Songs that use the James Bond chord progression

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  • Опубліковано 5 чер 2024
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    The original James Bond theme is based on a simple but iconic motif, a motif so instantly recognisable as "Bond" that even when it appears in completely unrelated songs it is hard not to hear that song as a "Bond song".
    SOURCES:
    Interview with Chris Cornell (2007): www.songwriteruniverse.com/ch...
    0:00 Introduction
    1:18 Non-Bond songs that use the chord progression
    2:57 Bond songs that use the progression
    5:20 Hooktheory
    6:05 How Bond songs work the motif in to the chords
    8:53 Other TV, film and game themes that use it
    10:29 Conclusion
    And, an extra special thanks goes to Peter Keller, Douglas Lind, Vidad Flowers, Ivan Pang, Waylon Fairbanks, Jon Dye, Austin Russell, Christopher Ryan, Toot & Paul Peijzel, the channel’s Patreon saints! 😇
    SUPPORT ME ON PATREON: / davidbennettpiano 🎹

КОМЕНТАРІ • 698

  • @DavidBennettPiano
    @DavidBennettPiano  8 місяців тому +51

    For a limited time, get 20% off select Hooktheory products when you use this link: www.hooktheory.com/davidbennett
    📌Another Bond theme that quotes the motif that I forgot to mention is Shirley Bassey's "Goldfinger" which makes use of the Bond motif near the end of the song and this was actually the year before Tom Jones' "Thunderball". Thanks to the commenters who drew my attention to that example 😊😊

    • @kianhendrick3794
      @kianhendrick3794 8 місяців тому

      Man ,you just forgot the reference track used by John Barry to compose his theme ...Julie London - Cry me a river !!!!

    • @billhasty5197
      @billhasty5197 8 місяців тому +2

      Loved Goldfinger, So Iconic and memorable. Sean Connery was the one. The others were good, but no Sean.

    • @andercert70
      @andercert70 8 місяців тому

      Are you sure Paul doesn't put it somewhere in Live and Let Die?

    • @thebestspork
      @thebestspork 8 місяців тому

      Tomorrow Never Dies sneaks the first three chords of the progression in at the end of the chorus ;)

    • @keithtorgersen9664
      @keithtorgersen9664 8 місяців тому

      I am not a musician, but it seems like the chord progression is similar but sped up for “Wipeout”.

  • @_girltype
    @_girltype 8 місяців тому +233

    stealth announcing you've been selected to compose the new james bond theme, are we

  • @jeffreyslotnikoff4003
    @jeffreyslotnikoff4003 8 місяців тому +238

    Elvis Presley's "Surrender" came out in 1961, a year before 'Dr. No' the movie that first utilized the 'James Bond Theme'. The writers of "Surrender", Doc Pumas and Mort Schumann, adapted the melody from a 1902 Neapolitan ballad, "Torna a Surriento", composed by Giambattista and Ernesto de Curtis.

    • @gillianomotoso328
      @gillianomotoso328 8 місяців тому

      !!

    • @oldunclemick
      @oldunclemick 8 місяців тому +4

      That's handy - gives "prior art" protection as long as you don't lift anything else from the Bond theme.

    • @jeffreyslotnikoff4003
      @jeffreyslotnikoff4003 8 місяців тому +3

      For what it's worth, I got my info from Wikipedia:
      en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrender_(Elvis_Presley_song)
      @@ianxyoutube

    • @AndyMangele
      @AndyMangele 8 місяців тому +3

      @@ianxyoutube That's because "Torna a Surriento" doesn't include this particular progression -
      it's the main melody that has been, well, let's say "borrowed".

    • @space4ace582
      @space4ace582 8 місяців тому +6

      Plus, Elvis Presley's Surrender was recorded on October 30, 1960.

  • @JWLearning
    @JWLearning 8 місяців тому +68

    I've tried writing 'Spy' music as it were, and it's so difficult to find something that evokes the same feeling of Bond without actually using the same chords from his theme. Everything about those four chords exemplifies who the character is - mysterious, dangerous, suspenseful, suspicious, etc. It many ways it cannot be topped as a spy theme. The only thing that kinda comes close is the Mission Impossible theme, but that has always felt a little more 'fun and adventure' like. Bond's theme has always felt more gritty and dangerous.

    • @smergthedargon8974
      @smergthedargon8974 7 місяців тому +5

      Focus on Phrygian, and do the line cliche in the bass notes instead of the upper notes (or both at once in power chords).

    • @br0dy32
      @br0dy32 Місяць тому +1

      I feel like you need to incorporate some surf guitar and/or slap bass, and have some sliding, orchestral sounding strings...

  • @ChristopherUranga
    @ChristopherUranga 8 місяців тому +189

    Live and Let Die has hints of the motif. Right before the orchestra part when paul McCartney sings “live and let die” it goes from G7 - C/G - Gdim7 which contain the notes B-C-C#
    I can definitely hear the James Bond sound in that part

    • @DMSProduktions
      @DMSProduktions 8 місяців тому +22

      Well it WAS a Bond film song!

