I always thought my Uncle Jack was a spy. He worked for the State Department but he never said what exactly he did. Nobody in the family had a phone number or address for him, everybody had to write to him in care of the embassy of the country where he was posted. He never talked about his job or his personal life.

Uncle Jack died last December and last weekend I got a suitcase full of his papers from his diplomatic career. The most notable thing was a class picture from a 1962 class in counterterrorism officer training at the U.S. Army Special Warfare School at Fort Bragg. There are 58 guys in the photo, he’s the only one in a suit. His classmates include a number of the Shah’s junior military officers from Iran. Yep, I’m pretty sure now that he was a spy.

And being the kind of guy I am that knowledge has inspired me to post a collection of spy-related music.

The Toasters “Secret Agent Man” (Johnny Rivers)
A lot of the spy shows on TV in the 50s and 60s used some pretty hip music, this song being a prime example. Here we have a swinging ska version that I think I like even better than the original.

Art Of Noise Feat. Duane Eddy “Peter Gunn Theme” (Henry Mancini)
Duane Eddy has one of the most distinctive guitar sounds ever. He dominates the beginning of this song before giving way to the sort of percussion and synthesizers that we’ve come to expect from Art Of Noise.

Lizzy Mercier Descloux “Mission Impossible” (Lalo Schifrin)
There aren’t many popular songs written in 5/4 time. Try to name one besides “Mission Impossible.” Go ahead, I dare you. This version features some tasty hand drumming and finger cymbals.

The Skatalites “James Bond Theme” (John Barry)
What is it with ska bands and spy songs? This song goes on a little long, as the main theme takes a back seat to some really long solos. But the horns are great and it’s a fun groove so I’ll cut them some slack

Ten Masked Men “Diamonds Are Forever” (Shirley Bassey)
I’ve always wondered why there has never been an official death metal James Bond theme song. This song proves that it would work perfectly with a Bond movie.