Breaking Up Is Hard to Do

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
Single by Neil Sedaka
from the album Neil Sedaka Sings His Greatest Hits
B-side"As Long as I Live"
ReleasedJune 1962
GenreBrill Building, doo-wop
Length2:18
LabelRCA Victor
Songwriter(s)Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield
Neil Sedaka singles chronology
"King of Clowns"
(1962) 		"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
(1962) 		"Next Door to an Angel"
(1962)

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" is a song recorded by Neil Sedaka, co-written by Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. Sedaka recorded this song twice, in 1962 and 1975, in two significantly different arrangements, and it is considered to be his signature song.[1] Between 1970 and 1975, it was a top-40 hit three separate times for three separate artists: Lenny Welch, The Partridge Family and Sedaka's second version. The song was also adapted into multiple languages, most notably in Italian and French.

Original version

In his daily mini-concert on June 12, 2020, Sedaka recalled that the song's iconic scat intro ("come-a come-a down, dooby doo down down") was a result of him and Greenfield being unable to come up with a lyric for that section of the song and Sedaka improvising a vocalise, which they liked so much that they kept it in the finished product.[2]

Described by AllMusic as "two minutes and sixteen seconds of pure pop magic,"[1] "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" hit No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on August 11, 1962, and peaked at No.12 on the Hot R&B Sides chart.[3] The single was a solid hit all over the world, reaching No. 7 in the UK, sometimes with the text translated into foreign languages. For example, the Italian version was called "Tu non lo sai" ("You Don't Know") and was recorded by Sedaka himself.

On this version, background vocals on the song are performed by the female group the Cookies.

The personnel on the original recording session included: Al Casamenti, Art Ryerson, and Charles Macy on guitar; Ernie Hayes on piano; George Duvivier on bass; Gary Chester on drums; Artie Kaplan on saxophone; George Devens and Phil Kraus on percussion; Seymour Barab and Morris Stonzek on cellos; and David Gulliet, Joseph H. Haber, Harry Kohon, David Sackson, and Louis Stone on violins.

Chart history

The Happenings version

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
Single by the Happenings
from the album The Happenings Golden Hits
B-side"Anyway"
ReleasedJune 1968
Recorded1968
GenrePop
Length2:20
LabelB.T. Puppy
Songwriter(s)Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield
The Happenings singles chronology
"Sealed with a Kiss"
(1968) 		"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
(1968) 		"Crazy Rhythm"
(1968)

In 1968, American sunshine pop and cover band The Happenings covered the song for their 1968 album, "The Happenings Golden Hits", in which the cover was a minor hit. Released in June 1968 on B.T. Puppy Records, the song reached Number 67 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and Number 56 on the Canadian RPM charts.[11][12]

Lenny Welch version

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
Single by Lenny Welch
B-side"Get Mommy To Come Back Home"
ReleasedJanuary 1970
Recorded1969
GenrePop
Length2:20
LabelCUR
Songwriter(s)Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield
Lenny Welch singles chronology
"Halfway To Your Arms"
(1968) 		"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
(1970) 		"To Be Loved"
(1970)

Though it was originally an uptempo song, Lenny Welch (best known for his 1963 hit version of "Since I Fell for You") re-recorded the song, reimagined as a torch ballad. Welch had approached Sedaka to see if he had any songs in his repertoire that fit Welch's style; as most of the songs Sedaka had written with his usual partner Howard Greenfield were upbeat pop songs, he did not, but playing around on the piano, he discovered "Breaking Up is Hard to Do" worked well as a slow ballad, so he wrote a new introduction and offered it to Welch.[13] It peaked at #34 on the US Billboard charts and #8 on the easy listening chart in January 1970.[14] It was Welch's third and final top-40 pop hit, and his first since 1964.

Sedaka's 1975 version

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
Single by Neil Sedaka
from the album Overnight Success (UK)
The Hungry Years (US)
B-side
  • "Nana's Song" (US);
  • "Lonely Night" (UK);
  • "Stephen" (Australia)
ReleasedDecember 1975
GenreSoft rock[15]
Length3:14
LabelRocket (US);
Polydor (Int'l)
Songwriter(s)Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield
Producer(s)Neil Sedaka, Robert Appere
Neil Sedaka singles chronology
"Bad Blood"
(1975) 		"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
(1975) 		"Love in the Shadows"
(1976)

Five years after Welch's successful cover, Sedaka, in the midst of a comeback in his native United States after several years in career decline and a detour through the United Kingdom, re-recorded his signature song in the same style that Welch used. The song begins with the first few bars of Sedaka's 1962 recording, before fading and segueing into the slow version. Sedaka's slow version peaked at No. 8 in February 1976 and went to No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart.[16] It was one of only a few times an artist made the Billboard Top Ten with two different versions of the same song.[17] Sedaka has credited Welch's song "Since I Fell for You" as well as The Showmen and Dinah Washington as his inspiration for the new rendition.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1975–1976) Peak
position
Australia KMR[18] 48
Canada RPM Top Singles[19] 1
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[20] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[21] 8
US Billboard Adult Contemporary 1
US Cash Box Top 100 7

