Burt Bacharach, the composer of more than 50 top-40 hits and songwriting partner of and collaborator with Hal David, Dionne Warwick, Elvis Costello and others, has died at 94 of natural causes.
The Associated Press first reported the news.
“Farewell genius,” Simply Red tweeted.
Hailed by Dave Davies as “probably one of the most influential songwriters of our time,” Bacharach, whose motto was “never be ashamed to write a melody that people remember,” is said to have composed more than 1,000 songs including “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” “What the World Needs Now” and “What’s New, Pussycat?”
“He was a great inspiration,” Davies said.
Bacharach in 2020 cut Blue Umbrella with Nashville singer/songwriter Daniel Tashian, causing Sawyer Brown to marvel at the composer’s triumph of “creating timeless songs” into his 90s.
“Thank you, Burt Bacharach, for all those wonderful traveling companions,” Brown wrote on Facebook, recounting the songwriter’s work with Warwick, which included 20 top-40 hits.
Bacharach’s songs were also recorded by the Beatles, the Fifth Dimension, Manfred Mann, Dusty Springfield, Christopher Cross, Roberta Flack and others. He and Costello released Painted from Memory in 1998.
“I’ll always think of Burt Bacharach as the King of Melody,” Stephen Bishop said. “His songs are timeless.”
A post to mark the passing of composer Burt Bacharach who has died at 94. Here he performs two of his collaborations with Elvis Costello on David Letterman.
__________________________
God Give Me Strength
Songwriters: Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello
Now I have nothing, so God give me strength
'Cause I'm weak in her wake
And if I'm strong I might still break
And I don't have anything to share
That I won't throw away into the air
That song is sung out
This bell is rung out
She was the light that I'd bless
She took my last chance at happiness
So God give me strength
God give me strength
I can't hold onto her, God give me strength
When the phone doesn't ring
And I'm lost in imagining
Everything that kind of love is worth
As I tumble back down to the earth
That song is sung out
This bell is rung out
She was the light that I'd bless
She took my last chance at happiness
So God give me strength
God if she'd grant me her indulgence and decline
I might as well wipe her from my memory
Fracture the spell, as she becomes my enemy
Maybe I was washed out like a lip-print on his shirt
See, I'm only human
I want him to hurt
I want him
I want him to hurt
Since I lost the power to pretend
That there could ever be a happy ending
That song is sung out
This bell is rung out
She was the light that I'd bless
She took my last chance at happiness
So God give me strength
God give me strength
Wipe her from my memory
I might as well
God give me strength
I might as well
___________________________
I Still Have That Other Girl
Songwriters: Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello
I have to say that we should finish it now
Before we weaken 'cause we already know this is wrong
I could give in, sometimes I think that I will
Despite the temptation, I try to be very strong
In my reluctance seems a surprise
It's not 'cause I don't want you
But I just
Know I must hesitate
Because I still have that other girl in my head
I still have that other girl in my head
There may be ugly rumors that I have been lying
There may be angry tears, but they're never worth the crying
That is why
Sometimes I hesitate
Because I still have that other girl in my head
I still have that other girl in my head
I still have that other girl in my head
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Wednesday, April 12, 2023 7pm ET: Feature Live LP: Elvis Costello & Burt Bacharach - The Songs of Bacharach & Costello (2023)
The Songs of Bacharach & Costello also includes the entirety (on CD) of Taken From Life, including unreleased songs from the proposed Painted From Memory musical score and three newly recorded compositions. Released March 3, 2023
Formats available include a pricey 4CD+2LP super deluxe edition (now widely available) which offers a 2LP vinyl set – of which three sides are the remastered Painted…
Music Reviews: Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach, plus Memphis Slim, New Earth Farmers, and an Anthology of Seminal Folk
Music Reviews: Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach, plus Memphis Slim, New Earth Farmers, and an Anthology of Seminal Folk @elviscostello @BurtBacharach #MemphisSlim @NewEarthFarmers #byjeffburger #americanahighways #americanamusic #newmusic2023
The great songwriter Burt Bacharach, who teamed up most famously with lyricist Hal David, also worked for nearly three decades with Elvis Costello. That pairing may at first seem as unlikely as the one between Robert Plant and Alison Krause or the Christmas medley recorded by Bing Crosby and David Bowie. Take a close look at Bacharach and Costello’s bios and listen to their work, however, and…
Life´s too short for weird music – Tagesempfehlung 13.02.2023
Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello / In the darkest place
Burt Bacharch hat einige der großartigsten Popnummern der letzten 60 Jahre Popmusik zu verantworten. Burt Bacharach ist nun im Alter von 94 Jahren verstorben. In Erinnerung an den Komponisten Burt Bacharach möchte ich heute einen Song aus dem Jahr 1999 wählen. Aus der Zusammenarbeit mit Elvis Costello ist in 1999 das ,herausragende Album Painted from memory entstanden, welches neben dem bekannten Toledo insbesondere das introvertierte melancholische In the darkest place enthält. Dunkle Plätze zum Leuchten zu bringen, war eine Kunst, die Burt Bacharach zeit seines Lebens wie kaum ein zweiter beherrschte.