Biography
Following his discharge from the Army, Burt Bacharach first served as Vic Damone's accompanist before later working with such performers as the Ames Brothers, Imogene Coca, Joel Grey and Paula Stewart (his first wife), but his career did not take off until he met lyricist Hal David one day in 1957 at the historic Brill Building in NYC. Within a year, the pair had their first Number 1 hit, the country tune "The Story of My Life" (1957), …
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Career Milestones
| Bacharach resurgence fueled by such notables as British superband Oasis (who put a picture of him on their 1994 mega-selling album "Definitely Maybe"), The Cranberries, REM's Michael Stipe and acid jazz masters Massive Attack | ||
| Gained considerable attention touring Europe and America as musical director for Marlene Dietrich | ||
| Raised in Forest Hills, Queens, New York | ||
1950 | Served with US Army, playing piano at the officer's club on Governor's Island (NYC) and giving concerts at Fort Dix (New Jersey); also spent time overseas | |
1952 | Met Vic Damone and toured with him as accompanist following discharge from the military | |
1955 | Became a member of ASCAP | |
1957 | First Number 1 hit (with David), the country song "The Story of My Life", recorded by Marty Robbins | |
1957 | First film as composer of title (theme) song only, "The Sad Sack" | |
1957 | First film credit, pre-composed song for "Lizzie" | |
1957 | Met lyricist Hal David at NYC's Brill Building | |
1958 | Perry Como scored a big hit with the Bacharach-David tune "Magic Moments" | |
1961 | Met a backup singer named Dionne Warwick, whose voice seemed well-suited to his material; Bacharach and David wrote songs by day and recorded them at night with her, resulting ultimately in eight Top 10 hits | |
1961 | Worked extensively with the Drifters, arranging horn and string parts and collaborating with lyricist Bob Hilliard on the group's singles "Mexican Divorce" and "Please Stay" | |
1962 | First hit with Warwick, "Don't Make Me Over", climbed to Number 21 on the charts | |
1965 | First film as composer, "What's New, Pussycat?"; title song was a Top 5 hit for Tom Jones | |
1968 | Composed score for Broadway musical, "Promises, Promises", which ran for three years and 1,281 performances | |
1969 | Had one of his biggest successes with "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head", written for the feature "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid"; won first two Academy Awards for Best Score and Best Original Song | |
1973 | Burned out after rushing to finish the score of the musical film "Lost Horizon", retreated to beach house and reneged on a Warwick album, leading her and David to file lawsuits (eventually settled out of court) | |
1981 | Co-wrote with Carole Bayer Sager, Peter Allen and Christopher Cross the hit theme from the film "Arthur"; won third Oscar | |
1982 | Composed the music for Ron Howard's "Night Shift", which introduced "That's What Friends Are For" (co-written by Sager) | |
1985 | Dionne (Warwick) and Friends score Number 1 hit with "That's What Friends Are For", earning him last Grammy to date; proceeds of the recording were donated to AIDS research | |
1993 | Reunited with Warwick on the song "Sunny Weather Love", included on her album "Friends Can Be Lovers" | |
1996 | Appeared at London's Royal Festival Hall, where Oasis' Noel Gallagher joined him to croon "This Guy's In Love with You" | |
1996 | Co-wrote with Elvis Costello (via fax and answering machine) the show-stopping tune "God Give Me Strength" for Allison Anders' "Grace of My Heart", proving that his return was not just a rehabilitation of reputation but a creative renaissance as well | |
1997 | Appeared as himself in "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery" | |
1997 | Five vintage Bacharach-David tunes brightened the film comedy "My Best Friend's Wedding" | |
1998 | A stage musical utilizing Bacharach-David songs, "What the World Needs Now", bowed at San Diego's Old Globe Theatre | |
1999 | Collaborated with Tim Rice on the song "Walking Tall" for the film "Stuart Little" | |
Awards
1965 | Academy Award for Music (Song) in What's New, Pussycat? |
1966 | Academy Award for Music (Song) in Alfie |
1966 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in Alfie |
1967 | Academy Award for Music (Song) in Casino Royale |
1967 | Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement |
1969 | Academy Award for Music (Original Score--For a Motion Picture [Not a Musical]) in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid |
1969 | Academy Award for Music (Song--Original For the Picture) in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid |
1969 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score - Motion Picture in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid |
1969 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid |
1969 | Grammy Award for Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special |
1969 | Grammy Award for Best Score From the Original Cast Show Album |
1970 | BAFTA Award for Anthony Asquith Award in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid |
1971 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in The Raging Moon |
1971 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Program - Variety or Musical in The Burt Bacharach Special |
1981 | Academy Award for Music (Original Song) in Arthur |
1981 | BAFTA Award for Original Film Music in Arthur |
1981 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in Arthur |
1982 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in Making Love |
1986 | Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song - Motion Picture in Tough Guys |
1986 | Grammy Award for Song Of The Year |
1998 | Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals |
2005 | Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album |