Burt Bacharach
(; born May 12, 1928) is an American pianist and composer. He is best known for his many pop hits from the early 1960s through the 1980s, with lyrics written by Hal David, many of which were produced for and recorded by Dionne Warwick.
As of 2006, Bacharach had written a total of 70 Top 40 hits in the US, and 52 Top 40 hits in the UK. [1] According to britishhitsongwriters.com he is the nineteenth most successful songwriter in U.K. chart history based on weeks that his compositions have spent on the chart. [2]
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BURT BACHARACH TICKETS
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Biography
Early life
Burt Bacharach was born in
Kansas City, Missouri, the son of Irma (
née Freeman) and Bert Bacharach, a syndicated newspaper columnist.
[3] He is of
German Jewish descent.
[4] Bacharach studied music at
McGill University, the
Mannes School of Music, and the
Music Academy of the West in
Montecito, California. His composition teachers included
Darius Milhaud,
Bohuslav Martinu, and
Henry Cowell. After leaving the army Bacharach worked as a pianist, sometimes playing solo and sometimes accompanying singers such as
Vic Damone,
Polly Bergen,
Steve Lawrence, the
Ames Brothers and
Paula Stewart (who became his first wife). From 1958 to 1961 he was the pianist, arranger and bandleader for
Marlene Dietrich, with whom he toured internationally.
Early songwriting work
In 1957, Bacharach and
lyricist Hal David were introduced at the famous
Brill Building in
New York City, and began their writing partnership. Almost a year later, they received a significant career break when their song "The Story of My Life" was recorded by
Marty Robbins for
Columbia Records, becoming a #1 hit on the U.S. Country charts in late 1957. Soon afterwards, "Magic Moments" was recorded by
Perry Como for
RCA Records, and became a #4 U.S. hit in February of that year. These two songs hit #1 in the UK back-to-back ("The Story of My Life" in a version by
Michael Holliday), giving Burt and lyricist Hal David the honor of being the first songwriters in UK history to have written consecutive #1 hits. Other hits quickly followed. "Heavenly" was recorded by
Johnny Mathis and became a gold record in the UK. Later the same year another Bacharach song, "Faithfully", also achieved gold record status with Mathis in the UK. In 1959, their song "Make Room for the Joy" was featured in Columbia's film musical "Jukebox Rhythm," sung by
Jack Jones.
In the early 1960s, Bacharach wrote well over a hundred songs with David, including a wealth of popular hits throughout the 1960s and 1970s, many of which still enjoy popularity today. Bacharach and David were associated throughout the sixties with
Dionne Warwick, a
conservatory-trained vocalist whom the duo met in 1961. She began working for the duo when they needed a good singer to "demo" their songs properly for other artists. Bacharach and David noticed that Warwick's demos often surpassed the quality of the performances others were recording. They started writing a portion of their work specifically with Warwick in mind, which led to one of the most successful teams in
popular music history.
[5] Over a twenty year period, beginning in the early 1960s, Warwick managed to chart 38 singles co-written or produced by Bacharach, including twenty-two Top-40 hits on the American
Billboard Hot 100 charts. During the early '60s, Bacharach also collaborated with
Bob Hilliard on a number of songs such as "Mexican Divorce" for
The Drifters, "
Any Day Now" for
Chuck Jackson, and "Dreamin' All the Time" and "Pick Up the Pieces" for
Jack Jones.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Bacharach's songs were made famous by a number of popular singers in addition to Warwick, including
Dusty Springfield ("
The Look of Love" from
Casino Royale), ("Wishin' and Hopin"),
Cilla Black (a cover of
Dionne Warwick's "
Anyone Who Had A Heart"), ("
Alfie"),
The Shirelles,
The Beatles ("Baby, It's You"),
The Carpenters ("
(They Long to Be) Close to You"),
Aretha Franklin,
Isaac Hayes ("Walk On By" on the
Hot Buttered Soul
album),
B.J. Thomas ("Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head"),
Tom Jones ("What's New, Pussycat"),
The Stranglers,
The Drifters,
Jack Jones ("Wives and Lovers"),
Jackie DeShannon ("What the World Needs Now is Love"),
Gene Pitney,
Herb Alpert,
Jerry Butler and
Luther Vandross in the 1980s and 1990s.
