The Licence To Kill Theme

Although original “James Bond Theme” guitar player Vic Flick and Eric Clapton were initially approached to compose a theme song based on a new version of the 007 film series theme song made famous in 1962’s Dr. No, the idea fell apart and Gladys Knight was ultimately selected to sing something different written by Narada Michael Walden, Walter Afanasieff, and Jeffrey Cohen.

 

“Licence to Kill” made its way into the Top 10 in the United Kingdom and the song is based on the horn line from “Goldfinger,” which resulted in royalties for the original writers John Barry, Leslie Bricusse, and Anthony Newley.  The theme song is the longest in the series, coming in at five minutes and 12 seconds.  It is also noteworthy that the music video for “Licence to Kill” was directed by Daniel Kleinman, who would go on to design the title sequences of six of the following seven Bond films.

Narada Michael Walden, born simply Michael Walden on April 23, 1952, is an American producer, drummer, singer, and songwriter whose career spans three decades.  Walden was given the name Narada by guru Sri Chinmoy in the early 1970s.

 

Walden has owned and operated Tarpan Studios, a recording studio in San Rafael, California, since the mid-1980s.  His accolades include multiple gold, platinum, and multi-platinum awards and Grammys for Producer of the Year, Album of the Year, and R&B Song of the Year.  He was also named one of the “Top Ten Producers with the Most Number One Hits” by Billboard.  His number one hits over the years have included collaborations with Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Sister Sledge, and The Pointer Sisters, with his musical genres ranging from rock and pop to jazz and jazz fusion.

 

Along with Licence to Kill, his other soundtrack work includes Beverly Hills Cop II, The Bodyguard, for which he won his Record of the Year Grammy, 9½ Weeks, Free Willy, Mannequin, and Bright Lights, Big City.

Walter Afanasieff was born Vladimir Nikitich Afanasieff on February 10, 1958, and is best known for his long-time association with Mariah Carey.  Afanasieff started as a working jazz musician in 1980 and later formed The Warriors with Walden and guitarist Joaquin Lievano.  This led to Walden and Afanasieff’s future workings together, including Whitney Houston’s self-titled debut album in 1985, which is his best-selling album to date.

 

Afanasieff’s relationship with Mariah Carey led to her most successful song, “Hero,” which he co-produced, co-wrote, and on which he played all of the music tracks.  “Hero” reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and remained there for four weeks.  Afanasieff and Carey, along with Boyz II Men, hold the record for the longest run at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for 16 weeks total with “One Sweet Day.”

 

Along with Carey and Whitney Houston, Afanasieff’s other collaborations include Richard Marx, Lionel Richie, Luther Vandross, Destiny’s Child, Kenny G, Michael Bolton, Toni Braxton, Andrea Bocelli, Barbra Streisand, Christina Aguilera, Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony, Babyface, and Josh Groban.

 

Afanasieff won the 1999 Grammy Award for producing “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion for the film Titanic.  Other successful soundtracks include Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Hunback of Notre Dame.

 

Unfortunately it is difficult to find any biographical information for Jeffrey Cohen.  He is a soul and funk songwriter who worked extensively with Walden.  His discography credits include working with Aretha Franklin, Lionel Richie, Santana, The Pointer Sisters, Sister Sledge, Patti LaBelle, and the San Francisco 49ers football team.

 

Gladys Knight, born May 28, 1944, is known as the Empress of Soul.  She is a four-time Grammy award winner and reached the pinnacle of her success in the 1960s and 70s with her group Gladys Knights & the Pips.

 

After winning Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour TV show contest at the age of 7, Knight and her family formed the Pips a year later, going on tour by the end of the 1950s.  Gladys Knight & the Pips joined Motown Records in 1966 and recorded several hit singles, including Marvin Gaye’s “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and the Grammy Award-winning “Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye).”

 

The group toured as the opening act for Diana Ross and The Supremes, to which, according to Knight in her memoirs, Ross kicked her off the tour because the audience was more receptive to Knight’s soulful performance and overshadowed Ross.

 

Gladys Knight & the Pips later moved record labels, to Buddah Records, and scored another Grammy Award with “Midnight Train to Georgia.”  Following by legal issues to record away from the band, Knight eventually reunited with the group and in 1980 signed with Columbia Records.  The Pips retired following a 1988 tour, to which Knight embarked on a solo career.

 

Knight has sung alongside Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Patti LaBelle, Ray Charles, and Johnny Mathis.  Her television acting credits include Benson, The Jeffersons, A Different World, Living Single, The Jamie Foxx Show, Las Vegas, and 30 Rock.

 

Gladys Knight & the Pips was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996.  Knight has received four Grammy Awards, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Society of Singers ELLA Award.  She was also included on Rolling Stone’s list of the Greatest Singers of All Time.

 

Knight has been married four times and has three children, 16 grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.