For Your Eyes Only

"For Your Eyes Only" is the theme to the 12th James Bond movie of the same name, written by Bill Conti and Mick Leeson, and performed by Scottish singer Sheena Easton. The song reached number four on the US Billboard Hot 100, and number eight on the UK Singles Chart. It was nominated for Best Original Song at the Academy Awards in 1982. Background Conti – who was also responsible for the film's score – had originally written the song thinking about Donna Summer or Dusty Springfield, singers he thought "fit the Bond style". Film studio United Artists suggested Sheena Easton, an up-and-coming singer who had recently scored a No.1 hit in America with "Morning Train". Conti heard Easton's debut album Take My Time and felt unimpressed but decided to work with her in the song after meeting Easton in person. Leeson's lyrics originally used "for your eyes only" only as the final line, as the lyricist felt he could only use the phrase as a conclusion. After credit sequence artist Maurice Binder complained about having to synchronize the unveiling of the title with it being said in the theme song, Conti decided to work with Leeson to write lyrics that opened with "for your eyes only". The US band Blondie had previously been asked to write the title song but it was rejected in favour of Conti's by the Bond producers. (Blondie's recording of a completely different song, also called "For Your Eyes Only", appeared on their 1982 album The Hunter).