Burt Freeman Bacharach(May 12, 1928 – February 8, 2023) was an American com… Read Full Bio ↴Burt Freeman Bacharach(May 12, 1928 – February 8, 2023) was an American composer, songwriter, and musician who is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential figures of 20th-century popular music.

Bacharach studied music at McGill University and the Mannes School of Music. In the 1950s and the early 1960s he was the pianist, arranger and bandleader for Marlene Dietrich with whom he toured. He teamed with lyricist Hal David and others to write many popular songs in the 1960s and 1970s.

Bacharach's music has been sung by a number of popular singers including The Beatles,The Carpenters, Aretha Franklin, Jack Jones, Tom Jones, Dusty Springfield, Luther Vandross and The Drifters. He met Dionne Warwick, with whom he would form a famed collaboration. His songs are characterized by (1) the use of unexpected harmonic changes and (2) unusual rhythmic patterns and time signatures. He employs times such as 5/4 or 3/2, and frequently goes from one time signature to another in the same song, often after each measure. He also changes keys frequently. An excellent example of his style is "Promises, Promises", from his score to the musical of the same name. He has a total of 52 Top 40 hits. In addition, many of his songs were adapted by jazz artists of the time, such as Stan Getz and Wes Montgomery. The Bacharach-David composition "My Little Red Book", originally recorded by Manfred Mann for the film What's New, Pussycat, and promptly covered by Love in 1965, has become a rock standard. He composed and arranged the soundtrack of the 1967 film Casino Royale.

He has been married four times, to Paula Stewart (1953-1958), to actress Angie Dickinson (1965-1980), to lyricist Carole Bayer Sager (1982-1991) - with whom he collaborated on a number of pieces - and (since 1993) Jane Hanson. He has a total of four children, two girls and two boys.

In 1998 he collaborated on an album called Painted From Memory with singer/songwriter Elvis Costello. His 2005 album At This Time features collaborations with Costello, Rufus Wainwright, and Dr. Dre (who provides bass-and-drum loops).

Bacharach has had cameo roles in a number of Hollywood movies including all three Austin Powers movies. His music is also credited as providing inspiration for these movies.

During subsequent Burt Bacharach concert tours, each show would open with a very brief video clip from the movie Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, with Mike Myers (as Austin Powers) uttering "Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Burt Bacharach".

Casino Royale Theme
Burt Bacharach Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Seven James Bonds at Casino Royale,
They came to save the world and win a gal at Casino Royale!
Six of them went to a heavenly spot,
The seventh one is going to a place where it's terribly...hot.

The formula is safe with ole double-oh seven!
He's got a redhead in his arms!
Oh, he's a lover, when you're in trouble

Have no fear, look who's here...James Bond...
They've got us on the run…With guns…And knives...
We're fighting for our lives...Have no fear, Bond is here...
He's gonna to save the world at Casino Royale!

Never fear, Bond is here!

The formula is safe with ole double-oh seven!
He's got a redhead in his arms!
Oh, he's a lover, when you're in trouble

Have no fear, look who's here...James Bond...
They've got us on the run…With guns…And knives...
We're fighting for our lives...Have no fear, Bond is here...
He's gonna to save the world at Casino Royale...

James Bond...is here...so have...no fear...
so have...no...fear.

Overall Meaning

The Casino Royale Theme song, composed by Burt Bacharach, is a tribute to the iconic character of James Bond. It describes the adventures of seven different James Bonds who visit the Casino Royale to save the world and win a lady's heart. The lyrics convey that six of these James Bonds have been sent to paradise, but the seventh is heading towards a more dangerous and challenging mission. That is where he will show his true colors as a hero.

The chorus delivers the message that the formula that can save the world is safe with James Bond, and he has a beautiful woman in his arms, ready to support him through thick and thin. It also emphasizes that James Bond is the ultimate hero who can fight the villains with his wit, guns, and knives, and he will always be there to save the day.

