Recommended music:
Today, from the Bond on Vinyl archives, we’ve got one more day of listening to music featured in Dr. No!
Founded in 1918 as a producer of amateur radio equipment, Chicago Radio Labs incorporated as Zenith Radio Company in the 1920s. The rebranding to “Zenith” came from a contraction of the creator’s ham radio call sign, ‘9ZN’. This moniker was used until the 1980s when the company expanded into computers and many kinds of electronic devices, becoming “Zenith Electronics Corporation,” which lasted until the late 90s when the company became a subsidiary of LG Electronics. Decades before Zenith invented subscription television, the modern TV remote control, or developed the first HDTV in North America, they presented this 10 LP set for the company’s 50th anniversary, meant to be played on their sound equipment.
This album features a compilation of tracks from both Broadway productions and motion pictures. While it’s not too strange to hear these two mediums on the same playlist, as many major plays and musicals are later adapted for the big screen (and now occasionally the other way around), this is the first time I’ve seen an album deliberately make this combination.
With multiple tracks featuring the vocals of Matt Munro and Peggy Lee, as well as “Tonight” from West Side Story, the piece that got my attention was, of course, The James Bond Theme, composed by Jimmie Haskell. Haskell’s varied career spanned over six decades, as he is known for things like composing the theme for ‘The Hollywood Squares’, and arranging for a multitude of artists, including Elvis Presley, Neil Diamond, Billy Joel, Sheryl Crow, and even Weird Al. Haskell’s band isn’t quite as bombastic in their version of this piece from Dr. No, but it is memorable, nonetheless.
66. Zenith Presents The Best Of The Great Hits From Stage And Screen
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