In Las Vegas, Bacharach remembered as ‘epitome of cool’

Las Vegas Review-Journal

2 years ago

American pianist and composer Burt Bacharach performs during his concert at the Arena Civica in ... — American pianist and composer Burt Bacharach performs during his concert at the Arena Civica in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, July 6, 2011. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Composer Burt Bacharach appears during an interview in Los Angeles on July 9, 1979. Bacharach died of natural causes Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2023, at home in Los Angeles, publicist Tina Brausam said Thursday. He was 94. (AP Photo/Huynh, File)

President Barack Obama applauds after presenting songwriter Burt Bacharach with a 2012 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song during the “In Performance at the White House” in the East Room of the White House Wednesday, May 9, 2012, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Burt was legendarily prolific, legendarily artistic and legendarily successful.

He was also legendarily cool…

“Burt Bacharach was a lot like Harry Belafonte, they are the coolest guys in the room,” said Clint Holmes, who worked with both artists. “That’s regardless of the age, and regardless of who is in the room. Burt Bacharach was the epitome of cool.”

Bacharach died Wednesday of natural causes in Los Angeles. He was 94. He composed a collection of hits staggering in quality and quantity over 60 years. Bacharach scored 70 Top 40 Billboard singles and six Grammys, honored with a lifetime achievement award in 2008.

Superstars who turned those compositions into classics included Dionne Warwick, Dusty Springfield, Tom Jones and Aretha Franklin. Among the hits: “Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head,” “Wishin’ and Hopin’,” “A House is Not a Home,” “What The World Needs Now Is Love,” and “That’s What Friends Are For.”

Warwick, Gladys Knight, Elton John, Stevie Wonder and Carol Bayer Sager sang on “That’s What Friends Are For.”

Warwick, a frequent Las Vegas headliner who has lived in Las Vegas, posted, “Burt’s transition is like losing a family member. These words I’ve been asked to write are being written with sadness over the loss of my Dear Friend and my Musical Partner. On the lighter side we laughed a lot and had our run ins, but always found a way to let each other know our family, like roots, were the most important part of our relationship.”

Knight, who has also owned a home in Vegas, posted a photo of the collaborators on “Friends,” with the message, “Rest well my dear friend Burt Bacharach … You soul will be missed and your art and impact here forever cherished.”

Bacharach appeared at Reynolds Hall at the Smith Center in March 2013 and August 2015.

“I’m so happy that our Smith Center audiences got to see him — twice,” Smith Center President Myron Martin said. “His music defined a generation. It was simultaneously complex and accessible. His songs are a forever gift to everyone who hears them.”

Holmes designed a show in 2015, “Beatles, Bacharach and Billy,” a tribute to three iconic artists (Billy Joel the third “B”) at Myron’s at the Smith Center. He worked with Bacharach in Lake Tahoe early in his career. The two played tennis during breaks in rehearsals.

“I had trouble with a couple of notes in ‘What The World Needs Now,’” said Holmes, who caught Bacharach’s last Vegas show, at the Smith Center in August 2017. “And he drilled me on them until I couldn’t possibly screw them up, ever again. It was a good lesson for me, in terms of respect for songwriters.

“He was a perfectionist, but he was right and made a lot of wonderful music for a very long time.”

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.