Your choice for a beautiful Burt co-writer hookup?

[igtmfo33]

Sorry to elaborate an earlier thread, but nearing the 10th anniversary of the mega-brilliant Burt and Elvis Costello hookup, thinking that Burt would find some new great melodies/tunes in him nowadays by the inconvenience-tension of having to write/record with a similar (but not so good as him) popular legend, who would be your choice to be a melody-inspired co-writer, maybe a lyricist too, for Burt, for a session album?

1. Paul McCartney
2. Brian Wilson
3. Tony Hatch
4. Andrew L. Webber
5. Stephen Sondheim
7. Paul Simon
8. Rod Argent
9. Graham Gouldman
10. Clint Ballard Jr. (who I think lives near me, around Denton, TX)
11. Barry Manilow
12. Lamm and Pankow of the band Chicago
13. About every late 60s/early 70s icon and pop/rock semi-icon that's still living the dream and a working musician, but whose brilliant melodies written then fall to deaf ears nowadays. Verse and choruses, plus the play of melody-over-changes, plus a bridge (wow!) plus maybe a modulation to add drama ... that stuff is about laughable nowadays ... think maybe David Pack of Ambrosia etc. ...
14. Only because pop music is closer to country than anything, good lord should I suggest, W. Nelson? Willie's "The Party's Over" etc. was pretty, simple, but profound stuff. Any other country writers? ... in the recent past, the great Charlie Rich was in the league of Burt, if anyone can be, but he can't speak now ...
15. (I leave out the female icons Carly Simon and Carole King, only by dint of their semi-retirement ....)
16. I forget some great living writers, please fill me in!
17. Hmm, how about the great Sonny Curtis of the west Texas plains ...

Am I missing any great pop writers spanning the best-of-Burt's era, still working or writing, who might hook up with him?

Just waiting for the next Burt renaissance ..

[igtmfo33]

Oops, while I'm on a roll..

a) Maybe David Gates of Bread (long out of action, maybe because of the decline of melody?)

b) Another very inspired writer like Don McLean, still yearning for beautiful tunes and lyric accd to his site I think ...

c) I've run out of names at the moment, a bunch more I'm sure I've forgot ..

thanks for reading ..

[igtmfo33]

Very embarrassed, I should have compiled the 1-100 list before posting here ...

- Joe South. Some deep tunes are as good as Joe's big hits. Beautiful work. Joe's been retired/reclusive for a very long time. Joe's writing is superb, and I hope he puts out a CD or two for fans to get a hold of, before he puts that Coral Sitar in its case for the last time ..

I'm going to freaking shut up, because I'm bringing up every real good pop music writer still living, as if to tout them, not thinking if they can hang with Burt from a harmonic standpoint.

[gabba]

what about Paul Anka??? bye GABBA

[blueonblue]

How about.......Jimmy Webb ?

"blue"

[steveo_1965]

jim webb
mac davis
david gates(is he alive?)

[nymusicalsguy]

Well, Burt's already co-written with Brian Wilson (we're still waiting for further fruits of their labor...
when I briefly met Burt after a casino show, he said they had co-written 3 songs, only 1 of which has
seen release!), Paul Anka (on two occasions, in the 1970s and again in the 1990s) and collaborated
with Chicago via "If I Should Lose You", co-written with Tonio K. Tony Hatch has recorded an entire
album of Burt tracks, though it's never been on CD and is fairly tough to find on LP (at least Stateside)!
Carly has recorded with Burt in the 1970s (wouldn't a co-writing collaboration be nice, though!) and
Barry Manilow has written with Hal David (two songs, to my knowledge - the sublime "Early Morning
Strangers" and the lesser-known 1980s B-side "Hanging On A Nail").

All the other suggestions are wonderful, though, and yes, David Gates is still alive and well, and
performing in small venues from time to time. I'll hold out hope for an eventual Webb collaboration,
especially welcome since Webb has written some beautiful songs clearly influenced by Burt, such as
"The Girls' Song" and "If You Must Leave My Life". Perfection!

Joe

[Rio]

I think burt and Stevie Wonder speak the same language, so they would do great together.

Among the not-yet mentioned I'd add Ivan Lins, Milton Nascimento and Michel Legrand.

A young Brazilian singer-composer who seems to have some Bacharach in his blood is Jorge Vercílo. They'd be up to somethng big... And Burt would be introducing him to the American public.

I think this (see below) is good evidence, but just don't know the jargon to make my point. Either way, I think he is very special. He reminds a lot of people of Djavan, and Burt says he likes to listen to early Djavan (and Milton). I just think he is closer to Burt then Djavan is.

Que Nem Maré


Final Feliz


Homem Aranha
(Live)
(Video clip)

[Bruce Bernard Williams]

My two choices would be Robbie Dupree and/or Todd Rundgren--both have excellent voices and great writing skills. Whatever happened to them?

