I don’t think any song sums up my life philosophy—and what I think it means to be human—as well as “Alfie” by Hal David and Burt Bacharach. The idea that we should look out for, and care for, others is what ultimately makes us a more complete person. It echoes Jesus’ teaching (and example) that serving others is what living out love is about. The line “are we meant to take more than we give or are we meant to be kind” says it all.

Bacharach and David wrote this song for the 1966 British film of the same name which starred Michael Caine as the title character. Alfie is a selfish person who lives only for his own pleasure and gain, with no thought about how it affects those around him (Ayn Rand called it “the feelgood movie of the year.” Just kidding!). After reading the script Bacharach felt that the lyrics needed to come first and sent the script to Hal David, one of the best lyricists any genre of music has ever produced. He wrote the lyrics from the perspective of someone talking to Alfie and asking some hard questions about what it means to be alive.

The fact that the lyric came first probably accounts for the unorthodox structure of the song. The first two verses are different lengths, then a bridge, and a final section that begins like the verses but then goes somewhere else. And Burt Bacharach set the words to a beautiful melody and harmonies so that you don’t notice those things. These guys were the best!

As much as I have loved this song, I have never performed it (even at home). I didn’t think it would translate to just a voice and guitar. But recently I saw a cover of it with acoustic guitar backing and decided to try and learn it. As I was working it out, I kept thinking about the great records Frank Sinatra made with Nelson Riddle arranging—especially the album “In the Wee Small Hours.”

I make no claims to being able to sing like Sinatra or being as good an arranger as Riddle, but this is my shot at being a crooner. I don’t expect the bobbysoxers to go wild, but hopefully some of you will like it.