    • @jcarty123
      @jcarty123 8 місяців тому +9

      Wrong order. The bit on "live & let die" lyric is G - C/G - Gdim - G7. The song has "danger feel" but it comes from odd interjection of minor & diminished chords, or oddball chords like D7flat9 (a D7 with a dissonant D# note on top, or maybe it's F# dim over a D). Leave it to Paul to do his own thing - and well.

    • @loseryoutube6132
      @loseryoutube6132 8 місяців тому +5

      Paul also used the same Em - C/E - C#°/E in the song Another Day, in the middle section.

    • @jcarty123
      @jcarty123 8 місяців тому +4

      @@loseryoutube6132 Shoot I KNEW Paul had used the Bond move with the Augmented chord - somewhere. Thanks for identifying it. A bit surprising, maybe, that David's search tool didn't catch it?

    • @ric8248
      @ric8248 8 місяців тому

      l think the 2nd chord is G C# E

  • @robadam4287
    @robadam4287 8 місяців тому +47

    "Hangar 18" by Megadeth is an awesome example for packaging this chord progression into styles you would not expect

    • @specialhiza
      @specialhiza 7 місяців тому

      my first thought

    • @Atlas65
      @Atlas65 7 місяців тому +2

      That part makes me think of Led Zeppelin Kashmir. At least when I first heard, as teenager in "the Call of Ktulu" by Metallica, where Dave originally used this sam riff. Later Dave simply re-used it in "Hangar 18" So it's originally "the Call of Kthulu" riff.
      Listen to Kashmir, check out the resemblance. It sounds way more inspired by Kashmir then it does to the James Bond theme.

    • @user-ih9pq8dz4n
      @user-ih9pq8dz4n 5 місяців тому

      Also, In my darkest hour and a billion other megadeth songs

    • @TheBfutgreg
      @TheBfutgreg 5 місяців тому

      Panic Attack by Dream Theater does this sorta thing too....there's tons of other examples in more niche metal bands that I can't think of right now....but never deny the coolness/impact of a chromatic line, ascending or descending

  • @OurgasmComrade
    @OurgasmComrade 8 місяців тому +92

    Both Nirvana's "Heart Shaped Box" and Lana Del Ray's "Ultraviolence" (verse) uses the same "bond" progression as the Chris Cornell song!

    • @valleyshrew
      @valleyshrew 8 місяців тому +1

      That's a 3 chord descending progression though, it was the melody of the Cornell song that was Bond-like.

    • @cirillkin
      @cirillkin 8 місяців тому

      This is also can be heard in the intro of Beatles' Help

    • @prepcoin_nl4362
      @prepcoin_nl4362 8 місяців тому +1

      It's the voice leading that makes the Cornell song sound reminiscent of James Bond. That voice leading doesn't exist in Heart Shaped Box, which is a mess as they often are in rock songs. But even if you want to try and extrapolate the closest mix of voices that approximates the voice leading, you'd get a (V - bvi - iv - V - bvi - vi - bvii/iv) line (last note varies because the last note is an open guitar string and sometimes he hits the D, and sometimes he hits the G). But again, that inexact rising chromatic line is almost never perceived as such because it's a mix of the soprano and alto voices rather than totally in the soprano like the Cornell example. Also the bVI chord never actually plays the major third, and the IV chord is a dom7 both in root position which further distorts any possible connection.
      Also I know that David sometimes presents it as just a "i - bVI - IV" progression, but that's kind of disingenuous since it's just a really common third descending natural minor progression which you see in a ton of modern music.
      And as a final note, as iconic as the "James Bond chord progression" is, it's also a really cliché piece of writing. In fact, we literally call them line clichés. Those sorts of chromatically rising/falling voice chord progressions have just always had a strong appeal in Western music so you'll have things that just sort of incidentally sound like it.
      Anyway, that's all to say that it essentially never sounds like James Bond.

    • @aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaao
      @aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaao 8 місяців тому +4

      The heart shaped box progression is also in territorial pissings and in bloom. I always think of that as the nirvana chord progression

  • @shadicgamer2124
    @shadicgamer2124 8 місяців тому +89

    I just imagine how amazing the music is, that anyone can use an epic progression to any song
    And this progression is apparently forever for my life

  • @dylansbjpm
    @dylansbjpm 8 місяців тому +74

    The guitar piece from “Is There Anybody Out There?” from Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” is another great example of where this chord progression is used! I believe the chords use different inversions of those in the original Bond progression, with the Bond progression being Am, F/A, F#dim/A, F/A, and the progression from “Is There Anybody Out There?” being Am/E, Fmaj7, F#m7b5, Fmaj7. They’re basically the exact same notes, just inverted. This is the first song I thought of when I heard this chord progression, and I definitely recommend listening to it again for the sound of the Bond progression!

