AMANDA-- "GOLDFINGER"

Hey all! I hope you're having a good week so far. I don't know how many of you tuned in to the Oscars on Sunday but it was chalked full of fantastic musical performances. In tribute to the James Bond franchise, which celebrates its fiftieth anniversary this year, Welsh singer Shirley Bassey performed the title track off of Goldfinger. The seventy-six year old looked and sounded stunning. As a Bond fan, I consider this one of the best theme songs from the films, rivaled only perhaps by Adele's "Skyfall." To date, it is the only one of Bassey's singles to break into the American top forty and get inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. It has also left an indelible mark on pop culture, influencing later films as well as modern music. Interestingly enough, one of Goldfinger's producers wasn't a fan of the song and almost had it taken out. Thankfully, it wasn't. The entire soundtrack makes heavy use of brass instruments and this, combined with Bassey's powerful, yet luxurious voice make "Goldfinger" a classic. While known primarily for recording this song (in addition to the themes from Diamonds Are Forever and Moonraker) in the U.S., she has had a successful pop career the world over for decades now. Like "Goldfinger," Bassey is simply timeless. Enjoy!