In addition to mainstream pop, many Bacharach songs were adapted by
jazz artists of the time, such as
Stan Getz,
Cal Tjader and
Wes Montgomery. The Bacharach/David composition, "My Little Red Book", originally recorded by
Manfred Mann for the film
What's New, Pussycat?
, and promptly
covered by
Love in 1966, has become a rock music standard; however, according to
Robin Platts' book "Burt Bacharach and Hal David", the composer did not like this version.
[6] Bacharach composed and arranged the soundtrack of the 1967 film
Casino Royale
which was "
The Look of Love", performed by
Dusty Springfield. Bacharach and David also collaborated with
Broadway producer
David Merrick on the 1968 musical production of
Promises, Promises
, which yielded several major hit songs (including the title tune). The year 1969 featured, perhaps, the most successful Bacharach-David collaboration ever, with the song "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head", which was written for and prominently featured in the acclaimed film
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
.
Style
Bacharach's music is characterized by unusual chord progressions, striking syncopated rhythmic patterns, irregular phrasing, frequent modulation, and odd and changing meters. It tends toward a greater climactic effect than most popular music, especially greater than most popular music of the period with which he is most associated. Bacharach is more than just a songwriter, having himself arranged, conducted, and co-produced much of his recorded output. An example of his use of distinctive use of changing meter is found in "
Promises, Promises" (from his score for the musical of the same name). His style is sometimes also associated with particular instrumental combinations he is assumed to favor or to have favored, including the prominent use of the
flugelhorn in such works as "Walk on By", "Nikki", and "Toledo".
1970s and 1980s
In 1970 Johnny Mathis issued a double-LP album set, "Sings the Music of Bacharach & Kaempfert," for Columbia. It consisted of a total 21 tracks in a heavyweight gatefold picture sleeve. The
Bert Kaempfert tracks were done in the arrangement style of the great German composer and orchestra leader, and the Bacharach tracks were done in the Americans' unique upbeat style.
In 1973, Bacharach and David were commissioned to score the
Ross Hunter-produced
revival of the classic 1937 film,
Lost Horizon
for
Columbia Pictures. The result was a critical and commercial disaster, and resulted in a flurry of
lawsuits between the composer and the lyricist, as well as from Warwick, who reportedly felt abandoned when Bacharach and David refused to work together. Bacharach tried several solo projects (including the 1977 album
Futures
), but the projects failed to yield any memorable hits.
By the early 1980s, Bacharach's marriage to
Angie Dickinson had ended, but a new partnership with lyricist
Carole Bayer Sager proved rewarding, both commercially and personally. The two married, and collaborated on several major hits during the decade, including "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (
Christopher Cross), "Heartlight" (
Neil Diamond), "Making Love" (
Roberta Flack), "On My Own" (
Michael McDonald with
Patti Labelle), and perhaps most memorably, "That's What Friends Are For" in 1985, actually the second single which reunited Bacharach and singer Warwick. The profits for the latter song were given to
AIDS research. Bacharach's 1980s tunes showed a new sound, proving that Bacharach's work could continue to change with the times.
Other artists continued to revive Bacharach's earlier hits, giving them an entirely new audience in the 1980s and 1990s. Examples included
Naked Eyes' 1983 huge pop hit version of "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me",
Ronnie Milsap's smash 1982 country version of "Any Day Now", and many others. Bacharach also continued a successful concert career, appearing at auditoriums throughout the world, often featuring large orchestras as accompaniment. He also occasionally joined with Warwick, appearing in sold-out concerts in New York,
Las Vegas, and
Los Angeles.