    • @roman.korpachyov
      @roman.korpachyov 8 місяців тому +2

      I was looking for such a comment, glad it didn't take long to find :)

    • @danielbu1631
      @danielbu1631 8 місяців тому +3

      Empty spaces also has it

    • @georgeyaniga5817
      @georgeyaniga5817 8 місяців тому +1

      haha, so was I!!!!! glad someone mentioned this i think about it every time i listen to the wall @@roman.korpachyov

    • @dylansbjpm
      @dylansbjpm 8 місяців тому +1

      @@danielbu1631I don’t think “Empty Spaces” quite uses the Bond progression, although the motion of the notes within the chords is very similar, starting on a note, moving up to a close by note, moving up to another close by note, and back down. I can definitely see where you’re coming from! This seems to be a motif that appears throughout “The Wall”, most notably in the “Another Brick in the Wall” trilogy. It can also be heard at the end of “Hey You” and “Waiting for the Worms”.

    • @shaunreich
      @shaunreich 8 місяців тому

      Wow I thought this was familiar from there! That makes sense now, thanks

  • @simonjohnson3641
    @simonjohnson3641 8 місяців тому +11

    The verse of Goldeneye uses this chord progression to back Tina Turner’s vocals. Still one of my all-time favourites, although some of the more recent themes are not far behind.

    • @Jannik__92
      @Jannik__92 7 місяців тому

      I agree. You can hear it very clear at the beginning of the second verse of the song :)

  • @jaygillotti610
    @jaygillotti610 8 місяців тому +15

    It might be worth mentioning that several early Bond songs were written in G major. This seems to facilitate the transition between the title song and the Bond theme (in Em) for the film scoring.

  • @0liver0verson9
    @0liver0verson9 8 місяців тому +22

    I think your improv at the end sounded better than most of the modern Bond themes personally

  • @tylerhackner9731
    @tylerhackner9731 8 місяців тому +143

    I love this progression

    • @axlhyvonen461
      @axlhyvonen461 8 місяців тому +3

      And despite whatever I love these chord progression videos 😊❤❤😊😊😊🎉🎉🎉

    • @GRMNCVS
      @GRMNCVS 8 місяців тому +2

      And I love you, Tyler.

    • @abagz3919
      @abagz3919 8 місяців тому

      It would sound cool in a hard bop tune

    • @jacquesfromguat2077
      @jacquesfromguat2077 4 місяці тому

      It's gotta be either my favorite or my second favorite of all time.

  • @kaiying74
    @kaiying74 8 місяців тому +9

    I love the Bond Themes that include the semi-tone motive. Sheryl Crowe's & Adele's are two of my favourite most recent ones. Bond Themes are an art form on their own.

  • @radiozelaza
    @radiozelaza 8 місяців тому +14

    Synchronicity II by The Police has the Bond motiff in the first part of prechorus and using the inversions instead of i-bVI-IV in root position.

  • @maisieavis2712
    @maisieavis2712 8 місяців тому +20

    There's a riff in Opeth's song Bleak (comes right after the acoustic section halfway through the song) that uses that same motion, same inversions with the E in the bass, but instead of G being the other note shared between the chords, in this riff it's F#

    • @RedSkyWhisper
      @RedSkyWhisper 8 місяців тому +2

      The comment I was looking for!

  • @georgewhite1972
    @georgewhite1972 8 місяців тому +15

    "Birdhouse in your soul" by "They might be giants" uses a similar chord progression leading up to the chorus and in the instrumental breakdown.

    • @voomroom8697
      @voomroom8697 8 місяців тому

      also the beginning of "Youth Culture Killed My Dog"

    • @gorgolyt
      @gorgolyt 8 місяців тому

      The melody plays a chromatic scale but I'm not sure the chord progression has any similarities beyond that.

  • @joonatankaija8998
    @joonatankaija8998 8 місяців тому +16

    Muse's Supremacy was also written to be a Bond song but it didn't get picked in the end. Still a banger song, really cool metal/western vibes

    • @gregoryhenry8464
      @gregoryhenry8464 8 місяців тому

      That song is epic

    • @DavidBennettPiano
      @DavidBennettPiano  8 місяців тому +2

      I didn't know that! Cool!

    • @randomperson6433
      @randomperson6433 8 місяців тому +1

      Someone on UA-cam made a video of bond clips set to Supremacy. It would have been perfect.

    • @whytheturtles
      @whytheturtles 8 місяців тому

      Glad someone said this.

    • @booneh
      @booneh 8 місяців тому

      Muse have written like 4 of the best Bond songs of all time and still they get snubbed.

  • @souto.musica
    @souto.musica 8 місяців тому +16

    There's also "Hey Bulldog" by the Beatles, which uses the same semitone climb

    • @Davi-yj2ht
      @Davi-yj2ht 8 місяців тому +1

      ​@@Luke5100did he talk about Savoy Truffle? I haven't watched the full video yet, but that instantly comes to mind

    • @ListenToWhatTheManSaid.
      @ListenToWhatTheManSaid. 8 місяців тому

      I was waiting for it to come out in this video

  • @MrKockabilly
    @MrKockabilly 8 місяців тому +8

    The acoustic guitar section of Pink Floyd's "Is There Anybody Out There?"

