Bacharach maintains his composure amid claptrap

Tuesday, April 20, 2004 | 8:29 a.m.

Composer/pianist Burt Bacharach should name his concerts "Applause."

That's what his fans did throughout the night during his recent performance at The Orleans, in which he played pieces of dozens of tunes that have become engrained in the psyches of music lovers over the past six decades.

"There are lots of memories for me in the songs," Bacharach, his voice soft and raspy, said as he began his performance. "Perhaps there are for you, too."

Applause.

The 75-year-old composer covered the range of his magnificent career -- from the theme of the 1958 cult classic film "The Blob" (Steve McQueen's first starring role) to such hits as "Close To You," "On My Own" and "That's What Friends are For."

Bacharach has composed more than 100 songs that made it to the Billboard Top 40 chart, nine of them No. 1 hits, during a career that started in the early '50s.

Like a sampler tray, his performance included a taste of some of his most popular music, but rarely a full meal.

Bacharach was backed by a six-piece band and three vocalists, Donna Taylor, Josie James and John Pagano, who have performed with him for several years. They put on an almost flawless show that excited fans and brought back many memories from the '60s, the era that was the heyday for Bacharach and lyricist Hal David.

Bacharach and David created 15 Top 40 singles for Dionne Warwick, so it isn't too surprising that the concert at The Orleans included healthy portions of her hits.

The first song of the evening was the first song created for Warwick by David and Bacharach, "Don't Make Me Over" (1962).

Applause.

That was followed up by Warwick's "Walk On By" ('64), "I Say a Little Prayer" ('67), "You'll Never Get to Heaven" ('64), "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" ('69) and "Do You Know the Way to San Jose" ('69).

More applause after almost every song.

Some fans seemed surprised when Bacharach performed some tunes that were familiar to them -- they didn't realize he had composed them.

Herb Alpert's "This Guy's in Love With You" was a No. 1 hit in 1968.

Bacharach also composed such Gene Pitney numbers as "24 Hours from Tulsa" ('63) and "Only Love Can Break a Heart" ('62).

And Bobby Vinton's "Blue on Blue" ('63).

Bacharach took several breathers from the marathon of music to speak to the audience about his career, addressing the difficulty in getting started in the business.

"It was not an easy process for me," he said. "It was so much harder than I ever thought it was going to be."

Before he met David in the early '60s, Bacharach worked as a musical director for such legends as Lawrence, Vic Damone, and Marlene Dietrich and the Ames Brothers.

Bacharach finally began making some headway.

His concert repertoire included a segment in which he performed his first four hits: Perry Como's "Magic Moments" ('58); Marty Robbin's "The Story of My Life" ('57); Gene McDaniels' "Tower of Strength" ('61) and "The Blob."

" 'The Blob' was recorded by the group The Five Blobs," Bacharach noted. "Not surprisingly, they never had another hit after that."

In 1997 Bacharach and rocker Elvis Costello collaborated on an album, "Painted From Memory."

A tune from the album, "God Give Me Strength," was nominated for a Grammy Award that year, but didn't win. The next year a second song from the album, "I Still Have That Other Girl," did win a Grammy for best pop collaboration with vocal.

For his fans at The Orleans, he performed "God Give Me Strength."

"I will play the better song of the two," Bacharach said. "You deserve the best."

Applause.

And then he performed his 1964 composition, "Make it Easy on Yourself," which has been covered by many different artists (including Warwick) and "On My Own," a 1986 hit by Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald.

Bacharach devoted one segment of the evening to his tunes from the movies, including "Arthur's Theme" ('81); "What's New Pussycat?" ('65); "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" ('69); "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" ('62); "Wives and Lovers" ('63) and "Alfie" ('66).

More applause, followed by two encores and more applause.