1990s and 2000s
In 1996, celebrated jazz pianist
McCoy Tyner recorded an album of nine Bacharach standards that featured Tyner's trio with a full orchestra arranged and conducted by John Clayton. In 1998, Bacharach co-wrote and recorded a
Grammy-winning album with
Elvis Costello,
Painted from Memory
, on which the compositions began to take on the sound of his earlier work. In 2006, he recorded a jazz album with
Trijntje Oosterhuis and the Metropole Orchestra called
The Look of Love (Burt Bacharach Songbook)
which was released in November that year.
[7] Bacharach collaborated with
Cathy Dennis in 2002 to write an original song for the
Pop Idol
winner
Will Young. This was "
What's In Goodbye", and it appears on Young's debut album
From Now On
. During July 2002, Young was a guest vocalist at two of Bacharach's concerts, one at the Hammersmith Apollo and the other at Liverpool Pops.
Another star treatment of his compositions was the 2003 album
Here I Am
featuring
Ronald Isley, revisiting a number of his 1960s compositions, and also the Vandross arrangement of
A House Is Not a Home
.
Bacharach's 2005 solo album
At This Time
saw a departure from past works in that Bacharach penned his own lyrics, some of which dealt with political themes. Guest stars on some tracks included
Elvis Costello and
Rufus Wainwright.
He has also worked with hip-hop producer
Dr. Dre on his recent album
At This Time
and is expected to do work on Dr. Dre's long awaited
Detox
album.
On 24 October 2008, Bacharach opened the
BBC Electric Proms at
The Roundhouse in
London, performing with the
BBC Concert Orchestra accompanied by guest vocalists
Adele,
Beth Rowley and
Jamie Cullum. The concert was a retrospective look back at his unparalleled six-decade career, including classics such as "
Walk On By",
The Look of Love, "
I Say a Little Prayer", "
What The World Needs Now", "
Anyone Who Had A Heart", "
24 Hours from Tulsa" and "
Make It Easy On Yourself", featuring Jamie Cullum.
In early 2009 Bacharach worked with Italian soul singer Karima Ammar and produced her critically acclaimed debut single
Come In Ogni Ora
. The song has been heard during the 59th
Sanremo Music Festival and also features him playing piano.
Film and television
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Bacharach was featured in a dozen TV musical/variety specials videotaped in the UK for
ITC, several of which were nominated for
Emmy awards for direction (by
Dwight Hemion). The guests included artists such as
Joel Grey,
Dusty Springfield, and
Barbra Streisand. Bacharach and David also did the score for a short-lived
ABC-TV series,
ABC Stage 67
, for a show titled
On the Flip Side
, starring
Rick Nelson as a faded pop star trying for a comeback. While the series' ratings were dismal, the soundtrack showcased Bacharach's abilities to try different kinds of musical styles, ranging from (almost) 1960s rock, to pop, ballads, and Latin-tinged dance numbers.
In 1969, his instrumental composition "Nikki" (named for his daughter) premiered as the theme for the
ABC Movie of the Week
, a TV series which eventually ran on various nights of the week until 1975. Also during the 1970s, Bacharach and then-wife Angie Dickinson appeared in several TV commercials for
Martini & Rossi beverages, and even penned a short jingle ("Say Yes") for the spots. Bacharach also occasionally appeared on TV/variety shows, such as
The Merv Griffin Show
,
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
, and many others.
In the 1990s and 2000s, Bacharach has had
cameo roles in a number of
Hollywood movies including all three
Austin Powers spy spoof movies. His music is also credited as providing inspiration for these movies, partially stemming from Bacharach's score for the 1967
James Bond film
Casino Royale
. During subsequent Burt Bacharach concert tours, each show would open with a very brief video clip from the movie
Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery
, with
Mike Myers (as Austin Powers) uttering "Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Burt Bacharach."
