Bond is music to fans' ears

James Bond is a character who has been played by six different actors in 23 films. That's heavy.

What's even heavier is the fact that Adele's theme song for the new "Skyfall" movie has four times as many YouTube views as the movie's official trailer.

Music supervisors go out of their way to find cool songs to complement what viewers see on the screen. Personally, I get a ton of exposure from having my music featured in TV shows and movies, and it rocks. It rocks very much.

When it comes to movies and TV, what you hear is equally as important as what you see on the screen. Maybe I feel that way because I'm a biased little music snob, but the fact that Adele's latest song, "Skyfall," has generated so much buzz for the film would make it hard for anyone to disagree with me.

Sometimes a song that's connected to a show becomes such a big hit that it actually makes people want to see it. Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" did that for "Dangerous Minds." And Eminem's ''Lose Yourself" was such a huge hit that it practically served as the promotional campaign for his movie "8 Mile."

The songs you hear during a TV program or a movie not only set the tone for what you see and how the show's creator wants you to feel, but they also help the show overcome your ADD and remain relevant to you long after you have seen it.

I mean ... let's be honest. Can you really hear Paula Cole's "I Don't Want to Wait" without thinking of "Dawson's Creek"? Can you hear Celine Dion's ''My Heart Will Go On" without thinking of "Titanic"? And would "Office Space" have become a classic without the scene that featured the Geto Boys song "Damn it Feels Good to be a Gangsta"?

Lots of people gripe and moan and Twitter rant about how terrible music is these days, but because of the convergence of the music, TV and film industries, there actually are more outlets than ever to find great tunes.

Networks such as MTV and VH1 might not play music videos all day and night anymore, but you still can discover awesome music on TV because networks make a point of featuring it in their programs. And because many moviemakers love to use new, lesser-known music in their films, song selection is an important part of the creative process. A song can turn a sad moment into a tear-jerker, a silly moment into a hilarious one, or a sexy moment into one that makes the viewer downright horny.

From Paul McCartney's hardcore "Live and Let Die" and Tina Turner's sexy "Goldeneye" all the way down to Madonna's banging "Die Another Day" and Adele's sultry "Skyfall," the James Bond franchise has brought us some pretty awesome music. It makes total sense that a franchise this successful has always used the power of music to its advantage.

The way I see it, if I enjoy the new 007 movie half as much as I enjoyed Adele's theme song for it, then yeah ... I will totally feel like I got my money's worth.

RedEye special contributor Nikki Lynette, a Chicago native, is an indie recording artist whose music appears on MTV, VH1, Showtime and more.

�

Want more? Discuss this article and others on RedEye's Facebook page.�

Source: http://www.redeyechicago.com/news/ct-red-1109-adele-skyfall-20121108,0,1400253.story?track=rss

best bars with a beer garden yelp best sports bar players pub