Hal David, Music Legend, ‘Raindrops’ Lyricist, Dies 91

grammy winnerOscar WinnerHollywood Walk of Fame

Harold Lane “Hal” David (May 25, 1921 – September 1, 2012) was an American lyricist. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York City. He was best known for his collaborations with composer Burt Bacharach and his association with Dionne Warwick.

Hal David and Burt Bacharach’s hits included “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head”, “This Guy’s in Love with You”, “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again”, “Do You Know the Way to San Jose”, “Walk On By”, “What the World Needs Now Is Love”, “I Say a Little Prayer”, “(There’s) Always Something There to Remind Me”, “One Less Bell to Answer”, and “Anyone Who Had a Heart”.

The duo’s film work includes the Oscar-nominated title songs for “What’s New Pussycat?” and “Alfie”, “The Look of Love”, from Casino Royale; and the Oscar-winning “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head” from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid In addition, “Don’t Make Me Over”, “(They Long to Be) Close to You”, and “Walk On By” have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

David and Bacharach were awarded the 2011 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song bestowed by the Library of Congress, the first time a songwriting team was given the honor.  David and Bacharach won an Oscar for “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head” (from the movie “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”), and Grammys and Tonys for the songs from the hit Broadway musical “Promises, Promises.”

Hal David’s work with other composers includes Willie Nelson and Julio Iglesias’s “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before”, with Albert Hammond; Sarah Vaughan’s “Broken Hearted Melody”, with Sherman Edwards; the 1962 Joanie Sommers hit “Johnny Get Angry”. also with Edwards; and “We Have All the Time in the World”, written with John Barry and sung by Louis Armstrong for the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. With Paul Hampton, David co-wrote the country standard “Sea of Heartbreak”, a hit for Don Gibson and others.

Hal David cause of death
David died of stroke
Hal David was 91 years old at the time of his death.

Hal David Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hal David was inducted to the Walk of Fame on Friday, October 14, 2011, at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard, in front of The Musicians Institute.

Rain Drops keep falling on my head – Written by David & Bacharach

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