This arrived recently from Pablo…
“Sorry I waited so long to tell you this, but the upcoming Mike Myers movie “Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery” features a cameo by Burt himself singing “What The World Needs Now” atop a converted double decker bus whizzing through Las Vegas at night, he’s serenading Myers and his costar Elizabeth Hurley. Myers is a huge Bacharach fan and he invited Burt who recorded a special solo “Vocal and Piano only” version exclusively for the film. The film is about a swingin sixties photographer/ spy who is frozen in the sixties and thawed out in the nineties.

It sounds like it’s going to be great for retro fans and Peter Sellers devotees. Myers plays two roles, Austin Powers and his own nemesis, Dr Evil.”

Stephen Sidoruk of the A&M Fan Network wrote to inform me that Burt and Hal will receive Trustees Awards at this years Grammy Awards.

Also receiving Trustees Awards are Herb “A” Alpert and Jerry “M” Moss. Congrats to all four, together responsible for some of the best music of the ’60s and ’70s.

I just got a message from wr ite

r Paul Zollo, the editor of the journal of the National Academy of Songwriters, that he has finally confirmed an interview with Burt for tomorrow–Feb. 14, 1997, at 12:30 pm PST. He asked me to invite all the FOBs (“Fans of Burt”) out there to submit questions for him to ask Burt, so if there’s one question you’ve been dying to ask The Man, write to Paul in a hurry and maybe he’ll ask it.

Greetings and salutations to everyone out there in the world of Burt!

Once again, I apologize for not updating A House Is Not A Homepage as frequently as I should be, but I hope to devote a significant portion of time to it this month. Today, I added some of the Bacharach Top Ten lists I’ve received in recent months–not all of them thought, so if you sent one in and it isn’t listed, don’t fret just yet.

Also, Joyce Millman of Salon, an online magazine of essays about popular culture, wrote to alert me to a Valentine’s Day tribute to Burt she authored for that site.

And, finally, is the world ready for the Bacharachs? Comprising five young lads and lasses from Denmark, the Bacharachs are an easy listening band that plays nothing but songs by Mr. Bacharach. Their Web site is http://www.cybercity.dk/users/ccc8237/home.html. .

Alec Cumming wrote to say the schedule for the Burt and Dionne AMC concert (Eastern Time): 11 PM 12/31 & 2 AM 1/1/97, so now might be good time to start learning how to use that VCR-Plus feature you paid so much for a couple of years ago …

Did anyone happen to see my homeboy Harry Connick Jr.’s rendition of “This Guy’s In Love With You” on “The Late Show with David Letterman” last night? Connick’s version is included on the soundtrack to the film “One Fine Day,” starring George Clooney and Michelle Pheifer.

Sorry I’ve been so negligent with maintaining the page recently, but you don’t get a paycheck for a hobby, now, do you? Lest you think there’s been no news in the world of Burt, Alec Cumming writes the following:

· On January 1st, New Years Day 1997, AMC (the American Movie Classics cable network) will be showing a 60-minute live performance of Burt Bacharach and Dionne Warwick!…It’s the inaugural telecast of AMC IN CONCERT AT THE RAINBOW ROOM, and it’s also designed to help “launch” AMC’s new spinoff cable network – “Romance Classics”.

Burt and Dionne taped the special at the Rockefeller Center nightclub on November 17th, 1996, with a full pop orchestra, a black-tie audience, and a glittering Manhattan skyline as a backdrop. The show is a slightly shortened version of their current live act, with a bit more emphasis on the movie songs Burt wrote. If you’ve never seen their live act, this show will blow you away. Meanwhile, there are more live gigs ahead for Burt and Dionne starting shortly after the new year…..

· As reported earlier, City Center’s ENCORES! series in New York City will be presenting the first revival (in a very long time) of Burt and Hal’s one and only musical – PROMISES, PROMISES. The concept behind the Encores! series is to present overlooked musicals in a kind of a workshop format; if one of the shows does well (as did last year’s CHICAGO), the show may be revived for a full Broadway treatment.

There are only 6 performances: Thursday 2/13/96 & Friday 2/14 (8 pm), Saturday 2/15 (2 pm & 8 pm) and Sunday 2/16 (6:30 PM). Tickets are available through CitiTix at 212-581-1212 (although that number is for the full 3-show ENCORES! subscription; you can only buy tickets by phone for an individual show after January 12.)

Both Bacharach and Broadway-music enthusiasts are keeping their fingers crossed that this revival will (at the least) inspire the long- awaited re-release of the original cast recording of PROMISES, PROMISES…

· Movie viewers watching THE FIRST WIVES CLUB are getting to hear Dionne Warwick’s version of Bacharach/David’s infamous and politically incorrect classic – “Wives and Lovers”!
–Alec Cumming

And thanks to the fabulous generosity of both Robbie Leff and Roberto Pinardi, I now have in my possession a copy of the soundtrack to Burt’s 1960s TV musical ON THE FLIPSIDE, starring none other than the great Ricky Nelson.

If anyone is interested in obtaining a copy, write me and I’ll see what I can do ;).

There are articles about Burt in the December 1996 Musician (with Phish on the cover) and the October 1996 Vanity Fair, “Pop, In the Name of Love,” in which Burt talks about the possibility of recording an album with Elvis Costello.

Definitely worth keeping tabs on.

Robbie Leff just sent me a few pictures from his personal collection, including a scan of the sleeve from the rare “On the Flipside,” Burt and Hal’s TV musical starring Rick Nelson.

There’s a Q&A with Burt in the October issue of Us magazine (Julia Roberts cover).