    • @chrisvanderwalt790
      @chrisvanderwalt790 8 місяців тому

      Think so... how about Stairway to Heaven & Cry Me a River?

    • @remsi2208
      @remsi2208 8 місяців тому

      Exactly what I thought

  • @Ron-go8cf
    @Ron-go8cf 8 місяців тому +47

    Thanks for the video!
    Here are some more songs where I think the James Bond theme is recognizable:
    Madonna - Deeper And Deeper (around 2:56-3:28)
    Robert Miles - Landscape
    Depeche Mode - It's No Good (around 3:00)
    US5 - The Boys Are Back (around the bridge)
    Ovidiu Anton - Moment Of Silence (around the beginning of 2nd verse)
    Eneda Tarifa - Fairytale
    [almost: Liza Minnelli - Losing My Mind]

    • @hellohi7270
      @hellohi7270 8 місяців тому +4

      How about Underwater Love by Smoke City?

    • @rodrigofonseca6241
      @rodrigofonseca6241 8 місяців тому +2

      José Afonso - Redondo Vocábulo

    • @nicolasguzman6371
      @nicolasguzman6371 8 місяців тому +4

      Sorry Angel by Serge Gainsbourg did it as well

    • @Ron-go8cf
      @Ron-go8cf 8 місяців тому

      Not exactly but quite. Fourth chord is different, isn't it?

    • @gillianomotoso328
      @gillianomotoso328 8 місяців тому +1

      There’s a lovely Italian song (actually a rewriting of an obscure American pop song) made famous by Mina Mazzini, called “Città vuota”, which does that progression in the context of the I and ii chords. In A: A - F+/A - A6 - F+/A, Bm - G/B - Bm6 - G/B.

  • @faycalbenali9569
    @faycalbenali9569 8 місяців тому +15

    Great job as always.
    Supremacy from Muse's The 2nd law album is clearly an hommage to the James Bond theme. We found the progression and even the James Bond chord Em Major 9 at the end of the song.

    • @biltrex
      @biltrex 8 місяців тому +3

      Came here to say this. Supremacy almost seems purpose-written as a Bond theme! I've seen some people edit James Bond opening sequences to it, and it really works.

    • @ace.of.space.
      @ace.of.space. 7 місяців тому

      +

    • @robertgodsell
      @robertgodsell 6 місяців тому

      Actually, Muse did put forward Supremacy to be used in Skyfall, instead of Adele’s theme, but was rejected. The band released it on their next album The Second Law anyway as they’d already written and recorded it

    • @biltrex
      @biltrex 6 місяців тому

      @@robertgodsellSkyfall is a surprisingly good theme and well executed. But Supremacy is... supreme. :)

  • @yisa3615
    @yisa3615 8 місяців тому +4

    Bond and a first of October shirt. Can’t get any better!

  • @mf103
    @mf103 8 місяців тому +2

    In the chorus of Mis-shapes by Pulp, they use the Bond chords and sing the line “we won’t use bombs” which I used to hear as “we want James Bond.”

  • @andrewpappas9311
    @andrewpappas9311 8 місяців тому +7

    This progression is just one more reason why I love the Bond films, it just adds that level of mystique and I love it and it still reminds me of a guitar riff that I wrote that took some influence from the Bond chords

  • @itz_not_aaron2364
    @itz_not_aaron2364 8 місяців тому +8

    I've always found 'is there anybody out there' by pink Floyd to always sound very bond like

  • @TableSalt_
    @TableSalt_ 8 місяців тому +2

    Seeing David in a First of October shirt is something i NEVER EVER thought i was gonna see!!

  • @explosionsindasky
    @explosionsindasky 8 місяців тому +3

    Everytime you post any chord progression videos I try to figure out songs on my own as a fun exercise before going forward with the examples, and this time I was thinking on Akira Yamaoka's Promise, so happy to see you included it!

  • @banjopiggottwright1802
    @banjopiggottwright1802 8 місяців тому +1

    Incredible analysis on one of the Greatest Movie Themes of all Time

  • @robster7316
    @robster7316 8 місяців тому +3

    A simple progression yet so effective. Enjoyable segment, as always, David. Thank you!

  • @masonladouceur1453
    @masonladouceur1453 8 місяців тому +3

    One of my favourite uses of this progression when is the The Guess Who uses it in the bridge of their song “Undun”

  • @shootytheturtle
    @shootytheturtle 8 місяців тому +2

    Dido - Thank You (and it's not so bad, it's not so bad..)
    Guess Who - Undun (too many mountains and not enough stairs to climb..)
    The The - Love is Stronger Than Death (In this world even winter ain't what it seems)

  • @mixphantom0101
    @mixphantom0101 8 місяців тому +3

    French singer/actor Serge Gainsbourg had a song in 1960 called "L'eau à la bouche" that has a similar progression, 60s vibe AND electric guitar twang! Strangely, John Barry and Gainsbourg were both romantically linked with actress Jane Birkin who is also known for her duet with Serge "Je t'aime... moi non plus".

