The Burt Bacharach Discussion Forum

Lyricist Norman Gimbel has died at the age of 91 he was responsible for providing lyrics for many songwriters including Antonio Carlos Jobim, Michel Legrand and a Myriad of other film composers.

Mr Gimbel co-wrote 'Where are You' and this song with Burt for the 'Futures' album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXVVq8cLeiM

And a rare TV appearance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1sQB9oYc1Y

Norman Gimbel supplied the (English) lyrics for this Jobim "classic"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJkxFhFRFDA

He also wrote the (English) lyrics for this Michel Legrand song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_Nm9uLHKI0

'blue'

As Blue has indicated, some of Norman Gimbel's most famous work involved providing English lyrics to Brazilian and French songs, most notably 'The Girl From Ipanema', 'How Insensitive', 'Meditation', 'So Nice', 'I Will Wait For You' and 'Watch What Happens'. Here's the highly distinctive and immediately recognisable Astrud Gilberto with 'How Insensitive', featuring in fact typically sensitive lyrics by Norman Gimbel and the music of a composer who probably influenced Bacharach more than any other, Antonio Carlos Jobim.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4x2i2GITQ0Y

From 1973, "The Last American Hero":

Here's Helen Reddy, "I Got A Name", it was a hit for the late Jim Croce:


https://youtu.be/-ub9LolaLQA

Sadly another loss to Music in 2018.

R.I.P. Norman Gimble.

Gimbel's Jobim lyrics were genuinely good. And he was responsible for a surprising percentage of the music bouncing around the back of my brain, including the songs for the bizarre HR PUFNSTUF movie, the WONDER WOMAN theme, and (recorded beautifully by Dusty) "It Goes Like It Goes."