Bacharach appeared as a celebrity performer and guest vocal coach for contestants on the television show, "
American Idol" during the 2006 season, during which an entire episode was dedicated to his music. In late 2006, Burt Bacharach appeared as the celebrity in a Geico auto insurance commercial, where he sings and plays the piano. He translates the customer's story through song ("I was hit. ..in the rear!")
In 2008, Bacharach featured in the
BBC Electric Proms at
The Roundhouse with the
BBC Concert Orchestra [8]. He performed similar shows in the same year at the
Walt Disney Concert Hall [9] and with the
Sydney Symphony.
Legacy and influence
- Popular songwriter Jimmy Webb has acknowledged Bacharach's influence on his work. So did singer-songwriter Laura Nyro.
- On Status Quo's album Heavy Traffic
, Track number 8 is named "Diggin' Burt Bacharach."
- In interviews, Donald Fagen from Steely Dan has frequently cited Bacharach's combination of "Ravel-like harmony and street corner soul" as an early influence. Bacharach has praised Steely Dan's Aja highly.
- On the cover of Oasis' first album Definitely Maybe
, there is a framed picture of Bacharach to the left resting up against the sofa. Later, Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher performed a duet of "This Guy's In Love With You" live with Bacharach. Gallagher also admits to having stolen elements of that same song when composing the Oasis track "Half the World Away".
- Alternative-avant garde guitarist/composer Leonid Soybelman released an album named Much Ado About Burt Bacharach's Walk On By.
- The British duo Swing Out Sister cites Bacharach as a major influence as well.
- Composer/singer-songwriter Mary Edwards used Bacharach-influenced motifs on her debut album "A Smile in the Mind".
- The British band Saint Etienne were influenced heavily by Bacharach's piano motifs.
- British keyboardist and composer Tony Banks from Genesis.
- The American band Faith No More performed the song "This Guy's In Love With You" in several concerts.
- Beach Boys lead man Brian Wilson has cited Bacharach as a heavy influence on his songwriting.
- Welsh rock/electronic/psychedelic band Super Furry Animals have also been influenced by Bacharach's distinctive sound.
- The Last Shadow Puppets have covered 'My Little Red Book'
Marriages and children
Bacharach has been married four times.
His first marriage was to
Paula Stewart, which lasted five years (1953—1958).
His second marriage was to actress
Angie Dickinson, which lasted fifteen years (1965—1980). Bacharach and Dickinson had a daughter, Nikki, who is now deceased (see
Angie Dickinson#Marriage and child).
His third marriage was to lyricist
Carole Bayer Sager, which lasted nine years (1982–1991). Bacharach and Bayer Sager collaborated on a number of musical pieces, and had a son, Cristopher.
In 1993, Bacharach married Jane Strauss Hanson, and their marriage continues today. Bacharach and Strauss Hanson have a daughter, Raleigh, and a son, Oliver.
