Skyfall is where we start (Adele) (single #447)

Adele Skyfall/ Skyfall (Instrumental) (XL, XLS593CD, 2012)

And so - to the murkier world of the CD single where we'll find all sorts of skulduggery and inducements along our path. 

A couple of initial observations: CD singles are now history; unlike the 45, I doubt anyone will ever get nostalgic about the golden age of the CD single; they are often annoying things and things with a deep cynical agenda; I can't help myself when it comes to my favourite bands - I'm a completist; in the right hands they maintain the value for money rarity value of the best 45's with bonus tracks not available elsewhere.

And so - we start with Adele's James Bond theme song to the movie Skyfall. The more things change...


It could be 1964 (not 2012) and Shirley Bassey's Goldfinger I'm writing about but no, it's not, and BTW typing 2012 after the catalogue number just felt weird.

It takes her a while to wind up but Adele eventually does the big and brassy James Bond thing while also delivering an unmistakeably Adelerised song. Which is a good thing!

Hidden gem: Does anyone really want an Adele song without her singing? Isn't that what Adele does? Brilliantly?

I've come to work, I've come to play (Madonna) #243 - 244

Madonna  True Blue/ Ain't No Big Deal (Sire, 7-28591, 1984)

Madonna  Die Another Day (four remixes) (Warner Brothers double 12", 2002)

I liked Madonna from the off, which in my case was watching here strut her stuff on Live Aid in 1985. 

There was something fresh about her approach in the eighties. For one thing, she was smart. Really smart.

Take the video for this bit of pop confection from 1984. It reaches into and uses dream archetypes (the stylised set is a genius move), forces us to focus on Madonna in platinum blond mode throughout, and the twice shy wink at the end bookends the wink and 'hey - listen' instruction from the start, all of which includes us as part of the fun/plan.



The James Bond theme song from Die Another Day gets the makeover treatment via a double 12 inch set. The A side remixes are pretty cool. Madonna by the early 2000's knew her market inside out and was full on into her latest dance phase. The parent album American Life is one of my favourite Madonna albums btw.

Does the world really need four remixes of this song though? I know I don't.

Why do I even own this? I hear you ask. Well my friend Roger Marbeck gave it to me along with a pile of other vinyl when he sold off his Marbeck's Music store. The vinyl wasn't selling at that point in the early 2000's so he generously gave it to me.




Hidden gems: If you blur your hearing a bit it's no great leap to hear the Michael Jacksonisms of Ain't No Big Deal. The song is reasonably rare in her discography as it only appeared as a B side. It has been compiled since but only on rarity compilations.

The various remixes of Die Another Day continue on the B sides but they don't do much for me really. They tend to over process Madonna's voice, one of her strengths surely, and concentrate on the dance beats.