Burt Bacharach unleashes his X-rated lyrics (anti-administration song)

Burt Bacharach unleashes his X-rated lyrics

Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith


With the "explicit" version of his "Who Are These People?" song now hitting iTunes with his full approval, legendary songwriter Burt Bacharach is facing a fresh wave of controversy. This version of his anti-administration song features Elvis Costello wailing an expletive at the end.

Bacharach already won Grammy honors for his highly political "At This Time" album, which contains "Who Are These People?" However, the version of the song that went out on CD was "settling," says Bacharach, explaining that "there were mixed feelings in the record company (Columbia) about me, of all people, having something X-rated. "And the feeling was, 'You're already saying so much about your feelings, why keep the record out of Wal-Mart because of that line?' Not that it's in Wal-Mart."

He adds, "When I told Elvis, 'We're going to have to change it,' he was very upset because it's such a powerful moment. You've never heard that word like Elvis does it.' "

Bacharach insists the reason the second version is coming out now is that "things have gotten worse, with more lies, even in the last few weeks. People think we're doing it for sensationalism. No. I don't like to offend. My nature is to try to please everybody," says the septuagenarian music man, who reminds that all through the Vietnam War, he was writing love songs. "What's going on now caught me. I felt I had to say something."


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