The lyrics of the Casino Royale Theme song are evocative and full of adrenaline. They celebrate the courage, charm, and heroism of James Bond, who has become an iconic figure in the world of cinema. The song, therefore, perfectly captures the essence of Bond, who is not only a skilled spy but also a romantic, daring, and adventurous hero.

Line by Line Meaning

Seven James Bonds at Casino Royale,
There are seven different versions of James Bond present at the Casino Royale

They came to save the world and win a gal at Casino Royale!
Their mission is to not only save the world but also win over a woman at the Casino Royale

Six of them went to a heavenly spot,
Six of them went to a good place, implying that they succeeded in their mission

The seventh one is going to a place where it's terribly...hot.
The seventh version of James Bond is going to a bad place, suggesting that he failed in his mission and is in trouble

The formula is safe with ole double-oh seven!
James Bond has successfully protected an important formula

He's got a redhead in his arms!
James Bond is currently with a red-haired woman

Oh, he's a lover, when you're in trouble
James Bond is a skilled lover, who can distract people from their troubles

Have no fear, look who's here...James Bond...
James Bond's arrival brings hope and a sense of safety

They've got us on the run…With guns…And knives...
The villains are pursuing and attacking the heroes with deadly weapons

We're fighting for our lives...Have no fear, Bond is here...
The heroes are in a life-and-death struggle, but James Bond's presence reassures them

He's gonna to save the world at Casino Royale!
James Bond's ultimate goal is to save the world from danger at the Casino Royale

Never fear, Bond is here!
Another instance of James Bond's reassuring presence

James Bond...is here...so have...no fear...
Repeated emphasis on James Bond's ability to inspire courage and confidence

so have...no...fear.
Final reassurance that everything will be alright with James Bond around

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BURT BACHARACH, HAL DAVID

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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Comments from YouTube:

@chrisseals6191

2y↑17

Who doesnt love Burt Bacharach? Rest in peace!

@suemccarthy1

8y↑94

ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS TUNE. MAKES ME HAPPY. HOW DOES ONE MAKE MUSIC LIKE THIS IN THEIR HEAD. WHAT A GIFT.

@DanteXE

Well movie was a comedy movie

@paulmac9646

3y↑1

@@DanteXE I know - what difference does that make?

@Phillyfan45

2y↑11

Went to a Herb Alpert concert recently. He played the theme amongst his other TJB material. For his age, he’s still got it.

@losgrindos

2y↑12

Rest well Maestro. Your music lifted the souls and spirits of so many!

@sherryalingod1168

2y↑8

This and many others music by Burt Bacharach will live on for ever in our minds and hearts !!
Thank you Burt Bacharach !!❤

@BaileySEA

11y↑31

So 60's. Light and airy, and fun. I remember this handy tune from Casino Royale. It so epitomizes the 1960's, fun!

@broddybounce

4y↑14

On the trumpet... The legendary Herb Alpert!

@orvilleh.larson7581

3y↑1

Yeah, Herb blew a mean horn!

@broddybounce

3y↑1

@@orvilleh.larson7581 And still does!

@EXPAT1963

13y↑17

A True Masterpiece by the greatest composer of the 20th Century.

@jamesalexander5623

Well ..... After McCartney-Lennon, Billy Joel, Elton John & Bernnie Taupin ....

@jamesfox2579

4y↑10

Now THIS.... Is music to the EARS!❤️

@mitchrawles80

12y↑8

it is Herb Alpert & the tijuana brass performing-very nice too-love the song-glad Burt wrote it-God is good

@BubbaSmurft

2y↑6

RIP Burt - Thank you so very, very much!

@JohnnyNation

2y↑3

Burt Bacharach/ American Pop music- writing genius unmatched/ Rest well sir.

@owenwatson8863

3y↑3

Best part of the movie by far.

