For me the attraction of Barry's Bond scores is the imagery they evoke when listening rather than the "stand-alone" quality of the music. This, and trading cards, were about the only ways to "bring a film home" in those pre-video days. As Ryan mentions, film music in general and John Barry's in particular, was meant only to underscore and maybe counterpoint the visuals. And somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't Barry's Bond albums among the first 'complete' movie soundtracks released, I mean outside of musicals like MARY POPPINS or SOUND OF MUSIC and such. If not the first then certainly among the most famous, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that they were the catalyst for other, less popular films to have their mediocre soundtracks immortalized on vinyl as well. Films, including BONDs, tended to have a dominant theme which could be sold and played on the radio, like a pop song, but often it had a tacked on feel, the ultimate evolution of which is the total 'pop music' scores we have today. At least John Barry integrated his themes with the narrative. They were almost inseparable.

An analogy might be to older comic books that told a story versus newer ones that are all splash pages and pin-ups. Sure the single panels might look better on the wall as original art, but which one would you rather read?