it was into a different world where the Soviet Union no longer existed, in which some considered the titular main character outdated. Promoted as a grand return for James Bond, a good title song was essential. Tina Turner’s rendition of the “Goldeneye” theme, with her characteristic powerful, gravelly vocals perfectly hit the mark. But when she first heard the song, Turner didn’t want to sing it.
Written by Bono and The Edge from U2, it was originally intended to be sung by Depeche Mode but, according to The Independent, they were too busy to record it at the time. Bono then put together a demo and sent it to Tina Turner, who promptly rejected it. While she was a fan of U2, the demo was so bad that Turner felt as if they’d expected her to turn down the song. She said later on that she hadn’t even known what key she was supposed to sing it in! Bono had to personally ask her to perform it, ultimately being impressed by the version Turner came up with. While ultimately, the movie “Goldeneye” was among the less memorable from the James Bond catalog, Tina Turner’s theme song for it has been celebrated as among the best Bond themes.
