Cynthia Weil is Mourned By Fellow Songwriting Legends
by Best Classic Bands Staff
Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil (Photo via their website)
Cynthia Weil, who with her husband, Barry Mann, formed one of the most successful songwriting teams in history with such classics as “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” “We Gotta Get Outta This Place,” “On Broadway” and “Here You Come Again,” died yesterday (June 1, 2023) at her home in Beverly Hills. The news of her passing at 82 was first disclosed by TMZ. Mann, born in 1939, turned 84 on Feb. 9. The cause of death was not revealed.
Carole King, who with her then-husband, Gerry Goffin, was a peer of the couple, wrote, in tribute, “The four of us were close, caring friends despite our fierce competition to write the next hit for an artist with a #1 song. Cynthia’s high professional standard made us all better songwriters.”
Neil Sedaka wrote, “It’s a great loss to American Pop Music, as she wrote some of the standards that will live on forever.”
The team of Mann and Weil was part of the legendary songwriters who used the Brill Building, the New York landmark on Broadway, a few blocks north of Times Square, to create their work. The pair was inducted together into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.
The list of legendary songs written by Mann and Weill is a long one: “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” (with Phil Spector), which has the distinction of being the most played song of the twentieth century; “On Broadway” (with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller), “Walking In the Rain,” “Kicks” and “Hungry” (both hits for Paul Revere and the Raiders), “Soul And Inspiration,” “We Gotta Get Out Of This Place,” “I Just Can’t Help Believing” (a hit for B.J. Thomas), “Here You Come Again,” “Never Gonna Let You Go,” “Make Your Own Kind of Music” (recorded by Mama Cass), “Just Once,” and the Grammy®-nominated “Don’t Know Much” (with Tom Snow) (a hit for Aaron Neville and Linda Ronstadt), as well as many others.
So sad to hear about the passing of one of the great Brill Building songwriters Cynthia Weil. She, Barry Mann, and Phil Spector wrote the massive hit “YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING” that Daryl and I covered on our VOICES album in the early 80s. pic.twitter.com/WNqLm8ZwVq
— John Oates (@JohnOates) June 2, 2023
Weil, born Oct. 18, 1940, in New York City, began her career working at Frank Loesser’s music publishing company and then moved to Don Kirshner’s Aldon Music, where she became part of the now legendary writing staff known as the Brill Building writers. It was a time when young songwriters dominated the pop charts and raised the bar for the American pop song. Among her other colleagues were Neil Sedaka and Howie Greenfield, Leiber and Stoller, and Phil Spector.
I am very saddened to hear about the passing of Cynthia Weil. We were very close during our time together at The Brill Building. It’s a great loss to American Pop Music, as she wrote some of the standards that will live on forever.
My heart goes out to Barry and the family. #RIP pic.twitter.com/DMNPIi27MJ— Neil Sedaka (@neilsedaka) June 2, 2023
Stoller, 90, told Showbiz 411, “Barry and Cynthia had written a song called “On Broadway” which Phil Spector recorded with someone, but it didn’t work. Don Kirshner asked if we could re-write it. Jerry and I were working with the Drifters then. We said, Only with their permission. So we all got together at Jerry’s apartment on Central Park West. We were sitting on the floor. Jerry and Cynthia were trading lines. Barry and I were working on the melody. Cynthia was a great lyricist. She was also a sweet, dear person.”
In 2011, the couple received the Johnny Mercer Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Songwriters Hall of Fame, exclusively reserved for a songwriter who has already been inducted in a prior year, and whose body of work is of such high quality and impact, that it upholds the gold standard set by the legendary Mercer.
“Here You Come Again” provided country star Dolly Parton with her first crossover hit. “Just Once” launched the career vocalist James Ingram and “Don’t Know Much” reintroduced the world to the voice of Aaron Neville.
The duo created scores for many films, such as An American Tail, for which they wrote the double-Grammy®-winning “Somewhere Out There” with James Horner. It earned Grammys® for Song of the Year and Motion Picture or Television Song of the Year.
1966’s “Kicks” was one of the biggest hits for Paul Revere and the Raiders. Mark Lindsay wrote, “I’m deeply saddened by the loss of one of the greatest lyricists the music world has ever known, not to mention animal lover, and incredible human being. My deep condolences to all who love her or are affected by her songs. Have a safe flight, my friend.”
A songwriting icon has passed on. Cynthia Weil + her husband, Barry Mann were a songwriting force for decades. In the 90s, when I started research for my Rough Drafts book, Cynthia was the first person I spoke to. She + Barry wrote You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’, On Broadway,etc pic.twitter.com/zrUS2iNYe5
— Stephen Bishop (@BishSongs) June 2, 2023
From Steve Barri, who produced Mama Cass’ recording of “Make Your Own Kind of Music”: “In 1969 Screen Gems publisher Roger Gordon brought me a song to produce for Mama Cass Elliot. When she heard the song, Cass said “It’s everything I wanna say.” The song became… kind of an anthem for it’s time.
“I recorded many Mann & Weil songs because they wrote some of the best songs ever written. I was crushed to hear of Cynthia’s passing today. Along with Barry and their good friends, Carole King & Gerry Goffin, they helped to take popular songs to a higher level. Cynthia will be greatly missed but her songs will live on forever and we all should be grateful for that.”
Related: Musicians we’ve lost in 2023
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Jump into a conversationThere’s a wonderful book about the classic Brill Building period of songwriters. “Always Magic in the Air” by Ken Emerson (2006).
In addition to the well-known hits that M-W wrote, here’s a couple you might not expect: “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” by the Animals, and “Shape of Things to Come” from the movie “Wild in the Streets”.