    • @alexwirtz9497
      @alexwirtz9497 8 місяців тому

      Also the first track of his first LP - "Le Poinçonneur des Lilas"

  • @bramleydragon
    @bramleydragon 7 місяців тому

    For years i was convinced it was the James Bond theme in the background on Blackberry Way. And now you've confirmed it.

  • @MinnoqWV
    @MinnoqWV 8 місяців тому +8

    My favourite example is Brian Wilson by Barenaked Ladies. It's such a contrast to the sweet opening and really captures the sense of rising anxiety in that song.

    • @stephanedegremont4961
      @stephanedegremont4961 8 місяців тому

      Wow I loved that song from my few months of life in Canada and had never spotted that it included this too :)

    • @mixolyde
      @mixolyde 7 місяців тому

      I thought of that one, too
      That outro jam is so fun to play.

  • @andreagentili8460
    @andreagentili8460 8 місяців тому +2

    It’s the third time in a couple of months that I am thinking of a progression and the exact same day you post a video about that chord progression!! Wizardry?! 🧙🏻‍♂️

  • @bobsykes
    @bobsykes 8 місяців тому +3

    Your composition at the end of this is one of your best in these videos.

  • @lambda1863
    @lambda1863 8 місяців тому +1

    Hi i just wanted to say thanks for your videos i watch your vidoes about modes all the time because they are one of my favourite musical concepts and i just love the format of your videos and how informative they are and theyre just great so thank you for making them

  • @bhjimmy2713
    @bhjimmy2713 5 місяців тому

    I've been trying to gather songs with this progression for ages without understanding which chords were used, thank you so much for covering it!

  • @MehYam2112
    @MehYam2112 8 місяців тому +5

    This is my favorite channel for music theory - puts together very practical musical knowledge with great breakdowns and examples.
    I’m wondering if there’s more content to be had talking about intervals and two chord sequences. The existing videos cover that already, but usually in passing. For example, today’s progression starts with vi IV (or i VI) sequence,which is worth its own video imo with examples of other progressions that include it. There would be no Iron Maiden without i VI. Another worth talking about would be i III, there’d be no Linkin Park without that.
    Could go even further and just break down intervals the same way. Again, I know that content already exists on this channel, but it’s less common to see theory presented in the bottom-up order, starting with one basic interval and evolving from there.

  • @TheSequelWasBetter
    @TheSequelWasBetter 8 місяців тому +4

    Not a big James Bond fan, but I do love how the theme can be adapted to be any combination of epic, haunting, or mysterious. I may be showing my colours here, but I'd love for David to look at the music theory behind the Doctor Who theme (a franchise of which I *am* a big fan).

  • @daandanx
    @daandanx 6 місяців тому +1

    Both 'you know my name' and 'skyfall' are some of the better songs often repeated on the radio here. Did not know they were made for Bond, rather neat!

  • @lim7lim
    @lim7lim 8 місяців тому +3

    Great solo at the end here, David.
    And great lesson.

  • @Boris-ui8sk
    @Boris-ui8sk 3 місяці тому +1

    The theme for Flying Battery zone from Sonic 3 and Knuckles uses this chord progression
    It's also used in the track from Rayman Legends "The spy who kicked me"

  • @matteonatoligirino5788
    @matteonatoligirino5788 8 місяців тому +2

    I see nobody's yet commented about your nod to the Doctor Who soundtrack but I would LOVE it if you'd dedicate an entire video to it, I think Murray Gold did some amazing work for that soundtrack and some of the tracks are incredible pieces of music in their own right.

  • @afwagner
    @afwagner 8 місяців тому +2

    What's so weird is that you put this video out today when I've been listening to James Bond themes this morning after hearing A View from a Kill by Duran Duran earlier. *mind blown*

  • @stephanegenilloud1139
    @stephanegenilloud1139 8 місяців тому +3

    Le poinçonneur des lilas is the first song that made Serge Gainsbourg famous in France. It was released in 1958, 4 years prior to the first James Bond and is based on the same chromatism.

  • @mat992
    @mat992 8 місяців тому +1

    Another great one thanks. I’ve learned so much from your channel. Amazing work with all of the examples and theory explanations 🙏🏻

  • @gian_tek6047
    @gian_tek6047 8 місяців тому +6

    Michael Buble's rendition of Feeling Good is the best Bond song to never make it into a Bond-Movie. I could swear there was an intention as it feels they make several references in the composition and instrumentation

  • @riordanskt
    @riordanskt 8 місяців тому +5

    3 iconic themes for me are: The James Bond Theme, The Mission Impossible Theme and The Pink Panther Theme.
    Is there any possibility of videos about the other 2 themes?

  • @AmodeusR
    @AmodeusR Місяць тому

    Imagine making such an iconic chord progression to the point you literally monopolize it, making any song that uses such chord progression instantly reminds anyone of your song 👁👄👁

  • @andorrra
    @andorrra 8 місяців тому +28

    hey david, great video, didn't expect to see this used in so many songs. i wonder if you could make a video about the hungarian minor scale? it's fairly distinctive and has a lot of interesting things to talk about; would love it if you did!

