“His lyrics often began as deeply personal reflections, transformed into anthems in which millions found themselves”: Tributes paid to Billy Steinberg, co-writer of Madonna's Like A Virgin, The Bangles' Eternal Flame, and Cyndi Lauper's True Colors

Billy Steinberg, the songwriter responsible for a string of 1980s and 9'0s classics, has died, aged 75. He had been suffering from cancer.

Together with his writing partner Tom Kelly, Steinberg penned Like A Virgin for Madonna, Eternal Flame for the Bangles, Cyndi Lauper’s True Colors, Alone by Heart, Whitney Houston’s So Emotional, I Touch Myself for the Divinyls, I’ll Stand By You for the Pretenders and I Drove All Night, originally recorded by Roy Orbison but which was first a hit for Cyndi Lauper.

Madonna - Like A Virgin (Official Video) - YouTube

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It’s an incredible body of work, which includes five Billboard Number Ones.

Explaining the pair’s working methods in an interview with Songfacts, Steinberg once recalled: “I never would just send him lyrics. I would always be with him when we would write the songs, and sometimes I would have some input into the chords and the melodies. But he would do the majority of those things. Over the '80s it just became clear to me that I was primarily a lyricist.”

Kelly retired from the music business in 1990s, but Steinberg continued writing, chalking up hits for Celine Dion, t.A.T.u and Demi Lovato, amongst others. He and Kelly were both inducted into the Songwriters’ Hall Of Fame in 2011.

The Bangles - Eternal Flame (Official Video) - YouTube

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Paying tribute to him, his family have issued a statement, saying: “His lyrics often began as deeply personal reflections, transformed into anthems in which millions found themselves… Billy Steinberg’s life was a testament to the enduring power of a well-written song – and to the idea that honesty, when set to music, can outlive us all.”

They noted that, despite the accolades and a Grammy for working on Celine Dion’s 1996 Falling Into You album, “those closest to him knew that what mattered most was not recognition, but connection – the magic of hearing a crowd sing back something that once lived only in his notebook.”

Cyndi Lauper has posted her own tribute to Steinberg, describing him as “pure genius… I'm so sorry to hear that my friend Billy Steinberg has passed away. He was such a nice guy and very supportive. My thoughts are with his family, loved ones, and Tom during this sad time."

The Pretenders' Chrissie Hynde, meanwhile, said on X: "It was with Billy and Tom that I learned to collaborate with other songwriters... and we wrote some crackers, including I'll Stand By You."