Spectre…

Maybe the best Bond song never to be used.

Spectre was a song written and recorded by the English band Radiohead, intended for the 2015 film, Spectre. Ion Productions initially approached Radiohead about recording a song for the twenty-fourth installment in early 2015. Radiohead initially submitted their unreleased song “Man of War” to be the title track, which Director Sam Mendes loved, but Man of War was rejected because it wasn’t written for the movie and therefore wasn’t eligible for the academy awards. Radiolead lead singer Thom Yorke claims that Man of War was written in the 1990’s as a tribute to James Bond theme songs. Radiohead suspended work on their album, 2016’s “A Moon Shaped Pool” and recorded a brand-new song. The new song, “Spectre” was a very different, much darker song. The song itself speaks of isolation and dispossession, the feeling of being alienated from one’s own self, and mortality. In the end, Ion Productions decided not to use Spectre, instead opting for the much poppier Writing on the Wall, by Sam Smith. While officially, the song was rejected because it apparently came too late to make it into the movie, many believe it was rejected for being “too dark.” Radiohead released the song for free on SoundCloud on December 25th, 2015 and then as a B-Side for their single “Burn the Witch”.

Why this song is important to me…

I love this song and sincerely wish it had been used in the movie. The song is widely regarded as one of the best rejected Bond songs ever and I’d say it’s the very best. The song is brooding and slightly discordant in its melodies. There is a video on YouTube where somebody edited the opening credits for Spectre and put Radiohead’s song over it and… it’s so much better than Writing on the Wall. I love the song and hope you do as well!