    • @DavidBennettPiano
      @DavidBennettPiano  8 місяців тому +26

      Thanks! I've been thinking about making a video about Hungarian minor actually! It's certainly on the list :)

    • @andersjjensen
      @andersjjensen 8 місяців тому +2

      @@DavidBennettPiano Yes please! It's very charming and has a bit of spice to it that's hard to put your finger on. Would love to hear your tear-down... and improvisation at the end of the video!

    • @smergthedargon8974
      @smergthedargon8974 7 місяців тому

      Based double harmonic appreciator

  • @LightPhoenix7000
    @LightPhoenix7000 8 місяців тому +5

    If you're looking at video game music, The Phantom Forest from Final Fantasy 6 also uses this chord progression of create that tense haunted sound.

  • @Theomertmalogos
    @Theomertmalogos 8 місяців тому

    Amazing video, David! It needed a big knowledge of pop and movie music to recall and mention all those songs: compliments

  • @HarmoneaSinn
    @HarmoneaSinn 11 днів тому

    "25" by the Pretty Reckless is a fantastic rock song based very heavily on this progression, and I'm slightly stunned game music was discussed without mention of the Succession of Witches motif permeating a huge portion of the Final Fantasy 8 soundtrack!

  • @megaohmaudio5963
    @megaohmaudio5963 8 місяців тому +1

    Cool jam at the end. Always love that about your videos.
    On a whim I decided to play this in E major and use whole steps for the line cliché (B - C# - D# - C#).
    It is such a different vibe and made me laugh a little. Reminds me of a song but I can't seem to place it.

  • @jmsblckhll
    @jmsblckhll 8 місяців тому +1

    Beautiful outro David. Love it!

  • @Lawproto90
    @Lawproto90 6 місяців тому +1

    This progression appears in the old James Bond's song Goldfinger by Shirley Bassey, too. Like in Tom Jones's, the theme is touched here and there but in the finale is repeated many times to a climax.
    Thank you for this interesting video!

  • @Jinseng
    @Jinseng 8 місяців тому +2

    I personally use the i, bVI, IV7 in some variation. Just love the modulation from natural minor to Dorian mode, great for some simple but satisfying melodies

  • @jeff0125
    @jeff0125 7 місяців тому

    Yeah, out of all your chord progression videos I've watched, I think this is by far the most distinctive. Even with all the variations, and including songs that weren't theme songs from bond movies, there is no way to avoid thinking of James Bond when you hear it. With others, some songs have enough differences in melody, instruments, etc., that I wouldn't easily recognize that they use the same progression. These examples are all unmistakeable to me.

  • @spacechoc
    @spacechoc 8 місяців тому +2

    I believe Mis-shapes by Pulp also uses the chord progression briefly at the end of the chorus.

    • @Weally-yx7tw
      @Weally-yx7tw 8 місяців тому +1

      "We won't use guns, we won't use bombs, we'll use the one thing we've got more of and that's our minds."
      ....yeah!😛

  • @robinonion
    @robinonion 3 місяці тому +1

    Personally, this chord progression must be on my top 5 favorites

  • @Khayyam-vg9fw
    @Khayyam-vg9fw 8 місяців тому +2

    Serge Gainsbourg used the progression as early as 1958 in his "Poinconneur des Lilas". Arthur Brown's "Child Of My Kingdom" also uses the progression, as does Tom Robinson's "Glad To Be Gay". (This latter song also uses the familiar minor-chord line cliche with a chromatically falling bass.)

  • @JBert246
    @JBert246 8 місяців тому +2

    Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good” has this as a refrain between sections of the music. As far as I can tell without playing through the music to check. At the end of the second verse.
    But it certainly sounds similar. And the verse also has the descending minor bass line cliche.
    But there is a simple explanation. The song was originally written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse.
    Who also wrote the lyrics to “Goldfinger”.
    I am not sure of the exact sequence of the original song, Simone’s recording and the release of the film, but they were all around the same period.
    And Bricusse also wrote the lyrics to “You Only Live Twice”

  • @potatotum1178
    @potatotum1178 8 місяців тому

    I can't believe this! I love your channel but I didn't know you were also a first of October fan too, I love Rob and Andrew so much!

  • @leolightfellow
    @leolightfellow 8 місяців тому +1

    Great video, as always. :)
    It comes up a fair amount in videogames, like with these ones:
    Final Fantasy 6 - Decisive Battle
    Final Fantasy 8 - Fithos Lusec Wecos Vinosec
    Final Fantasy 9 - Vamo a Flamenco
    Fire Emblem series - Together We Ride
    I've used the chord progression multiple times in songs. I find it works best as an intro, in the verses, or in the bridge, because it feels like it's building to something that needs to come after it imho.
    Also, it's more versatile than one might think. The Final Fantasy 9 song Vamo a Flamenco shows what putting a happy song after the James Bond intro does. It surprisingly works, and it ultimately gives the song a very distinctive feel that's hard to pin down in words. :)

    • @geordiemack4143
      @geordiemack4143 8 місяців тому +1

      And Forested Temple too in FF7. Which uses the motif in Emin, then Amin, switches to a G/Dmaj version of it then back to Dmin before going back to Emin again. Very cool sequence. Nobuo is obviously a James Bond fan!

