Burt Bacharach: Biography

During his heyday in the mid-to-late 1960s, American composer and songwriter Burt Bacharach wrote many popular tunes for Broadway and films. Many of these songs such as "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," and "What the World Needs Now" have become American standards. He is the son of syndicated newspaper columnist, Bert Bacharach. After receiving professional training, Bacharach served in Korea as a concert pianist in the Army. After his military stint, he became a professional accompanist for such entertainers as Vic Damone, Joel Grey, and Polly Bergen, but he did not really get his big break until he began working as the conductor-arranger for Marlene Dietrich, on her world concert tour, while simultaneously penning songs for Broadway musicals and films. Bacharach's songs during the '60s and early '70s are distinguished for their complex, highly syncopated rhythms and clever lyrics. Many of them were made popular by Dionne Warwick and Jack Jones. He won two Academy Awards in 1969 for the soundtrack for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and for the song Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head from the same film. Many of his tunes were written with lyricist Hal David. Though not as popular as he once was, Bacharach continues to score films and has also established a career as a solo entertainer and performs concerts and in nightclubs all over the country. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide