Remember When Garth Brooks Paid Tribute to B.J. Thomas at the Oscars?
B.J. Thomas scored the biggest hit of his career with "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" in 1969, and Garth Brooks paid tribute to the timeless, classic song with a performance at the Academy Awards in 2003, more than three decades later.
The legendary team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David wrote and produced "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," which Thomas recorded as the theme song for the 1969 film Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid. It became a No. 1 hit across genres in the U.S. and was also a hit all over the world; the song also went on to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Brooks performed the classic on the Oscars broadcast in 2003 as part of a musical medley of Oscar-winning songs from throughout the decades, which began with Brooks singing "Everybody's Talkin'' from Midnight Cowboy. Faith Hill, Ray Charles and more also saluted various Oscar-winning tracks, with Brooks' performance of "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" coming in at around 6:20 in the clip below.
"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" became Thomas' signature song in a decades-long career that saw him enjoy success in pop, country and gospel music. His hits included "Hooked on a Feeling," "I Just Can't Help Believing," "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" and more.
"(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" was nominated for a CMA Award for Song of the Year in 1975, and Thomas also won five Grammy Awards over his career, with three consecutive wins in the Best Inspirational Performance category for "Home Where I Belong" in 1978, "Happy Man" in 1979 and "You Gave Me Love (When Nobody Gave Me a Prayer)" in 1980.
Thomas also won a Grammy for Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational for his recording of "The Lord's Prayer" in 1981. He won Best Inspirational Performance again in 1982 for his rendition of "Amazing Grace."
"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2014.
Thomas revealed he had been diagnosed with Stage Four lung cancer on March 23. He died on Saturday (May 29) at the age of 78.