LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Burt Bacharach, the prolific Oscar-winning composer whose long string of hits including "I Say A Little Prayer,' "Walk On By" and "What The World Needs Now Is Love" made him one of the most popular songwriters in pop history, has died at age 94, his publicist announced today.
Bacharach died of natural causes at his Los Angeles home on Wednesday, his publicist Tina Brausam said.
In partnership with lyricist Hal David, Bacharach penned hits covered by Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Tom Jones, Dusty Springfield, Herb Alpert, Sergio Mendes, the Carpenters, and the 5th Dimension, among many others.
He was known for sophisticated melodies and orchestral arrangements that stood out on the pop charts.
Bacharach won Oscars in 1970 both for his score for the comedy-western "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and the film's hit single "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head."
He and then-wife, lyricist Carole Bayer Sager, also won Oscars for "Best That You Can Do," the theme from "Arthur." Other soundtrack work included "What's New, Pussycat?," "Alfie" and the 1967 James Bond take-off "Casino Royale."
Bacharach appeared as himself, performing his "What the World Needs Now Is Love" in the 1997 movie "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery," which spoofed the '60s atmosphere of the early Bond films.
Music writer Ted Gioia tweeted that Bacharach's "craft and harmonic sophistication is a lost art in commercial music. It's almost as if an era has ended."
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