When I heard Amy Winehouse was backing out of recording the theme for Quantum of Solace, I was disappointed. I don't care about her personal problems, her questionable judgment, her affinity for crack, or her penchant for abusive relationships. She's got a great voice and she made soul music popular (and relevant) again. She would've been a great choice for the new Bond theme, a chance to salvage it from the travesty that was Madonna's "Die Another Day."

My disappointment didn't last long. I discovered Jack White and Alicia Keys would be recording the song instead.

White and Keys are two of the most talented and soulful musicians in modern popular music. Now that I've realized this collaboration was possible, I only wonder why I hadn't been hoping for a Jack and Alicia collaboration for years.
Even better: the two deliver on their promise.

Jack not only performs the song, titled "Another Way to Die." He also wrote it. As a result, it has the hallmarks of a Jack White song. It opens with dirty, overdriven guitar, and the lyrics are lilting, a bit like "The Denial Twist." But this is no White Stripes tune. It also features Keys' piano and a Bond-appropriate horn section. Jack's guitar and Alicia's voice duel in a call-and-response solo section around the three-minute mark.
The end product is a song that sounds like a traditional 007 theme and something completely new at the same time. The song rises in a crescendo as it progresses, beginning with fairly reserved traded verses by Keys and White and ending with Keys belting with abandon, and that's perfect for a song that will play during the opening credits. The horns and strings are key in giving the song that Bond element, but the melody and lyrics are also spot on.

There have been complaints with the song, most notably the claim that it doesn't sound enough like a Bond theme to be a Bond theme. I disagree. I think it fits perfectly into the Bond tradition, and it certainly sounds more appropriate than "Die Another Day."

Decide for yourself:

- Andrew