@case139

5y↑14

Burt Bacharach was most prolific during the second half of the 1960s. He was literally all over the place. I honestly don't know how he did it, what with so many songs, movies, a Broadway musical, Dionne Warwick albums, and ABC Stage '67. And that was in a four-year period.

@1599maybole

3y↑1

I love his album with Elvis Costello, Painted From Memory. The guy still has it!

@gregrosen9616

4y↑5

This is when Hollywood and the movies were bigger than life and us. That’s gone.

@88djs

8y↑32

This is a masterpiece.

@montgomerydenzer8805

6y↑1

yep

@azharaltaf4952

4y↑1

In every sense

@StephenLyons-tl8ie

1y↑1

WOW!! This takes me back; top tune, shambolic film.

@NewMediaFormat

1y↑2

Totally Shambolic!

@LanceBuckley

4y↑7

My favorite Bond theme.

@bumble1612

6y↑12

Truly wonderful music from a wonderful era....I wish I had a time machine.

@quentin76000

1y↑2

C’est vraiment cette musique là, en particulier, qui m’a profondément marqué lorsque j’avais 5 ans … l’époque où il n’y avait ni internet et la télévision n’était qu’en noir et blanc … ce n’est que bien des années plus tard que j’ai retrouvé de fil en aiguille les morceaux de Herb Alpert avec l’illustre morceau Spanish Flea.

Pur hasard ou coïncidence, mais j’ai quand même eu cette chance, car autrement je n’aurai jamais pu retrouver ce morceau ou cet artiste … d’ailleurs on ne parle pas assez de ces talentueux artistes en France …. Les médias ici préfèrent mettre en avant de la merde comme le rap, ce n’est que du bruit violent, pour attardés culturel, mais ce n’est certainement pas de la musique.

Par la suite ses sonorités ont fait remontés des souvenirs enfouis … et à force d’écouter tous ses morceaux, je suis enfin retombé sur ce fameux titre mais aussi tous les autres 🤗

@die2tri448

6y↑5

Just watched Casino Royale again and it brought back memories of my father taking me to see it in '67. The Herb Alpert and TJB music was an awakening and snuck buying Whipped Cream and Other Delights - Great Music(scandalous cover - HA!). I hope that the cast of the most recent Casino Royale watched this one! It was amazing how close the two movies were with some things (especially the chair with the hole cut out). This must have been a riot making! That's entertainment...

@johnrudemech2009

7y↑15

The sound out of this album is extraordinary. Fantastic wind instruments that wow me.

@bumble1612

6y↑10

Real music from real musicians.

@IMSColoradoSprings

5y↑20

Beautiful!!! The channel separation is magnificent, center, left, and right. Burt Bacharach, Hal David, and the Tijuana Brass! What a combination!

@bernardjharmsen304

2y↑1

Probably recorded on a 3 track multitrack tape recorder. Stereo vinyl was fairly new in 1967.

@Forestier1

The technology was exciting but it seems almost surreal by modern standards. No complaints here!

@StevieB1362

11y↑27

I love all of the Herb A. & the TJB's stuff from this one to the Teabery Shuffle & Tijuana Taxi ! Gotta love 'em. My granddad had his greatest hits album when I was 10 years old around 1968. Man I p'ert near wore that album out on the turntable of his RCA console stereo. Man I was cool...or so I thought. Good times ! !

@montgomerydenzer8805

the BEST JERRY- the BEST

@endtimeswriter

4y↑7

I was in elementary school when this movie and song came out. I was mesmerized by both. Girls, action, bold music and some quirky movie scenes made it seem like a another dimension that could exist somewhere and I wanted to go there. Fun stuff that does not come around much at all.

@desiguy55

the movie is a train wreck. no body wanted to act with peter seller, who shot his fellow actress Jacqueline bisset in the face with a gun blank, and she needed to go to the hospital. he and orison wells didn't get along so they played their scenes separability, eventually he was fired and they had to kill off his 007.this movie had too many directors and was episodic with an incoherent story line, it started off serious and at the end became a total farce. but as kids we loved this movie. it also had great music scores.

