Every Bond Movie Theme Song Ranked Worst To Best
23. License To Kill By Gladys Knight
This song is the clear winner of being the most forgettable of the lead 007 tunes. What makes the immemorable nature of the song all the more disappointing is that the vocals come from no other than Gladys Knight, the 'Empress of Soul'.
Knight does what she can with this turkey, hitting all the notes effortlessly as the tired tune plays in the background. The lyrics are lame- "I've got a licence to kill, and you know I'm going straight for your heart"- and the tune just ambles along at a pace that is pedestrian at best.
The Bond films were really struggling at this time, and one can't help but feel listening to this track that the title song was not the highest of priorities. Hindsight suggests that a rejuvenation of the Bond theme in a manner similar to what Moby did for the Tomorrow Never Dies soundtrack may have been a better choice. Unfortunately Gladys Knight has this blemish against her name instead.