Burt Bacharach, the legendary songwriter who wrote scores of pop hits, has died. He was 94.
Bacharach died Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles of natural causes, his publicist, Tina Brausam, said Thursday.
He was one of the most prominent songwriters of the 1960s and 1970s and wrote several top 10 hits, including Dionne Warwick’s «I Say a Little Prayer» and «Do You Know the Way to San Jose.»
He succeeded in many forms of art. He was the winner of eight Grammy Awards, an award-winning Broadway composer for «Promises, Promises» and a three-time Oscar winner. He received two Academy Awards in 1970, for the score to «Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid» and for the song «Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head.»
In 1982, he and his then-wife, lyricist Carole Bayer Sager, won Oscars for «Best That You Can Do,» the theme to «Arthur.» His other movie scores included «Alfie», «What’s New, Pussycat?» and the 1967 James Bond parody «Casino Royale.»
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, on May 12, 1928, Bacharach and his family moved to Queens, New York, in 1932. As a teenager, he developed a love of jazz music and organized a 10-piece band with his peers. high school. .
Bacharach wrote his first song, «The Night Plane to Heaven,» while attending McGill University in Montreal, and went on to study theory and composition at the Mannes School of Music in New York City, the Berkshire Music Center, and the New School. for Social Research. , according bacharachonline.com.
He spent two years serving in the Army as a pianist on Governor’s Island and at Fort Dix.
After being discharged, he became the pianist accompanist for Vic Damone, the Ames Brothers, Imogene Coca and other acts before collaborating with lyricist Hal David, with whom he went on to score some of his biggest hits.
Among the songs the duo co-wrote were Gene Pitney’s «The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance» and «Only Love Can Break a Heart» and Jerry Butler’s «Make It Easy On Yourself.» His songs were also recorded by singers like Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, Barbara Streisand, and Aretha Franklin.
In 2012, President Barack Obama presented Bacharach and David, who died later that year, with the Gershwin Prize from the Library of Congress honoring their contributions to pop music over the decades.
Before the covid pandemic, Bacharach toured regularly with his band and, more recently, had worked on projects with Daniel Tashian and Steven Sater, both of which earned Grammy nominations, Brausam said.
When he wasn’t writing or acting, he enjoyed watching horse races at the racetracks in Southern California.
Bacharach is survived by his wife Jane and their children, Oliver and Raleigh, as well as his son Christopher from his previous marriage to Bayer Sager. He was preceded in death by his eldest daughter, Nikki, who died in 2007.