Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

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GehVorbei

Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by GehVorbei »

only Dionne wasn't in the country :-)

Stevie Wonder, Elvis Costello Join Star Studded Farewell to Songwriter Hal David

09/22/12 4:36am Roger Friedman

After this week’s earlier memorial tribute to Marvin Hamlisch, it didn’t seem like anything could top Barbra Streisand, Liza Minnelli and Aretha Franklin at Lincoln Center.

But the memorial send off for lyricist Hal David last night in Los Angeles was another gathering of superstars who wanted to express heartfelt condolences to David’s family. At the Hillcrest Country Club about 200 people gathered to hear Burt Bacharach, Hal’s longtime collaborator, plus Stevie Wonder, Elvis Costello, Valerie Simpson, Marilyn McCoo, Jackie DeShannon, Mac Davis, Steve Tyrell sing the legendary “gentle poet” David into heaven.
There were moving speeches from Jimmy Webb, Paul Williams, and famed film producer Walter Mirisch, who will be 91 in November.

In the audience, lots of Hollywood vets including Michele Lee, Sally Kellerman, and Monty Hall. Lots of people who didn’t know each other mixed and mingled. It turned out that Michele Lee, star of “Knots Landing” a Broadway musical comedy star, loves Elvis Costello’s music. Who knew?
Absent from the proceedings was Dionne Warwick, who’s been singing Hal David’s words since 1962. She was said to be performing for the Pope at the Vatican. Warwick sent a message saying “my spirit and heart are there.”

Bacharach, 84, is slight and a little frail, not quite the swinging Hollywood playboy who was married to Angie Dickinson and Carole Bayer Sager. But very much the Gershwin of his generation, Bacharach took to the stage and performed one of his songs with David, “Windows of the World.” He said, “Hal always liked the lyric on this song, but it wasn’t a hit. It was my fault. I screwed it up. The tempo was too fast and the drums are in the wrong place.” Bacharach, never a great singer of his own songs, was the most poignant of all the performers in the show.

Some highlights: Valerie Simpson turned “I Say A Little Prayer” into a soul convocation. Marilyn McCoo of the Fifth Dimension, still gorgeous, maybe the most underrated female singer of the pop-soul era, was spectacular on her old hit, “One Less Bell to Answer.” Jackie DeShannon closed the show with a singalong of her Bacharach-David hit, “What the World Needs Now is Love.”

But the standouts were Costello, who made a very charming album a few years ago with Bacharach. Early in his career he recorded “I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself,” reinventing Warwick’s minor hit into a slice of punk discomfort. Some 35 years later, he still understood it maybe better even than Warwick.

And Stevie Wonder, god bless him: he had a hit in the late 60s with “Alfie.” Now he added literally a virtuoso harmonica solo that brought the audience to its feet. Stevie talked about hearing “You’ll Neve Get to Heaven If You Break My Heart” for the first time on the radio when he was about 12.
Bacharach and David have so many hits, and there was only time for 8 of them, For Walk on By, Always Something There to Remind Me, Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head, and so on, go look on YouTube, Spotify etc.

Elvis gave me a good long explanation of the genius of Hal David later, at the intimate out door buffet hosted by Hal’s loving wife Eunice and their extended family. “People thought their songs were easy listening,” Costello observed. “But there’s no such thing. Listen to the words Hal wrote. If they were easy we wouldn’t be listening to them today, and discussing them.”

Indeed: many of the speakers quoted “A House is Not a Home,” a song of tremendous insight. Marilyn McCoo, who had hits with the Fifth Dimension by Laura Nyro and other famous songwriters, called “One Less Bell” her favorite of all time.

Best line of the night came from Eunice David, a beloved figure in town, who recalled Hal’s proposal. “He said, I live in hotels and eat all my meals in restaurants,” Eunice said. “I knew immediately he was the guy for me.”

photo c2012 Showbiz411, all rights reserved

http://www.showbiz411.com/2012/09/22/st ... -hal-david
An Enormous BB Fan
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Joined: Fri Feb 20, 2004 11:14 pm

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by An Enormous BB Fan »

Very touching. Thanks for posting this.

I'm wondering if they checked with Dionne's schedule first and, if so, thought about working around it. Dionne should have been there, it seems to me. Of course, if she's away for a long period, then maybe couldn't wait for her to return. They certainly wouldn't have had the memorial without Burt, I'm sure. I wish we all could have been there.
maestrofan
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Joined: Wed May 19, 2010 5:31 pm

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by maestrofan »

sounds like it was a wonderful tribute to Hal David in Los Angeles; however, it was another inexcusable bump in the road for Miss Warwick. How on earth could she not arrange some way to be there especially since Mr. David was such a huge supporter of Miss Warwick all through her career? Even if it meant putting in a heartfelt request to change the date of the memorial tribute or rescheduling whatever she was doing in the Vatican (maybe taping another Christmas special). NO EXCUSE for this - particularly in light of the promotional campaign for the new album (reunited with Mr. Bacharach and Mr. David marking her 50 years). What was she thinking? You'll Never Get To Heaven If You "Diss The Pope"?. Suspect there is something beneath the surface going on here UNBELIEVABLE
GehVorbei

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by GehVorbei »

This site is really getting paranoid. There is no subtext; I can not think of two other people who were so unwavering in their support and appreciation for each other than Dionne and Hal.

