Burt Bacharach dies at 94

Poster for Charles K. Feldman’s 1967 version of Casino Royale, featuring a Burt Bacharach score and songs by Bacharach and Hal David

Songwriter Burt Bacharach, with a long list of pop hits over the decades, has died at 94, the BBC reported, citing the musician’s publicist.

Bacharach scored the 1967 Casino Royale spoof produced by Charles K. Feldman. Bacharach and lyricist Hal David wrote the song The Look of Love for the movie. That was a hit for Dusty Springfield, with Bacharach and David getting a Best Song Oscar nomination.

The music and the songs were a major plus for an uneven comedy helmed by multiple directors. The story (such as it was) centered around multiple James Bonds, led by Sir James Bond (David Niven).

An excerpt from the BBC’s obituary about Bacharach’s career:

Over his career, he scored 73 Top 40 hits in the US and 52 in the UK, working with artists including Dionne Warwick, Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, Barbara Streisand, Tom Jones, Aretha Franklin and Elvis Costello.

His music touched multiple genres, from cool jazz and rhythm and blues, to bossa nova and traditional pop – but they shared one thing in common: you could recognise them within a couple of notes.

In 1974, Bacharach and Ann-Margaret presented the Oscar for Best Song. Live And Let Die had been nominated, but The Way We Were won. Bacharach won Oscars of his own, for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and Arthur.