You Only Live Twice was the soundtrack to the Bond film of the same name and was composed by Bond veteran, John Barry. At the time, this was his fourth credited Bond film. The theme song, “You Only Live Twice”, was sung by Nancy Sinatra. In 1998, Robbie Williams sampled the title song “You Only Live Twice” for the chart-topper “Millennium”.

Interestingly, an alternative example of a possible theme song (also called “You Only Live Twice” and sung by Lorraine Chandler) was discovered in the vaults of RCA records in the ’90s. Probably intended as a demo for consideration by the film’s producers, it became a very popular track with followers of the Northern soul scene (Chandler was well known for her high-quality soul output on RCA) and can be found on several RCA soul compilations.

Track listing

1. “You Only Live Twice” (Title Song) — Nancy Sinatra
2. “Capsule In Space”
3. “Fight At Kobe Dock”-Helga
4. “Tanaka’s World”
5. “A Drop In The Ocean”
6. “The Death Of Aki”
7. “Mountains And Sunsets”
8. “The Wedding”
9. “James Bond” – Astronaut?”
10. “Countdown For Blofeld”
11. “Bond Averts World War Three”
12. “You Only Live Twice” (End Title) — Nancy Sinatra

These seven tracks were later added, as a bonus, to the complete version of the original soundtrack.

1. “James Bond In Japan”
2. “Aki, Tiger And Osato”
3. “Little Nellie”
4. “Soviet Capsule”
5. “Spectre And Village”
6. “James Bond – Ninja”
7. “Twice is the Only Way to Live”

“Twice is the Only Way to Live” was the final track on the original UK version of the soundtrack. It was also included on the United Artists’ soundtrack compilation Ten Golden Years (1968). On certain albums of the film’s soundtrack, the alternative 007 theme is included. It is the score played when Little Nellie is being constructed and continues to play until three or four SPECTRE helicopters encounter Bond at which point the song becomes the main 007 theme. It is also heard in the parade chase scene in Thunderball and the Amazon River chase in Moonraker.

See also:

• Bond films: Soundtrack
• You Only Live Twice: Film