Burt Bacharach, the Oscar-winning composer, passed away on Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles, publicist Tina Brausam announced on Thursday. According to reports, the composer of songs like Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head passed away due to natural causes, surrounded by his family. He is survived by his wife Jane Hansen and children Oliver, Raleigh, and Christopher.
In the 1960s, Burt had a string of 30 top 40 singles, but his complete body of work comprises nearly 500 songs that have been covered by more than 1,200 different musicians.
Popular musicians like Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield, and Tom Jones were among his collaborators. In addition to modern performers like the White Stripes and Ashanti, notable figures including Elvis Presley, the Beatles, and Frank Sinatra have recorded tracks for him.
His work with Hal David was key to the duo's enormous success. In addition to collecting honours for his Broadway songs and becoming an eight-time Grammy winner, he also won three Oscars, including one in 1970 for the soundtrack to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. He and David, however, never again collaborated after a financial disagreement caused them to fall out in 1973. They later made amends, and after David passed away in 2012, Burt recalled his work.
Burt also received invitations to the White House from a number of Republican and Democratic US presidents. Barack Obama, who was president at the time, gave him the Gershwin Prize in 2012. During a campaign appearance, Burt's song Walk on By was notably performed by Obama. According to sources, the composer had sworn not to stop composing music and to never retire because he thought a powerful song could change the world.