Burt Bacharach, the singer, songwriter and composer of hundreds of beloved pop hits, has died. He was 94.
Burt Bacharach won three Academy Awards throughout his extensive career, two for 1969’s Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid–Best Original Score and Best Original Song–and his last for 1981’s Arthur, also Best Original Song. Both winning songs–“Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head” (performed by B.J. Thomas) and “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)” (performed by Christopher Cross), were named by the American Film Institute as two of the greatest movie songs in history, placing #23 and #79, respectively.
In addition to those wins, Burt Bacharach received Oscar nominations for numbers written for What’s New, Pussycat? (1966), Alfie (1966) and Casino Royale (1967), although his contribution here is of course typically shunned from the Bond canon. He also received seven Golden Globe nominations over the course of his career, in addition to numerous Grammys, including a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008, being deemed the “greatest living composer.”
Burt Bacharach’s other film credits include the incredibly catchy title song to 1958’s sci-fi classic The Blob, the 1982 comedy Night Shift and 2016’s A Boy Called Po, which turned out to be his last movie score credit. And who could forget his cameos in the Austin Powers trilogy, performing “What the World Needs Now Is Love”? Perhaps if Austin Powers 4 ever gets off the ground, Mike Myers and company will pay shagadelic tribute to the late artist.
Burt Bacharach’s music career goes back to the 1950s, often teaming with Hal David to immense success. His first song was released in 1952 and he charted on the Billboard U.S. Pop just two years later. From there, Bacharach proved a vital figure in the pop music world throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He also produced albums for the likes of Neil Diamond, Barbra Streisand and Dionne Warwick. His last #1 pop hit came in 1986 with “On My Own”, performed by Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald.
What is your favorite Burt Bacharach song, whether from a movie or not? Let us know in the comments section below, where you can also pay tribute to the legendary musician.