  • @johnb6723
    @johnb6723 8 місяців тому +3

    The instrumental "Behind The Rain" by Herb Alpert, from the album "Rise", from 1979, also uses that chord progression, albeit in the key of C sharp minor rather than E minor, and is lively. No wonder on first hearing it, I thought it would have made a very good Bond theme.

  • @MomLAU
    @MomLAU 8 місяців тому +4

    Love your playing at the end of the video!

  • @Comfortably-Dumb
    @Comfortably-Dumb 8 місяців тому +2

    Blondie’s ‘Last Contact in Red Square’ briefly uses this in the intro to evoke a ‘spy feel’. And in terms of video games, both the ‘Mini Boss’ theme and ‘Flying Battery Zone’ from Sonic & Knuckles use this motif as well!

  • @RickDeevey
    @RickDeevey 8 місяців тому +3

    A very similar progression is used in Gordon Lightfoot's classic "Black Day in July" (1968). I learned a lot from Lightfoot songbooks as a kid when I was learning guitar and those chords (which were labelled Em, EmaddC, and EmaddC#) instantly put me in mind of the Bond theme. I guess it's a great progression to add tension.

    • @OurgasmComrade
      @OurgasmComrade 8 місяців тому +1

      Gordon Lightfoot also has another song called "Don't Beat Me Down" that has a reverse "Bond" progression: Em(7) - A - C - Em, capo 3rd fret

    • @RickDeevey
      @RickDeevey 8 місяців тому

      @@OurgasmComrade Yes, another great song to sing and play.

  • @Jully5Jullyet
    @Jully5Jullyet 8 місяців тому

    Thank you! I've been colecting songs that use that progression for some time now, though I have no knowledge of music theory/chords. So this video will help me tons!

  • @prashanthsrinivas
    @prashanthsrinivas 6 місяців тому

    lovely noodling there at the end! ... what a timeless sound! :)

  • @Lyvey
    @Lyvey 8 місяців тому +1

    Hey do you think you could do a video on the chord functions and what their functions actually are? Like how they all relate to the tonic note, and how they're used to create emotion/tension and stuff. Love the videos keep it up!

  • @spartacusjonesmusic
    @spartacusjonesmusic 8 місяців тому +1

    Nice blues riffing at the end there! I dug it.

  • @pmberry
    @pmberry 8 місяців тому +4

    I don't know if the original Aquarela do Brasi from 1939 contains the chord progression (there are so many recordings and interpretations) but the reworking of it for the theme to Terry Gilliam's Brazil (which was named for the song) in 1985, by Kate Bush and Michael Kamen, certainly does. Life In Dark Water by Al Stewart also has this as a motif. I think we have to assume everything after 1962 that uses this progression does so deliberately 🕵

  • @jamescramer9988
    @jamescramer9988 8 місяців тому +1

    The Goldfinger song, released before Thunderball, clearly includes a nod to the James Bond Theme

  • @jacquesfromguat2077
    @jacquesfromguat2077 4 місяці тому

    This progression is in my favorite song, The Phoenix by Fall Out Boy. I love this chord progression. It goes very well with the melody of The Phoenix and harmonizes beautifully with the words "remix" and "phoenix". It has probably got to be my favorite of all time. I feel blessed to have this video and this progression.

  • @artrogers3985
    @artrogers3985 8 місяців тому

    Greatly informative as always. Thanks

  • @teoriamusicalesupereasy-jo3783
    @teoriamusicalesupereasy-jo3783 6 місяців тому

    Amazing lesson as always

  • @user-yv5zi7eo7o
    @user-yv5zi7eo7o 7 місяців тому

    Fascinating analysis!

  • @Lotschi
    @Lotschi 8 місяців тому +1

    I absolutely love the little impros you play au the end!

    • @DavidBennettPiano
      @DavidBennettPiano  8 місяців тому +1

      Thanks!

    • @Lotschi
      @Lotschi 8 місяців тому +1

      @@DavidBennettPiano you‘re welcome!
      I‘m impressed by your work.
      I currently try myself to improve in improvisation and songwriting.

  • @christopherfryda
    @christopherfryda 8 місяців тому

    Love this channel!!!

  • @TV4Fun2
    @TV4Fun2 8 місяців тому +1

    We now must petition the studio to make a James Bond movie called "Everybody's Been Burned."

  • @SteveBolander
    @SteveBolander 6 місяців тому +1

    FANTASTIC video, David. However, you mentioned that Thunderball was the first Bond movie to include the JB motif within its opening movie theme. Actually, both From Russia With Love and Goldfinger incorporated this progression within their theme songs as well. (And if you want to get really picky about this, the very first Bond movie (Doctor No) also included it . . . . since its opening movie theme WAS the James Bond Theme.)

