I recently referred to the loss of my sport’s hero, Pele. And last week, another icon, this time a music legend left us: Mr. Burt Bacharach. To many of our readers and viewers his name may not necessarily be familiar, but this boy born in an American Midwestern town, almost a century ago composed the melody for many themes that became memorable and evergreen. Who never heard “Raindrops Keep Falling in my Head” or the song theme from the film “Arthur”. Both won Academy Awards and Bacharach also walked up to the stage on different occasions to collect a Grammy award as well.
Together, with his partner in crime, Hal David, they created an immense collection of titles that we’ve heard in the voices of Dionne Warwick, Tom Jones and Aretha Franklin, amongst others. The kid from Missouri, who thought would pursue an American football career and couldn’t play a single note, at an earlier stage of his life, eventually became part of a privilege circle formed by the likes of Bernstein and Gershwin. President Obama handed him and David’s widow the Gershwin Prize honor for their contribution to American music, which was listened to worldwide.
A friend told me once that if someone you know ever meets a celebrity, you would become indirectly connected to that other individual. This is the case of my good friend Simon Napier-Bell, who as a young man in the 1960s and in his role as music supervisor for the film “What’s New Pussycat”, interacted with Mr. Bacharach. So there goes my connection with Burt. Likewise, I have said indirect connection with Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II and the current sovereign, King Charles III. Twenty years ago I met and shook hands with her daughter and his sister, Princess Anne.
It’s actually interesting how rhythms become a generational trend, but yet some are here to stay. I must confess that I criticize sometimes, what I believe is a lack of creativity in modern music producers. From the days of the classic waltz composed by the likes of Beethoven and Mozart and all the way to the twentieth century, we experience an evolution of music. The melodies were executed by live orchestras and sung by sopranos and other voice performers, accordingly. Today both have been replaced by electronic devices. Even though, in today’s world, more people have access to different types of music, from the past and the present, you don’t get to find revelations that can substitute someone like Burt Bacharach. I hope my comment is not taken as a biased one, but from someone who really loves to listen to and appreciate good music.
In this time that we must bid farewell to Burt Bacharach, what better way than to say, “You made us truly realize this day, that what the world needs now is love and that’s what friends are for.”
By Rodrigo Chiari
Photo credit:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FBurt_Bacharach&psig=AOvVaw3Ui1tTa7b_fvYAo_iFkYkH&ust=1676367578643000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CBIQ3YkBahcKEwi4zYiGmpL9AhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQAw
