Burt Bacharach, iconic songwriter of "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," RIP

[Mangochin]

A House Is Not A Home Burt Bacharach cover

[anon52120741]

Dusty Springfield’s The Look of Love may be my favorite thing ever, musical or otherwise. It is infuriating that it is in a once favorite movie that I will never watch again

[anothernewbbaccount]

Courtesy of Jonny Trunk’s weekly email here are some more - the third one is … well, just listen.

Here he is with Andy Williams.

Here is Ursula and Sellers with Burt and Dusty

Here is something most people don’t know he wrote.

Here is Burt with Cilla.

This is Frank Ocean doing Close To You.

[tcg550]

I always like Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass This Guy’s In Love With You.

This is also a favorite.

Jackie DeShannon - What The World Needs Now Is Love (Bell Studios, 1965)

And many songs he wrote that many others made famous.

Tom Jones - What's new Pussycat Live Glastonbury 2009

John Mulaney Plays “What’s New Pussycat?” 21 Times on a Diner Jukebox

[anothernewbbaccount]

Tears of laughter at what happened after 7 plays.

[stinkinbadgers]

That song is probably as good a point as any to point out that his success was rather inseparable from Hal David who wrote the lyrics for most of these songs being posted.

[anon52120741]

@stinkinbadgers

inseparable from Hal David who wrote the lyrics

Absolutely! Here is another favorite cover, from the album that Marc did after doing a series of shows with Burt in…2015? (The album is 2017, not sure when the concert series was, but 2015 sounds right. God I wanted to go…)

Blue on Blue

[anon73430903]

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

This was the first song to be recorded by the Manics after Richey Edwards disappearance, effectively announcing that the band would be continuing.

[stinkinbadgers]

I wasn’t quite sure how to explain why I thought his songs were so successful, but an LA Times article by Diane Warren sums it up nicely and puts it succinctly:

This is a really important thing: Bacharach’s music was super-complex, but you could sing along to it. Take “I Say a Little Prayer.” You’re not thinking, Wow, this has a 5/4 bar. You’re thinking, This just feels right. It was just natural, meant to be. He took something sophisticated and made it so simple that anybody could sing along to it. That’s not easy. The chord changes, where he went melodically, it was never where you expected it to go but always where you wanted it go. And when it did, it was like, Oh, this couldn’t have gone anywhere else.

[anon61221983]

MirrorMask "Close to you" Clockwork-Doll Dressing Room Scene - Josefine Cronholm

[tcg550]

I knew Heartlight had Burt’s music but here are a couple Neil songs that I know but did not know Burt co wrote.

NEIL DIAMOND - HEARTLIGHT (LIVE-1986)

Neil Diamond - Turn Around (1984 HD Audio)

Front Page Story

[noahdjango]

Dionne Warwick Anyone Who Had A Heart 1964 Original Top 10 Hit

[tcg550]

Elvis did a little tribute the other night.

ELVIS COSTELLO live BABY IT'S YOU Burt Bacharach tribute 2/9/2023 Gramercy Theater NYC

[FGD135]

[Gyrofrog]

There’s a local radio program on Sunday afternoons, “American Songbook,” that I am guessing will mostly or completely consist of Burt’s songs when it airs tomorrow (2-4 pm, US Eastern time; streams online). If’n you’re interested…

Home

[hecep]

Walk on By is still my favorite Bacharach/David song. Years ago, my parents pressured me into hanging with them during their Las Vegas Xmas (!!!) vacation… for Pete’s sake. But later I couldn’t have been happier; we attended a show headlined by Dionne Warwick who sang all of her B/D tunes and more. Happiiinnessssss! Great songs sung by B/D’s favorite singer and “best interpreter”.

[noahdjango]

listening to Anyone Who Had a Heart was triggering a memory I couldn’t place until now. not sure there are any hip hop fans in a Bacharach thread but imo this is a good example of sampling, using certain elements and in not-necessarily obvious ways, but without being intentionally obscure, either. and the MCs, Mos Def and Talib Kweli, are excellent

Know That - Mos Def - Black On Both Sides

[Gyrofrog]

Ah! Now I hear it

[noahdjango]

there’s Warwick’s “know that I love you” vocal but also the two-note string section thing and I think all the piano notes are chopped out of AWHAH, too

[Gyrofrog]

Wow, this one did not age so well… I assume she chose it (at least in part) for the irony. (Anyway, until now I didn’t know there’s a video for this)

ETA: It’s still a Bacharach melody, & it’s Cécile’s voice.

Cécile McLorin Salvant - "Wives and Lovers" [Official Video]