  • @wyattstevens8574
    @wyattstevens8574 4 місяці тому

    Perry's Theme from Phineas and Ferb uses this progression and separately part of the motif (but the harmonic rhythm is cut in half for the theme), but Perry is sort of the Bond of the show, so it absolutely makes sense if that's what they did!
    And if you look for the motif in "Perry's Theme," I don't think it's there. Instead, they use a quick half-motif when Perry either breaks in (if he isn't disguised) or when he removes his disguise (" *PERRY THE PLATYPUS* ?"

  • @FloydTheWolf
    @FloydTheWolf 8 місяців тому +1

    "My Dark Disquiet" by Poets of the Fall has the Bond progression. On the same album it's featured on ("Ultraviolet"), you will find the song "False Kings" that is another very James Bondesque theme.

  • @inf1n1typlus1
    @inf1n1typlus1 8 місяців тому +1

    One chord progression that is very similar to this one is the I I+ I6 I+ or I I+ vi I+ chord progression! It combines the augmented climb progression’s major-ness with the same chromatic movement of the James Bond progression, making a chord progression that feels somewhat unresolved and bittersweet (at least to my ears). It’s a great chord progression to look into if you’d like! Some songs I know with this chord progression include:
    Impossible Year - Panic! At The Disco
    Greatest Love of All - Whitney Houston
    Notion - The Rare Occasions
    Underground - Ben Folds Five
    I Got Love - Mother Mother
    Stay Behind - Mother Mother
    Ryne’s Song - Ashe
    Off She Goes - Bad Suns
    Christmas Kids - Roar
    There Is A Sound - The Handsome Family

  • @vib80
    @vib80 8 місяців тому

    One of my favourite chord sequence tricks is where there's a melody inside it, but not at the bottom or top, but in the middle with sus chords. Things like A Asus2 A Asus4 A. Very 60s sound to me because you find it in things like Tapioca Tundra by the Monkees.

  • @LucastuFett
    @LucastuFett 8 місяців тому +3

    Another song that I think has a similar progression is "Say No to This" from Hamilton, it evokes the same feeling from the Bond theme, mysterious and unsettling

    • @kevinr.9733
      @kevinr.9733 4 місяці тому +1

      This progression is all over the place in Hamilton, most prominently "Stay Alive" and parts of "Right Hand Man".
      "Say No to This" is similar, but it keeps going up on the fourth chord.

  • @thatoneboyaiden
    @thatoneboyaiden 8 місяців тому

    one of my favorite songs that uses this progression is "Youth Culture Killed My Dog" by They Might Be Giants. The intro uses the bare essentials of it (the bass note and the melody) to deliberately create a James Bond type sound.

  • @CJMarketman
    @CJMarketman 8 місяців тому +4

    Bennett... David Bennett.

  • @AerophiIe
    @AerophiIe 7 місяців тому

    Omg I love your first of October shirt!

  • @NeverTalkToCops1
    @NeverTalkToCops1 8 місяців тому

    Practicing scales and cadences in Eb, you might find yourself playing this tune, and you might be startled by your discovery. It's so cool.

  • @pallen49
    @pallen49 7 місяців тому

    I only knew of the 'Secret Agent Man' that uses James Bond chord progression because it was so obvious, but I never knew ( perhaps didn't pay close attention to it ) that there's been others that did it as well. So cool to know..

  • @benjieming505
    @benjieming505 8 місяців тому +1

    I'm surprised you didn't mention "cry me a river".
    And Georgia on my mind" uses this progression too for a short while

  • @spindriftdrinker
    @spindriftdrinker 8 місяців тому +1

    Frank Sinatra's version of the song "Strangers in the Night" seems to have a Bond progression at the end of the first verse.
    "...We'd be sharing love before the night is through. Gm Gm + 5, Gm6, Gm + 5..."

  • @spyderlogan4992
    @spyderlogan4992 8 місяців тому

    Back in the day(1966), 'Secret Agent Man' was a required song to be played. My band, The Beau Street Runners, Franconia, Virginia, played it twice a night because everyone at the local community pool party could dance to it. Easy changes and you could play several choruses of lead guitar too.

  • @charlesc920
    @charlesc920 8 місяців тому +1

    I think Paul McCartney also worked the progression into Live And Let Die in the pre-chorus bit since obviously it's for a Bond film. On a side note, not sure why the Elvis arrangement of Surrender sounds like the Batman TV theme to me, which also alludes to the Bond progression in a way.

  • @rodrigofonseca6241
    @rodrigofonseca6241 8 місяців тому +2

    I bet no one knows this one: "Redondo Vocábulo" by the portuguese folk singer José Afonso. Beautiful melody! I recommend it highly.

  • @GrotrianSeiler
    @GrotrianSeiler 6 місяців тому

    Brilliant analysis