[An Enormous BB Fan]

First of all, let me say this: I like Burt to compose the music to his songs all my himself. Why would a genius composer like Burt need a co-composer on his songs? Would any of Burt's songs with Hal have been any greater if someone else had shared in the composing of the melody? I'm sure not!

Anyhow, having said that, let me give you the names of 2 people whom I would like to see Burt compose music with if, for some reason, he wished to have a composing partner on a song or two: 1.) Thom Bell and 2.) Diane Warren. I give you these 2 names because I feel that they both are Burt's musical heirs. I believe they both have been very much influenced by Burt's music and could easily meld their styles with Burt's. Also, Thom Bell's orchestrations are somewhat akin to Burt's. It's almost as if Thom Bell had studied composition and orchestration with Burt.

Regarding Diane Warren: Unless I'm mistaken, I don't believe anyone in history has had more Top Ten hits than Diane Warren. And, unlike Burt and Hal, she didn't have a main singer record her songs. She gave them out to a whole variety of people and groups. I believe that she's the true heir to Burt in respect to her having hit after hit for year after year, just as Burt and Hal did. I love her songs, too.

Speaking of Thom Bell: What happened to him? Does anyone know if he is still composing and recording?

[igtmfo33]

Thnx all,

BB fan: Elvis composed "at least" the opening musical theme of "God Give Me Strength," so Burt is not averse to other melodists. Burt was no doubt in charge of the music in this project, but Elvis contributed in substantial ways to other songs in the musical standpoint, from what I've read. Burt prolly did 90-plus percent of the musical content (?) my guess.

Ivan Lins, Milton Nascimento and Michel Legrand. I haven't heard of Lins, thnx for teaching. I don't know what Michel Legrand and Nascimento have been doing since the 60s practically, my bad!

Vercílo. I'll check him out, thanks!

Thom Bell. Wow, and I think the "new Stylistics" including the great Russell Thompkins falsetto is touring near a venue near you. OK here's link to a great Thom Bell recent interview audio from the NPR "Fresh Air" show: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... Id=6181419

Dang, I forgot about Jimmy Webb. The great melodists are like athletes, great when young, then they lose the spark ... the Burts are the exception. Has anyone lost the spark sooner than Jimmy, sorry to say? His recent "Tunesmith" bio is pretty great stuff though. In his defense, once you set world records, they can't take them away from you.

The Mary Edwards stuff I was turned onto by this site is really a beautiful Burt-like musical trip. Listen I think on her myspace site to a number of tunes. Then I read an interview with her on Village Voice or something, she's scrapping, living in a 500 square foot apartment in NYC, if that much. It's pretty inspired stuff, recorded on a shoestring, but you feel like Burt and Dionne put one more album out, but it's Mary Edwards music/lyrics/singing ... her world is devoted to the Burt/Dionne music .. but also she's a painter/graphic artist too at art galleries at least... check her out, a must for BB fans ... a total retro Burt/Dionne unapologetic vibe.

[nymusicalsguy]

A couple folks asked about Todd Rundgren and Thom Bell in the "Whatever happened to...?" category:

Rundgren is still touring regularly and recording, too; his steadfast determination NOT to be a commercially successful musician has led him down a lot of strange paths, but his work is almost always fascinating. Recently he's toured as both a member of the New Cars and the Walk Down Abbey Road Tour (performing Beatles songs) and can usually be found in small venues touring solo, too. His most recent album, LIARS, didn't have much in the way of another "Hello, It's Me" or "I Saw The Light", but was highly regarded by the rock press, and he's supposedly now working on an album of arena rock-style material.

Thom Bell deserves all the happiness retirement is bringing him, but oh, how I wish he would come out of it! The last work of his I can recall was an arrangement he provided a few years back for a Joss Stone album of the song "Spoiled". Before that, he contributed a couple of brilliant Philly soul pastiches to a David Byrne album. If anyone knows of any more recent work by this master, do chime in!

[Rio]

I wouldn't have known where to look for several songs I like a lot if it weren't for these recent references to Todd Rundgren.
Thanks!

[Steve Schenck]

Another name I'd like to throw into the mix is Michael McDonald. While not as prolific a composer as Burt or some of the other fine names others have identified, MM has written some of his own best stuff. And since Burt and MM have already worked together (On My Own, I've Got My Mind Made Up, Everchanging Times), I think it could be a profitable collaboration.

[An Enormous BB Fan]

Thnx all,

Thom Bell. Wow, and I think the "new Stylistics" including the great Russell Thompkins falsetto is touring near a venue near you. OK here's link to a great Thom Bell recent interview audio from the NPR "Fresh Air" show: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... Id=6181419

Hey, thanks so much for the link above for the Thom Bell interview. I LOVED IT! I was surprised he mentioned Don Costa and Teddy Randazzo and never mentioned Burt, because, at least to my ears, I can well imagine that Burt's music and orchestrations would have made a big impact on him. I love NPR radio -- they've got great stuff there. I went to Marian McPartland's site and listened to the whole show where she had Ray Charles on. I love his piano playing (and singing, of course, that goes without saying). Thanks again!