Burt Bacharach, legendary composer, dead at 94
Composer Burth Bacharach passed away on Wednesday in his Los Angeles home at the age of 94.
No cause of death was given in the confirmation provided by his publicist Tina Brausam.
RIP!!! Burt Bacharach, Composer Who Added a High Gloss to the ’60s, Dies at 94 https://t.co/gacUBy8IrY
— Bruce LaBruce (@BruceLaBruce) February 10, 2023
Legendary works
"Bacharach-David songs like “The Look of Love,” Dusty Springfield’s sultry 1967 hit, featured in the movie “Casino Royale”; “This Guy’s in Love With You,” a No. 1 hit in 1968 for Herb Alpert; and “(They Long to Be) Close to You,” a No. 1 hit in 1970 for the Carpenters, evoked a world of jet travel, sports cars and sleek bachelor pads," The New York Times reported.
"Acknowledging this mystique with a wink, Mr. Bacharach appeared as himself and performed his 1965 song “What the World Needs Now Is Love” in the 1997 movie “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery,” which spoofed the swinging ’60s ambience of the early James Bond films. He also made cameo appearances in its two sequels," it added.
Burt Bacharach, the Mozart of Pop music has left the stage… What a glorious song book he has left for us. His songs, with their wonderfully composed elegance, fill my head. https://t.co/tXUONcVnNR
— Rob Schneider (@RobSchneider) February 9, 2023
A master collaborator
The famed collaborator worked with many of the top performers of the past century.
"The composer wrote songs for many musicians, including Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield and Tom Jones. Elvis Presley and others would often cover his songs as well," Fox News noted.
"More recently, the composer worked with rapper Dr. Dre," the outlet added among his many well-known projects.
Legendary Songwriter Burt Bacharach Dead at 94 https://t.co/J6auLJkrVg
— People (@people) February 9, 2023
Numerous awards
"Over the course of his career, Bacharach won six Grammys, three Oscars and countless other awards. In 2008 the Grammys gave him a Lifetime Achievement Award and he also received an honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music," Newsweek reported.
"Bacharach won two of his three Academy Awards in the same year, 1970: Best Original Score for a Motion Picture for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and Best Song Original for the Picture for the song 'Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head,'" it continued.
"He won his third Oscar in 1981 for Best Original Song for 'Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do),'" it added.
Responding to the times
"In 2018, Bacharach teamed up with Latin composer Rudy Pérez for the song 'Live to See Another Day,' with a charitable component. The tune was in response to school shootings, which were occurring far too often in the U.S. at the time," People reported in its tribute to the composer.
"School should be a safe place," he told the outlet at the time.
"When I went to school, which was a long time ago, my chief concern was what grades would I get. There never was a thought of a shooter. It's unimaginable to me, yet it happens too often. I thought, 'What do I do?' I get grounded by writing music. I have something to say, so I said it by writing a song with Rudy Pérez," he added.
Bacharach is survived by his fourth wife Jane Hansen along with his children Oliver, Raleigh and Cristopher.