Year-end charts

Chart (1976) Rank
Canada RPM Top Singles[22] 30
US Billboard Hot 100[23] 91
US Billboard Easy Listening[24] 18
US Cash Box[25] 75

The Partridge Family version

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
Single by The Partridge Family
from the album At Home with Their Greatest Hits
B-side"I'm Here, You're Here"
ReleasedJune 1972
GenrePop
LabelBell
Songwriter(s)Neil Sedaka
Producer(s)Wes Farrell
The Partridge Family singles chronology
"Am I Losing You"
(1972) 		"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
(1972) 		"Looking Through the Eyes of Love"
(1972)

Apart from Sedaka's own reworking of the song, by far the most successful cover of "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" was done by the Partridge Family in 1972. While only a medium hit in North America, their version reached No.3 in both the UK and Australia. Their version was never released in stereo until the 2013 Bell/Legacy release, "Playlist: The Very Best of the Partridge Family".

Chart performance

French version

"Moi je pense encore à toi"
Single by Claude François
from the album Dis-lui
LanguageFrench
English titleI Still Think of You
ReleasedOctober 1962
RecordedSummer–fall 1962
GenreChanson, yé-yé, rock and roll
Length2:20
LabelFontana
Songwriter(s)Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield, André Salvet, Georges Aber
Claude François singles chronology
"Moi je pense encore à toi"
(1962) 		"Le Nabout Twist"
(1962)
"Moi je pense encore à toi"
Single by Sylvie Vartan
from the album Sylvie
B-side"M'amuser"
ReleasedNovember 1962
RecordedLate 1962
GenrePop
Length2:18
LabelRCA Victor
Songwriter(s)Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield, André Salvet, Georges Aber
Sylvie Vartan singles chronology
"Le Loco-motion"
(1962) 		"Moi je pense encore à toi"
(1962) 		"Chance"
(1963)

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" was adapted into French in late 1962 by André Salvet and Georges Aber as "Moi je pense encore à toi" (meaning "I Still Think of You"). The French adaption was first recorded and released by singer Claude François in October 1962 but failed to chart, however, one month later, a cover by French singer Sylvie Vartan would follow and would reach Number 12 on the French Belgian charts in early December 1962 and would be later featured on Vartan's debut album, Sylvie, around the same time.[36]

See also

  • List of Hot 100 number-one singles of 1962 (U.S.)
  • List of number-one adult contemporary singles of 1976 (U.S.)

References

  1. ^ a b Breaking Up Is Hard To Do Song Review November 29, 2011
  2. ^ Sedaka, Neil (June 12, 2020). "Today's Mini-Concert - 6/12/20". Neil Sedaka's official YouTube page. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  3. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 516.
  4. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". CHUM Hit Parade. 1962-08-06. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
  5. ^ "Flavour of New Zealand, 30 August 1962". Archived from the original on 23 January 2022. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  6. ^ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. 1962-07-25. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
  7. ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  8. ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, 1962
  9. ^ Musicoutfitters.com
  10. ^ Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 29, 1962
  11. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1991). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990. Record Research. ISBN 0-89820-089-X.
  12. ^ "The Happenings Official Website - Discography". www.thehappenings.com. Retrieved 2024-06-14.
  13. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Today's Mini-Concert - 7/24/2020". YouTube. 24 July 2020.
  14. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 253.
  15. ^ Breihan, Tom (August 9, 2019). "The Number Ones: Neil Sedaka's "Bad Blood"". Stereogum. Retrieved June 26, 2023. ...Sedaka would record one more crossover success — a chintzy soft-rock ballad version of his original 1962 smash "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do".
  16. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 218.
  17. ^ "Top 20 Songs Charted Twice by Same Artist - Top40weekly". 2 August 2017.
  18. ^ a b c "Australian Chart Book". Austchartbook.com.au. Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  19. ^ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  20. ^ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  21. ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002
  22. ^ "Top Singles – Volume 26, No. 14 & 15, January 08 1977". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on March 19, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  23. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1976/Top 100 Songs of 1976". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  24. ^ Top 50 Adult Contemporary Hits of 1976
  25. ^ "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1976". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on 2012-08-25. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
  26. ^ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  27. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Breaking Up Is Hard to Do". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  28. ^ "flavour of new zealand - search listener". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  29. ^ "South African Rock Lists Website - SA Charts 1969 - 1989 Songs (A-B)".
  30. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 419. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  31. ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–2002
  32. ^ Billboard Adult Contemporary, August 5, 1972
  33. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 8/26/72". Tropicalglen.com. 1972-08-26. Archived from the original on 2016-08-27. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  34. ^ 1972 in British music#Best-selling singles
  35. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
  36. ^ "Sylvie Vartan - Moi je pense encore à toi - ultratop.be". www.ultratop.be. Retrieved 2024-06-14.
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