Film Appearances
- Analyze This
- Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
- Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
- Austin Powers in Goldmember
- Bruce Almighty
Discography
Albums
- Hitmaker! Burt Bacharach Plays His Hits
(1965)
- What's New Pussycat
(Film Soundtrack) (1965)
- After the Fox
(Film Soundtrack) (1966)
- Reach Out
(1967)
- Casino Royale
(Film Soundtrack) (1967)
- On The Flip Side
(Television soundtrack) (1967)
- Make it Easy on Yourself
(1969)
- Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
(Film Soundtrack) (1969)
- Promises, Promises
[10] (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (1969)
- Burt Bacharach
(1971)
- Lost Horizon
(Film soundtrack) (1973)
- Burt Bacharach in Concert
(1974)
- Living Together
(1974)
- Futures
(1977)
- Woman
(1979)
- Arthur
(Film soundtrack) (1981)
- Night Shift
(Film soundtrack) (1982)
- Arthur 2: On The Rocks
(Film soundtrack) (1988)
- One Amazing Night
(1998)
- Painted From Memory
with Elvis Costello (1998)
- ''The Look Of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection [2-Disc Compilation] (2001)
- ''Motown Salutes Bacharach [Compilation] (2002)
- Isley Meets Bacharach: Here I Am
with Ronald Isley (2003)*
- ''Blue Note Plays Burt Bacharach [Compilation] (2004)
- At This Time
(2005)
- ''Colour Collection [Compilation] (2007)
- Marlene Dietrich with the Burt Bacharach Orchestra
(2007)
- Burt Bacharach: Live at the Sydney Opera House with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra
(Live) (2008)
Singles
- "The Story of My Life" Marty Robbins, US #15, C&W #1, 1957 - his first hit. Michael Holliday UK #1, Gary Miller UK #14, Dave King UK #20, Alma Cogan UK #25
- "Magic Moments" (Perry Como, US #4 / UK #1, 1957/1958 - his first big pop hit)
- "The Blob" (The Five Blobs, US #33 1958 with Mack David—brother of Hal David—from the movie The Blob
)
- "Heavenly" (Johnny Mathis 1959)
- "Faithfully" (Johnny Mathis 1959)
- "With Open Arms" Jane Morgan US #39 1959
- "Tower of Strength" Gloria Lynne 1961, Gene McDaniels US #5 1961, Frankie Vaughan UK #1 1961
- "Another Tear Falls" Gene McDaniels, 1961, Walker Brothers UK #12 1966.
- "Baby It's You" (The Shirelles, US #8 1962, then The Beatles, 1963, then Smith, 1969 US #8)
- "Please Stay" (The Drifters, US #14 1961; The Cryin' Shames, UK #26 1966; Marc Almond, 2001)
- "Any Day Now" (Chuck Jackson, US #23 1962, Elvis Presley, 1969, then Ronnie Milsap, US #14 1982)
- "(The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance" (Gene Pitney, US #4 1962)
- "Only Love Can Break a Heart" (Gene Pitney, US #2 1962)
- "Don't Make Me Over" (Dionne Warwick, US #21 1962) (The Swinging Blue Jeans, UK #31 1966) (Petula Clark in 1976), (Sybil, 1989)
- "Make It Easy On Yourself" (Dionne Warwick, demo 1962, then Jerry Butler), US #20 1962, then The Walker Brothers, US #16, UK #1 1965); then Dionne Warwick live from Garden State Arts Center, US# 37 1970)
- "Don't You Believe It" Andy Williams US #39 1962
- "Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa" (Gene Pitney, US #17, UK #5 1963)
- "Be True To Yourself" Bobby Vee US #34 1963
- "Blue on Blue" (Bobby Vinton, US #3 1963)
- "Anyone Who Had a Heart" (Dionne Warwick, US #8, UK #42, 1963; then Cilla Black, UK #1 1964; Dusty Springfield, 1964; Tim Curry, 1978; Luther Vandross, 1986; Linda Ronstadt, 1991; Maureen McGovern, 1992; Olivia Newton-John, 2004; Shelby Lynne, 2007)
- "(They Long to Be) Close to You" (Richard Chamberlain, 1963, then Dionne Warwick, 1964, Dusty Springfield, 1964, Johnny Mathis and The Carpenters US #1, UK #6 1970). In 1969 Grammy nominee Record of the Year.
- "True Love Never Runs Smooth" Don and Juan, 1963, Gene Pitney US #21 1963.
