This hurts.
Cynthia Weil has passed away at age 82. The legendary songwriter wrote dozens of classic hits with husband Barry Mann at the Brill Building during the time of Carole King, Neil Sedaka, and Neil Diamond. Weil and and Mann were featured characters in the King Broadway musical, “Beautiful.”
Mann and Weil as a team wrote the biggest hit of all time, the Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling.” From the 60s through just a couple of years ago, that record was the most played on radio ever. They also wrote the Righteous Brothers’ “You’re My Soul and Inspiration.”
The list of songs for the Ronettes and other Phil Spector-connected acts goes on and on. But their hits weren’t just in the 60s. They just kept coming, including BJ Thomas’ “Rock and Roll Lullaby” (1972), Quincy Jones’ “Just Once” (1981) and “Don’t Know Much,” a No. 2 smash cover by Ronstadt and Aaron Neville that earned a Song of the Year Grammy nomination.
They wrote “Make Your Own Kind of Music,” which was recently used in a long ad campaign for Volkswagen. This song, like all their others, always remained fresh and disarmingly modern. With Brenda Russell they wrote “None of Us Are Free,” in 1993, recorded first by Ray Charles, then in 2006 by Sam Moore and Sting
Weil’s daughter, Dr. Jenn Mann, said in a statement: “My mother, Cynthia Weil, was the greatest mother, grandmother and wife our family could ever ask for. She was my best friend, confidante and my partner in crime and an idol and trailblazer for women in music.”
The couple was married for 62 years. Condolences to Barry and his daughter, and all Cynthia’s friends and fans. You couldn’t have known a nicer person. God bless.
