Burt Bacharach, writer of such classic pop hits as ‘Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,’ dies at 94

CNN — Burt Bacharach, the acclaimed composer and songwriter behind dozens of mellow pop hits from the 1950s to the 1980s, including “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” “ Close to You” and the theme from the movie “Arthur,” has died, a family member of Bacharach confirmed to CNN. Bacharach also wrote such massive hits as Perry Como’s “Magic Moments,” the Shirelles’ “Baby It’s You,” Tom Jones’ “What’s New Pussycat?”, Jackie DeShannon’s “What the World Needs Now is Love,” Herb Alpert’s “This Guy’s In Love With You,” Neil Diamond’s “Heartlight” and the Patti Labelle-Michael McDonald duet “On My Own.” One of his biggest and most impactful hits was “That’s What Friends Are For,” the charity collaboration between Dionne Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder that topped the charts in 1986 and raised millions for AIDS research. Paul Bergen/Redferns/Getty Images In pictures: Legendary songwriter Burt Bacharach Prev Next Bacharach composed and arranged music for the 1967 James Bond spoof “Casino Royale,” which included “The Look of Love” by Dusty Springfield, He also wrote “Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head,” for “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” the 1969 western starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford. “The songs of Burt Bacharach and Hal David canvassed my childhood and soundtracked every cool cocktail party back in the day,” wrote singer and former teen idol Shaun Cassidy on Twitter.