Six time Grammy Award winning songwriter Burt Bacharach died February 8, 2023 at his Los Angeles home at the age of 94.  He was surrounded by family at the time of his death.  The official cause of death is listed as natural causes.

During the ‘60’s and ‘70’s it was difficult to turn on a pop radio channel and not hear a Hal David and Burt Bacharach song.  During that time, Dionne Warwick was a staple when it came to recording a Bacharach penned song.  But Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield, Tom Jones, Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Frank Sinatra, Isaac Hayes, the Stranglers and Cyndi Lauper have all recorded Hal David and Burth Bacharach songs.  Most recently the White Stripes, Twista and Ashanti have sampled Bacharach in their songs.  He had 19 top 40 hits songs with Warwick alone.


Elvis Costello once spoke on Bacharach saying, “the shorthand version of him is that he’s something to do with easy listening.  It may be agreeable to listen to these songs, but there’s nothing easy about them. Try playing them. Try singing them.”  Bacharach was known for his variation of time signatures and unique arrangements.


While considered mostly a pop song composer, Bacharach’s music transcended musical genres and was recorded by artists in numerous areas.  He has even recorded with rap star Dr. Dre.

With three Oscars and a  Tony Award to his name, Bacharach is an Emmy shy of joining the EGOT club.  Other awards include a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, and the Polar Music Prize, the Royal Swedish Academy of Music Award.

Along with his award winning songs for films ”Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “Arthur”; Bacharach’s music also appears in “What’s New, Pussycat?”, “Alfie”, and the original “Casino Royale.”



Speaking on music Bacharach once said, “music softens the heart, makes you feel something if it’s good, brings in emotion that you might not have felt before.  It’s a very powerful thing if you’re able to do to it, if you have it in your heart to do something like that.”

Burt Freeman Bacharach was born on May 12, 1928 in Kansas City, Missouri to a syndicated columnist father and pianist mother.  The family moved to New York City while Burt was still young.  While he loved sports, he would practice the piano every day.  Armed with a fake ID, he would sneak into jazz clubs while still in his teens to see artists like Dizzy Gillespie and Count Basie.  Speaking on those days he said, “they were just so incredibly exciting that all of a sudden, I got into music in a way I never had before.”

Not the greatest of students, he did earn a spot at McGill University in Montreal where he studied music.  He was drafted into the U.S. Army and served in Germany where he wrote orchestrations for the recreational center on the base.

Prior to making his mark as a hit songwriter, Bacharach broke into the music business as an arranger and accompanist where he worked with Vic Damone, the Ames Brothers, Pause Smith (his first wife), and Marlene Dietrich.

After meeting Hal David, the dup paired up with David writing the lyrics and Bacharach providing the music.  Their first million selling hit was “Magic Moments” recorded by Perry Como.

Predeceased by his daughter Nikki, Bacharach is survived by his fourth wife Jane Hansen and children Raleigh, Christopher, and Oliver.  Bacharach’s songwriting partner Hal David died in 2012.

Burt Bacharach discography:
“Hit Maker Burt Bacharach Plays His Hits”
“What’s New Pussycat?” the original motion picture soundtrack
“After the Fox”
“Casino Royale” 1967 original motion picture soundtrack
“Reach Out”
“Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” original motion picture soundtrack
“Make it Easy on Yourself:
“Burt Bacharach”
“Living Together”
“Lost Horizon” original soundtrack
“In Concert”
“Futures”
“Together?” original soundtrack recording
“Woman”
“The Look of Love: The Classic Song of Burt Bacharach”
“Painted From Memory”
“One Amazing Night”
“Bacharach! The Instrumental Side”
“Isn’t She Great”
“The Very Idea of Love”
“Here I Am: Isley Meets Bacharach”
“At This Time”
“Live at the Sydney Opera House”
“When Ronan Met Burt”
“Live in Studio”
“A Boy Called Po” original motion picture soundtrack
“Some Lovers”

Feature photo credit: Burt Bacharach 2013 (9219552969).jpg