Singer. Songwriter. Composer. Pianist. Author. Neil Sedaka’s impressive sixty year career ranges from being one of the first teen pop sensations of the 50’s, a tunesmith for himself and other artists in the 60’s, an international superstar in the 70’s, remaining a constant force in writing and performing presently. This is all thanks to the countless songs he has written, performed, and produced that continue to inspire artists and audiences around the world.
Neil Sedaka was born on March 13, 1939. Neil’s interest in music began at the young age of eight, when he would listen to The Make-Believe Ballroom. It was not Rock and Roll, but Classical music that would shape Neil into the musician he is today. By the time he was nine, he had already begun his intensive classical piano training at the prestigious Juilliard School of Music attending both the Preparatory School and the College. At 16, Arthur Rubinstein voted Neil as The Best New York High School Pianist. Though Neil considered pursuing his Doctorate in music, Neil’s next choice became his chosen vocation.
Eager to gain acceptance from his peers at Abraham Lincoln High School, Neil began performing Rock N Roll outside of his classical training. At this time, he would form the Doo-Wop group The Tokens, in which they would record two singles that would go on to be regional hits. But, it was his introduction to his young neighbor Howard Greenfield, by Greenfield’s mother, that began one of the most prolific songwriting partnerships of the last half-century that sold forty million records between 1959-1963.
Sedaka and Greenfield became one of the original creators of the “Brill Building” sound in the late fifties and early sixties when they were the first to sign with Don Kirshner and Al Nevins at Aldon Music. Aldon Music would go on to sign Neil Diamond, Carole King, and Paul Simon among many others, and they became the center of the pop world.
Sedaka catapulted into stardom after Connie Francis recorded his “Stupid Cupid.” She then sang the theme song Neil and Howard had written for the 1960 MGM spring break classic, Where the Boys Are, which would be her biggest hit. Rhythm and blues stars Clyde McPhatter and LaVern Baker also scored hits with his songs. As a result of these hits, Sedaka was able to sign a contract with RCA Victor as a writer and performer of his own material. Sedaka soon recorded chart toppers “The Diary,” “Oh! Carol,” ” Stairway to Heaven,” “Calendar Girl,” “Little Devil,” “Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen,” “Next Door To An Angel,” and “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do,” songs that have become a part of peoples’ lives and can still instantly take listeners back to special moments.
In 1964, the direction of American music changed drastically when The Beatles launched The British Invasion. It became very hard for most male solo artists to continue to pursue their career in music. Due to his many talents as a songwriter, Neil was able to prevail, writing hit songs for such artists including Frank Sinatra (The Hungry Years), Elvis Presley (Solitaire), Tom Jones (“Puppet Man”), The Monkees (When Love Comes Knocking At Your Door), and The Fifth Dimension (Workin’ on a Groovy Thing).
Sedaka found enormous popularity in the UK with the release of a trio of critically praised albums “Emergence”, “Solitaire” and “The Tra-La Days Are Over”. These albums caught the attention of Elton John, who was riding the wave of his own tremendous success. Sir Elton would sign Sedaka to his fledging new label Rocket Records and re-introduced Sedaka to American audiences. The two albums recorded for Rocket, “Sedaka’s Back” in 1974 and “The Hungry Years” in 1975, became top selling albums globally. His comeback was further heralded by two of his songs co-written with Phil Cody; “Bad Blood” and the quintessential “Laughter in the Rain,” both reaching the #1 position on the music charts. “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do” was re-released as a ballad in 1975, and made music history by becoming the first song recorded in two different versions by the same artist to reach Number 1. During this time, Captain and Tennille scored a worldwide #1 hit and the Grammy for Record of the Year with Sedaka/Greenfield’s “Love Will Keep Us Together”. The line “Sedaka Is Back” can be heard as the song fades out. Captain & Tennille would follow this up with the release of “Lonely Night (Angel Face)”, a song Neil solely wrote the music and lyrics to, that hit #3 on The Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart.
In 1995, Neil took a break from composing pop songs and turned his attention to classical music for the first time since his days at Juilliard. The result was the acclaimed “Classically Sedaka”, where Neil adapted classical melodies by Chopin, Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky, Schummann, & Puccini and crafted original lyrics for each piece.
