Vic Flick, the renowned British session guitarist who created the distinctive riff for the James Bond theme song featured in Dr. No, has passed away at the age of 87.

His family announced his death on Facebook on Thursday, following a struggle with Alzheimer’s disease.

Flick also contributed to No. 1 hits for artists such as Peter and Gordon (“A World Without Love”) and Petula Clark (“Downtown”). He played on Tom Jones’ “It’s Not Unusual” and “Ringo’s Theme” from A Hard Day’s Night (1964), collaborating with prominent figures like Jimmy Page, George Martin, Herman’s Hermits, Cliff Richard, Eric Clapton, Dusty Springfield, and Engelbert Humperdinck.

“He was a musician’s musician,” wrote Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues in the introduction to Flick’s 2008 memoir, Vic Flick Guitarman: From James Bond to The Beatles and Beyond.

“He always stood up to play! Yes, I know it sounds obvious — but you couldn’t play ‘our’ music sitting down. The real guitar heroes always stood.”

Flick performed with John Barry in The John Barry Seven, and when Barry was engaged to re-arrange Monty Norman’s original theme for Dr. No (1962), Flick contributed a “heavy sound” with a Clifford Essex Paragon De Luxe guitar.

“It had an edge to it, sort of a dynamic sound,” Flick recalled in Jon Burlingame’s 2012 book, The Music of James Bond. “I overplayed it — leaned into those thick low strings with the very hard plectrum, played it slightly ahead of the beat, and it came out exciting, almost ‘attacking,’ which fit the James Bond image.”

Flick went on to perform in several other 007 films, including Shirley Bassey’s theme for Goldfinger (1964).

Victor Harold Flick was born on May 14, 1937, in Surrey, England. His father was a music teacher, and Flick initially started with the piano before switching to guitar to play in a band organized by his father. He later joined Bob Cort and his skiffle group, where he first met Barry during The John Barry Seven’s European tour with Paul Anka.

In a 2021 interview with Guitar Player magazine, Flick attributed the sound of his guitar on the Bond theme to the “plectrum I used and the guitar’s strings. I placed the DeArmond pickup near the bridge and put a crushed cigarette packet underneath it to get it closer to the strings. That helped achieve that round sound. Most crucial, sound-wise, was the Vox AC15 amplifier. I used it on tour. It wouldn’t let me down — until it fell eight feet into a music pit and disintegrated.”

“Also important was the way the guitar was recorded. It was captured by the mics for the orchestra, giving the guitar a mysterious, powerful sound. It was a sound we created, to a certain extent, and it had a bite that they loved.”

In 2013, he was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from The National Guitar Museum.

He is survived by his wife, Judith; his son, Kevin; and his grandchild, Tyler.

Person

Vic Flick, Peter and Gordon, Petula Clark, Tom Jones, Ringo Starr, Jimmy Page, George Martin, Herman’s Hermits, Cliff Richard, Eric Clapton, Dusty Springfield, Engelbert Humperdinck, Justin Hayward, John Barry, Shirley Bassey, Victor Harold Flick, Judith, Kevin, Tyler

Company Names

Facebook, The National Guitar Museum

Titles

Dr. No, A World Without Love, Downtown, It’s Not Unusual, Ringo’s Theme, A Hard Day’s Night, Goldfinger, The Music of James Bond, Guitar Player

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