Administrative Note: Take a look at the Links section over on the right side of the page. I’ve added a guestbook and a bulletin board. I used to have a guestbook but nobody used it so I took it down. They’re back to see if folks are interested. You can sign up as a member of the bulletin board but you don’t have to, guests can post to it. You can still send me email if you prefer to do that.

People who know a lot more about music than I do say that the music of Burt Bacharach sounds simple but is challenging to play and sing. This week we check out what various artists have done with his deceptively difficult songs.

Los Fabulosos Cadillacs & Fishbone “What’s New Pussycat?” (Tom Jones)
Regular readers should have figured out by now that I have a deep and abiding love for Tom Jones. Most of the rest of Mr. Bacharach’s best songs were originally recorded by Dionne Warwick (as you’ll see below), so we all need to give Mr. Jones his proper respect for this one.

This Spanglish ska arrangement just floors me. It’s a wonderfully fun tune.

Stephanie McIntosh “Wishin’ And Hopin'” (Dionne Warwick)
If he was born just a little later, Mr. Bacharach would have written nothing but power-pop songs like this one.

Diana King “I Say A Little Prayer For You” (Dionne Warwick)
I often sarcastically comment that any song can be a reggae song, but this one actually works quite nicely.

The Captain Howdy “Always Something There To Remind Me” (Sandie Shaw)
Penn Jillette: Magician, Singer, Gameshow Host, Renaissance Man. For you trivia fans, Captain Howdy was the name Satan went by in the movie The Exorcist.

The Stranglers “Walk On By” (Dionne Warwick)
The Stranglers were always a difficult band to classify and this song is a good example. It totally rocks out with a killer keyboard solo, but it’s also got a punk sensibility.