Dionne's performance calendar is always available to the public and even to the few haters among us here. On the 21st (the date of the HD tribute in L.A.) she was the single headliner of a huge, all-over-German-media charity ball at the Ritz-Carlton hotel here in Berlin raising money to support cancer victims...I was there.

And the next day (22nd) she was one of the two headliners , together with Italian superstar tenor Andrea Bocelli, who performed a peace concert in the Papal Basilica in Assisi that was broadcast on Italy's RAI television. Or recorded to be broadcast, I don't know...

Both events would have been in serious trouble if she had backed out on short notice, she was the centerpiece of both.

On the 23rd she returned to New York and participated in a session of the UN General Assembly in her function as an ambassador of the UN Food Program.

I think it is very clear why DW the performer could not be in L.A. on the 21st, even though DW the human being certainly would have wanted to.

P.S. People also have been bringing up again that she wasn't at Gershwin Prize ceremony in Washington earlier this year...That's still wrong, she was there when the prize was handed over to Burt and Eunice in the Capitol Building and she performed there. She only did not participate in the televised reception the Obama's gave the next day.

Please guys, don't try to create another scandal where there is nothing but good will and appreciation...Not at the time of death!

Dionne at the Gershwin Prize (with photos):
http://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2012/05/pics-o ... win-prize/
BachtoBacharach
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Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by BachtoBacharach »

Wawick's handlers apparently couldn't obtain security clearance in time for her to appear at the White House for the Bacharach tribute. Nothing sinister about her not being there. As far as the paranoia goes, Dionne is in demand all over the world these days. Although her participation in these events in the USA honoring Burt and Hal would have been nice, she's got work to do. Her schedule was already long set overseas when Hal died. As GeiVorbei pointed out, her participation in these events, particularly the fund raising charity events, would have put a serious crimp in the ability of these organizations to raise funds. Dionne is held in very high regard overseas, much more so than in the USA for reasons discussed in the forum before. I don't believe Dionne intended to slight either Burt or Hal. As for the haters, I am not among those, although it helps for those who don't have the context regarding Dionne's decline in the USA, it helps explain why she is booked so much overseas. She is still filling arenas and other venues overseas and I can't blame her for focusing her career there. She's paying for her mistakes as we all do and hopefully she will come clean about her mistakes. I would love to see a 60 minutes piece on her (a la Lena Horne) with her owing up to the poor judgment and mistakes instead of blaming others or sweeping them under the rug. I think that would do a great deal to restore her credibilty in the USA. Interestingly, during the heydey of her career in the 60s and again in the 80s, her recordings, particularly her Bacharach-David recordings, were often times overlooked by UK record buyers in favor of covers by Dusty Springfield, Cilla Black and others. Her biggest selling Bacharach-David recording in the US, I Say A Little Prayer, was not even a chart hit in the UK! Same with many other recordings. Now she is held in extremely high regard there. Go figure.
gillanddon
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Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by gillanddon »

Thank you Back to Bacharach! You only have to look at her touring schedule ... which has been like that for years .. to see she has no instant availability. Despite what you say GerVorbei, with all due respect, NONE of the artists you mention get anywhere Dionne's interpretations of Bacharach/David songs. It seem to me they were all jumping on the band wagon at his tribute. I am so pleased Dionne Warwick was absent on that occasion. It's typical of those kind of events .. all those artists need exposure. I am hoping that a better more sublime tribute is arranged for Hal David which just includes Burt Bacharach and Dionne Warwick. Get a grip!
gillanddon
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Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2010 6:54 am

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by gillanddon »

Sorry! I think my previous comment was aimed at maestrofan. Please look at Dionne's schedule etc and why should she cancel everything and run to a half baked memorial concert like this absolutely cluttered with any artist who wants to jump on the band wagon simpering over the glories of Hal who half of em never met?
gillanddon
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Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2010 6:54 am

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by gillanddon »

Hey BachtoBacharach .. one thing, I'm UK based but I have friends in LA and New York, San Francisco who DON'T see Dionne letting herself down in any way at all. I've asked them and showed them your reviews and they don't get it. Just love her songs.
gillanddon
Posts: 224
Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2010 6:54 am

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by gillanddon »

One last shot .. how come Elvis Costello has got into the act with his terrible voice and ghastly stage presence? What was Burt doing? Sinister the way he has manoevered himself into the final curtain.
BachtoBacharach
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Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by BachtoBacharach »

Nothing sinister about Elvis Costello. Rumor has it he and Burt are working on another project together. And, you have to admit that Painted from Memory was the best work Burt had done since he, Dionne and Hal split. This House Is Empty Now is a masterpiece! Elvis and Burt have sympatico!
blueonblue
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Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by blueonblue »

Wonderful news !!!

"blue"
gillanddon
Posts: 224
Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2010 6:54 am

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by gillanddon »

That's true BachtoBacharach .. I loved that album so that's good news!
doug8
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Jun 15, 2017 12:57 am

Re: Hal David Tribute with Burt, Stevie, Elvis, Jackie...

Post by doug8 »

Hi, same kind of case happened here in Sydney Australia where they try to have it under the rug!
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