Neil has made many television appearances throughout his career, including being one of the first musical guests on “Saturday Night Live”, two NBC prime-time TV Specials & FOX’s hit Television show American Idol, as a guest judge. Clay Aiken would perform Neil’s “Solitaire”, which saw an inevitable release, reaching #4 on the Hot 100 Singles chart, was one of the Top Selling Singles of 2004 and reintroduced Neil to a new generation of fans.
The accolades showered on Neil Sedaka have been numerous. Sedaka has been inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, has had a street named after him in his hometown of Brooklyn, and was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
He received the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Popular Music / Songwriters Hall of Fame at the organization’s 35th annual induction and awards ceremony in New York. Named for the former President of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, this award is given to individuals in recognition of their outstanding achievements in furthering the successes of songwriters.
Neil was presented with The Guinness Award for his song “(Is This the Way to) Amarillo”, as the best selling single of the 21st century in the UK, a song that was originally performed by Tony Christie in 1971.
Neil was honored with a tribute at Avery Fisher Hall at New York’s Lincoln Center. “Neil Sedaka: 50 Years of Hits”, a benefit for The Elton John AIDS Foundation, showcased Neil’s songs, with performances by Connie Francis, Dion, Paul Shaffer, Natalie Cole, Clay Aiken, Renee Olstead, and Captain and Tennille. The evening was hosted by Cousin Brucie Morrow and David Foster. Sir Elton John and Barry Manilow sent video tributes in their absence. In commemoration of his 50th Anniversary in show business, Neil released the career-spanning retrospective “The Definitive Collection”, which debuted at #22 on the Billboard Chart, historically appearing on The Billboard chart in every single decade dating back to the 1950s.
Neil was awarded The Special International Award from The Ivors, honoring excellence in songwriting and was the Variety Club’s recipient of The Silver Heart Award, for his outstanding service to the music industry and his charitable work.
Sedaka has been married for fifty-six years to his wife, Leba, and they have two children: daughter Dara is a recording artist and vocalist for television and radio commercials, and son Marc is a successful screenwriter in Los Angeles. Neil has three grandchildren, twin granddaughters Amanda and Charlotte, and a grandson, Michael.
Inspired by his grandchildren, Neil released “Waking Up is Hard to Do”, a collection of Neil Sedaka Hits that have been reinvented as children’s songs. “Waking Up is Hard to Do” was a family collaboration, in which Neil’s son Marc adapted four of his father’s classic songs, and Neil’s then five-year-old granddaughters made their recording debut as his backup vocalists. Since the release of the CD, Imagine Publishing has begun releasing a series of books based on these songs. In September 2010 saw the release of “Waking Up Is Hard to Do”. Its follow up, “Dinosaur Pet”, featuring Marc’s new lyric to “Calendar Girl”, peaked at #3 on The New York Times Bestseller List.
Neil has returned to his classical roots, composing his first symphonic piece “Joie De Vivre”, and his first piano concerto “Manhattan Intermezzo”. Neil recorded these two pieces with the Philharmonia Orchestra of London at the famed Air Studios in London. “Manhattan Intermezzo” was released on 2013’s studio album “The Real Neil”, with Neil as the soloist. Renowned pianist Jeffery Biegel recorded the concerto with The Brown University Orchestra in 2016, which was released on Naxos’ “Manhattan Intermezzo: American and British Works for Piano and Orchestra”, which also included the works of Keith Emerson, Duke Ellington & George Gershwin.
“I Do It For Applause”, Neil’s latest studio album of twelve new Sedaka songs and the official release of “Joie De Vivre”. “The album is the culmination of sixty-four years of writing”, says Neil. “This is a gift I was born with. My main objective is to always top the last collection, raise the bar and reinvent Neil Sedaka.”
Neil celebrated his 80th Birthday this year, 60 years as a performer and received an Honorary Doctorate from Moravian College in Bethlehem, PA. This songwriting icon remains an active performer still playing his celebrated pop hits to sold out audiences worldwide.
This will no doubt add to his legend – that of a consummate musician, an extraordinary vocalist, and an ageless songwriting talent.