@patricknicholson9407

4y↑6

just unbeatable - I've loved this all my life

@larrysmith2638

5y↑3

This little gem epitomizes 60s British pop. The only thing we need are some birds in shiny mini dresses and go go boots dancing. Groovy.

@kerrylester8437

5y↑1

Your right mate, far out man!

@loulou8456

8y↑52

The best Casino Royale by a mile!

@litalsumu188

6y↑3

YES 😉

@FrancisHD

6y↑2

@danielfronc4304

5y↑1

Yes, ....and No, depending on your expectations. However, this comedic take on Casino Royale had half the Hollywood stars in it, so it seemed. At first I was disappointed in it not being a thriller but then it grew on me like, as they say, a well aged wine.

@petermortimer6303

Definite No

@thestalkinghorse

4y↑1

And.. introducing Woody Allen as Jimmy Bond. I thought I would die laughing.

@davicarlosferreiragomes6511

2y↑10

Burt Bacharach, o maior compositor de todos os tempos. Um monstro mais que consagrado. Amo suas canções.

@nhmooytis7058

4y↑4

Loooved Herb Alpert! I was a kid and my parents had all his albums!

@vaderboy121

9y↑40

this is groovey baby

@xxyyzzplants131

You have miss spelled Groovy !! (

@claudehooper-bukowski4206

8y↑2

And you misspelled "misspelled!" Lol

@erikmaes3427

7y↑4

Oh behave.

@vaderboy121

@@erikmaes3427 no if i can help it

@bobbycv64

OH BEHAVE - I can see a lot that went into Austin Powers from this Movie. THE SONG RULES :-)

@future21st

14y↑10

what wonderful music the whole soundtrack to the brilliant film is just out of this world those that dont get the film im sorry for them its pure escapism

@bsambo1959

10y↑30

First of all, this is still fantastic music. I have great memories of this in 1968, when my parents had all of his albums and played them on the tube console. I also remember my Dad's fondness for the original "Whipped Cream and Other Delights" album and my Mom's constant moving of that album cover to the back of the stack. Ha! I recently bought a fully restored Akai reel-to-reel tape deck to add to my system and the first reel tape I found was "Sounds Like Herb Alpert and the TJB". It sounds utterly fantastic. Great music and great memories.

@rahb1

"Sounds Like" was great early album which I never had on tape, but now enjoy thanks to iTunes.

@rahb1

11y↑15

One of my ALL time favourite tracks, right back from when this film was first released. I didn't see it until many years later. Still love both the instrumental chart version (opening titles) and the vocal version over the closing titles. (Also, I simply cannot believe that this was released SO many years ago when I was is primary school! A major reality check...) I feel so OLD now, but MANY thanks to Herb Alpert and co for producing one of the ultimate tracks from my youth!

@cmulwee001

14y↑13

"Have no Fear Look Who's Here...JJAAAMMEESS BOOONND!!" closing theme with lyrics.

@victorsuarez6130

4y↑61

For at least for two minutes and 37 seconds the covid 19 virus went away.

@gomogo2000

4y↑4

Just ignore it, and it goes away permanently!

@davehyde6207

4y↑4

Well put 👍and your right...now back to reality

@TiDriE

Reading this comment while beeing covid+ with hurting lungs 😭

@wavecast64

2y↑2

What's that?

@MrTntk9

1y↑1

@@TiDriEit had to make you feel a little better.

@stumptacular

6y↑16

here because Andy Partridge of british band XTC stated in an interview that if Heaven were real this would be playing in the waiting room... :)

@sjtmbg

AP sent me here, too!

@bradtorville5526

11y↑22

It's still considered to be the best engineered recordings ever made. It's a classic and one of my all-time favorites.

@pattigee1

9y↑16

Love it - the 60s light and breezy, and fun! Thanks for posting.

@fourthcard21

5y↑3

How playful and lively! 💖🎺💃👏💕

@user-dc9dp7xs1z

2y↑1

Bart you still living in my mind.

@peterrooney4037

3y↑2

Brilliant

@remedioslapiz714

8y↑2

i love bacharach songs so much

@josereyangelhernandezcruz

11y↑7

Grande, donde los haya, Burt Bacharach, es de lo mejor de mucho tiempo.

@larryfarsace2519

4y↑3

Ya some of the best things in my life. Love the old school. My like!!l. Larryfarsace in Alabama with Elsie dog.

@davidsouthall965

47w↑1

Best JB song ever

@ralphwidmann8376

8y↑16

I have a distinct feeling that everyone involved in this movie had a blast making IMHO

@montgomerydenzer8805

duh

@PonderousProse

4y↑1

Except for Orson Welles and Peter Sellers...who famously did NOT get along during this shoot.

@desiguy55

4y↑1

Jacqueline bisset certainly had blast, she was shot point blank in the face with a gun by peter sellers. it had blank but still cut up her face.

@missmanners62

not everyone. Peter Sellers was such a jackass he's represented by a cardboard cutout during the ending credits.

@JamesSmith-wp4um

7y↑2

I've been fortunate enough to see both Herb and Bert in concert

@rangiroajoe7372

3y↑1

GREAT 👍

@patriciawallace511

5y↑2

This was part of my world and I'm so glad and lucky.

@lesleydoughty3895

2y↑1

Beautiful music.

@isabelladavey5716

1y↑1

Love this song ❤

@HeyThisIsBrian

12y↑1

Back when I played basketball I was on a team that was down by 56 points at halftime. 56 points! But then Coach Wooden, Coach John Wooden, he came into the locker room, he gave a speech and played this song for us. This song got us so fired up that we came back and mounted the greatest comeback in college basketball history.

@weerobot

5y↑2

Maddest Film Ever...Love it...

@knhird84

8y↑7

From movie credits, the theme was written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David for the intro credits. The instrumental was a studio orchestra with Herb Alpert covering the melody line. Lyrics were written for closing credits which summarize the spirit of the movie parody. Both are great fun, even more than movie

@NewMediaFormat

8y↑2

YOU ARE RIGHT. ...BURT BACHARACH / HAL DAVID. COMPOSED, ARRANGED AND CONDUCTED BY BURT BACHARACH. STUDIO MUSICIANS WITH HERB ALPERT ON LEAD TRUMPET. ...THAT'S IT. THAT'S ALL. ...EXCEPT FOR PHIL RAMONE'S WONDERFUL AUDIO ENGINEERING.

@justindawson5930

1y↑1

I tell you what, my favorite version of this is Bob Crewes, when the singers break out the “la la la la la, la la la, la la”

@richardboyle3366

9y↑58

I miss those days of really tallented people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@rondachambers7080

6y↑2

me too

@DrChaad

6y↑2

I miss the days when people could spell correctly.

@richardboyle3366

@@DrChaad Sorry sister Mary elephant, talented, " thankyou"

@petermortimer6303

I enjoyed those days of really talented people as much as I enjoy these days of really talented people.

@loumelillo1790

5y↑3

So glad I was a young child in the sixties!!!!!

@wagnerpd5921

7y↑2

Who needs Burt Bacharach when we, the suffering public, have Just-A-Timber-head "channelling" deceased Prince @ the Super Bowl?
Glad I didn't watch SB nor the 1/2-time... just heard about it on talk radio.
Well, I think I got 2 scratch my crotch.
Thanks for posting the collaboration of many fine artists in this video!!

@russellcampbell9198

7y↑2

Love this one. Especially as it ups the ante in the middle section.

@rayc.8555

6y↑1

WOW! Such amazing talent here. This song is so uplifting.