- "Wives and Lovers" (Jack Jones, US #14 1963). Grammy nominee Record of the Year and Song of the Year
- "Wishin' and Hopin'" (Dionne Warwick, 1963, then Dusty Springfield US #6 1964, Merseybeats UK #13 1964, Ani DiFranco (on the My Best Friend's Wedding soundtrack), 1997, Stephanie McIntosh, 2006)
- "Walk on By" Dionne Warwick, US #6, UK #8 1964, then Isaac Hayes, US #30 1969 and The Stranglers in 1978) 1983 Jo Jo Zep, 1989 Sybil, 2006 Seal
- "Reach Out For Me" Lou Johnson, 1964, then Dionne Warwick, US #20, Canada #12, UK #23 1964
- "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself" Tommy Hunt, 1962 Dusty Springfield, UK #3 1964, Dionne Warwick, US #26 1966, then The White Stripes, 2003)
- "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" (Lou Johnson, 1964 then Sandie Shaw, UK #1, 1964, Dionne Warwick, 1967,then Naked Eyes, 1982)
- "A House Is Not a Home" (Brook Benton, 1964; Dionne Warwick, 1964; Barbra Streisand, 1971; Luther Vandross, 1981)
- "A Message to Martha" Lou Johnson, UK #36 1964, Adam Faith, UK #12, 1964, Recorded as "A Message to Michael" Dionne Warwick, US #8 1966, Lena Horne & Gabor Szabo in 1970
- "You'll Never Get to Heaven" 1964 Dionne Warwick US #32, UK #12, Canada #23, then Stylistics, US #23, 1973 UK #24 (EP) 1976)
- "What the World Needs Now Is Love" 1965 Jackie DeShannon)US #7, then Dionne Warwick 1967, then Daniel Johnston, 1988; Dionne Warwick and the Hip-Hop Nation United, 1998
- "Long After Tonight Is All Over" Jimmy Radcliffe UK #40 1965
- "What's New Pussycat?" (Tom Jones, US #3, UK #11 1965, from the film What's New, Pussycat?
)
:Nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Original Song, 1965.
- "Here I Am" (Dionne Warwick, 1965, from the film What's New, Pussycat?
, US #65 AC #11, Canada #19)
- "Trains and Boats and Planes" Burt Bacharach, UK #4 1965, Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas, UK #12 1965, Dionne Warwick, US #22 1966.
- "My Little Red Book" (Manfred Mann, June 1965) (Love, 1966) (Tony Middleton, 1965)
- "Are You There (With Another Girl)?" Dionne Warwick US #39 1966
- "Alfie" (Cilla Black, 1966 UK #8, US #95, then Cher, US #32 1966, then Dionne Warwick, US #15, #5 R&B 1967, originally from the movie of the same name). Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, 1966. Won Bacharach a Grammy for instrumental arrangement in 1967.
- "The Windows of the World" (Dionne Warwick, US #32 1967)
- "I Say a Little Prayer" (Dionne Warwick, US #4 1967, then Aretha Franklin US #10, UK #4 1968, then Diana King, 1997)
- "The Look of Love" (Dusty Springfield, US #22 1967, from the soundtrack of the movie Casino Royale
, then Sérgio Mendes & Brasil '66, US #4 1968, Roger Williams, 1969, Gladys Knight & the Pips, UK #21 1973). Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1967.
- "Casino Royale" Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass US #27, UK #27 1967.
- "One Less Bell to Answer" (Keely Smith, 1967, then The 5th Dimension, 1970 US #2, then (Dionne Warwick), 1971)
- "This Guy's in Love with You" (Herb Alpert, US #1, (4 weeks), UK #3 1968; Dionne Warwick), US #7 1969
:This song was also recorded much later by
Oasis'
Noel Gallagher in tribute to Bacharach on his 70th Birthday. According to Robin Platts' book
What The World Needs Now
the song was not written with Alpert, a non-singer with limited range, in mind, but was altered to suit him. Originally written as "This Girl's In Love With You" and recorded with that title by Dionne Warwick.
- "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" (Dionne Warwick, 1968 US #10, UK #8)
- "Promises, Promises" (Dionne Warwick, 1968 US # 19, and Jill O'Hara, 1968). Warwick's version was released prior to the opening of the show and the release of the Broadway cast album. Bacharach recorded Dionne's version to help the cast learn the difficult tune. The B" side of Warwick's single was another Bacharach/David tune from the show "Whoever You Are (I Love You)". The Broadway soundtrack won Bacharach a Grammy in 1969.