@elzorro450

4y↑2

Wow fenomenal 1967

@marilynbrown6711

5y↑4

Herb Albert was and is so handsome! Don’t tell my husband.

@JS-ob4oh

I'll keep quite for a lifetime supply of pumpkin pie. Else, it's Heeeyyyy, Mr. Brown. Your wife said...

@Nemesis7293

12y↑4

You obviously cannot read. The main titles of "Casino Royale" explicitly state that the music is composed by Burt Bacharach, and that the main title theme is performed by Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass. Burt Bacharach composed every last note of music in the film.

@TBCSTARS

5y↑2

I ALWAYS ENJOY THESE GRAND SONGS!!!!

@lesmartinsings

6y↑2

Great soundtrack and a crazy movie.... and thats whats its all about, love it. The best Bond movie, and its not just about eating Royal Jelly and letting your intestines down to wash you know ! Oh Jamie lad........

@Ravivharshanee

10y↑6

Yes Burt, yes!

@BaileySEA

11y↑6

Burt Bacharach is a composer, he wrote this piece. He is a well known composer.

@adelaidafrias7156

7y↑2

A mi siempre me ha gustado la música de Herp Alpert, me encanta escuchar la en la carretera, da una sensacion df libertad exquisita.

@Pluggit1953

2y↑1

RIP Burt 💔

@robertwhiley4733

9y↑2

was a great movie of it's era 😁

@EXPAT1963

13y↑3

@TheNewFormat Yes Burt Bacharach the greatest composer of the 20th Century look up his list of hits they are endless.

@jvdesuit1

2y↑1

Belmondo arrivant dans la scène finale du film!'The French are here "!!!😄

@irmae8016

8y↑4

I remember this movie when I was a little girl. I was in looovvvee with Peter Sellers.

@philg4116

3y↑1

Those horns, when I was a kid, I pictured persons getting walk over and poked to death by high heels. Same for many Alpert horned things.

@vincenzomarino2868

9y↑4

The Best Burt

@JO9450

7y↑1

-super Brass sound...

@randallknapp7528

3y↑2

I love it!

@leticiazertuche5379

2y↑1

Beautiful!!!

@rahb1

8y↑2

Cheers to Andrew Kroger, who first introduced me to this wonderful track on his battery powered 3.5" tape recorder. Happy birthday Andrew on the 18th of November!

@ggphipps1

12y↑16

It is herb alpert playing but its burt bachrachs arrangement and song though.

@nonamesplease1540

9y↑4

Yea --!! Bay-bee-!!!

@hallson2917

2y↑1

Rest in Peace Mr Bacharach!

@rutabagasteu

5y↑1

Fantastic movie !

@alfolv372

5y↑1

totalmente me transporto a mi feliz infancia.... muchas gracias...

@sfgiantsfan921

12y↑2

Will Forte!

@neiljackson3494

4y↑2

Brilliant ... 😘

@windstorm1000

14y↑4

Interesting how musicians/composers influence each other. Maybe Burt B. sort of absorbed Herb when he wrote all thos fun chords, sassy sexiness, and music that could have only been written in the 60's--got that gentle groove thing before the melody factory dropped out in the 70's.

@jerryjohnson28

9y↑12

the best of James Bond

@karajokoo

4y↑2

Wonderful!

@larryfarsace2519

4y↑2

Sue Mac love the song too n love to chat up. He is unbelievable great.

@mongosafariadventure

13y↑1

Your right, this instrumental does make you happy...girls in go go pants

@user-tt5oz7qu1o

3y↑2

Замечательно!!

@kermitefrog64

6y↑3

Great music and one funny comedy. It is a parody of the James Bond movies.

@domjuandeperon

6y↑2

The best.

@rgjerde53

13y↑2

@TheNewFormat All true, but it doesn't diminish Herb Alpert's talents.While he actually got better the older he got, it was his younger self that got a lot us amateur trumpet players (some of who became great, just not me) interested in the instrument to begin with. So I still love his music,