- "The April Fools" (Dionne Warwick, US #37 1969, from the film The April Fools
, US #37, AC #8, Canada # 32)
- "I'm a Better Man (For Having Loved You)" Engelbert Humperdinck US #38, UK #15, 1969.
- "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" (B.J. Thomas, US #1, 1969, UK #38 1970 Johnny Mathis 1969 in Great Britain, Sacha Distel, UK #10 1970, Bobbie Gentry UK #40, 1970. from the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
). Won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1969. The movie score by Bacharach won the Academy Awards and Grammy for Original Score. Grammy nominee for Song of the Year
- "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" Bobbie Gentry (UK #1, 1969), Dionne Warwick US #6 1970, Anne Murray in 1971, originally from the musical Promises, Promises
). Grammy nominee Song of the Year [competed against himself in this category]
- "Everybody's Out Of Town" B.J. Thomas US #26 1970
- "Let Me Go To Him" (Dionne Warwick, 1970, US #32 AC #5, Canada # 30)
- "Paper Mache" (Dionne Warwick, 1970, US #43, AC # 6)
- "The Green Grass Starts to Grow" (Dionne Warwick, 1971, US #43, AC #2, Canada # 35)
- "Who Gets the Guy" (Dionne Warwick, 1971, US #57 R & B 41, AC # 6)
- "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (Christopher Cross, 1981, from the movie Arthur
). Won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1981. Grammy nominee for Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
- "That's What Friends Are For" (1982)
:This song was originally written for the movie
Night Shift
and performed on the soundtrack by
Rod Stewart. In 1986, a version by
Dionne Warwick,
Stevie Wonder,
Gladys Knight, and
Elton John became an enormous hit, raising millions for
AIDS charities. The song also won the
Grammy for Song of the Year. Grammy nominee for Record of the Year
- "On My Own" (Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald, US no. 1, 1986)
- "Love Power" (Dionne Warwick and Jeffrey Osborne, US no. 12, AC # 1, 1987)
Broadway works
- Marlene Dietrich
(1968) — concert — music arranger and conductor
- Promises, Promises
(1968) — musical — composer — Tony Nomination for Best Musical
- André DeShield's Haarlem Nocturne
(1984) — revue — featured songwriter
- The Look of Love
(2003) — revue — composer
- The Boy from Oz
(2003) — musical — additional composer
Other recordings
- Jazz musician John Zorn produced a 2-CD set of Bacharach tunes (1997), featuring several avantgarde musicians, as part of his Great Jewish Music
series.
- Marie McAuliffe's Ark Sextet released the Bacharach tribute album "Refractions" in 1998. McAuliffe had been featured on John Zorn's tribute album.
- To Hal and Bacharach
is a 1998 tribute album with 18 tunes, performed by notable Australian artists.
- In 2007, West End Singing Sensation Michael Ball recorded an album entitled 'Back to Bacharach' full of songs which have inspired him over the years. Michael sang 'You'll Never Get to Heaven' Live on GMTV, 'Arthur's Theme' Live on This Morning, 'What The World Needs Now Is Love', Live on BBC Breakfast and 'The Look of Love' Live on Paul O'Grady.
- 2007 Marlene Dietrich with the Burt Bacharach Orchestra
References
- A House Is Not A Homepage: Burt Bacharach Bio
- http://britishhitsongwriters.com/
- Burt Bacharach Biography (1928?-)
- ireland.com - The Ticket
- "The Burt Bacharach Collection" - CD issued by WEA Europe (liner notes)
- Robin Platts "Burt Bacharach & Hal David: What The World Needs Now", 2003 ISBN 978-1-896522-77-7
- PlatoMania.nl Scheduled Dutch album releases. Retrieved: October 25, 2006
- BBC Electric Proms 2008
- Close to you
- Internet Broadway Database: Promises, Promises Production Credits