{"id":237658,"date":"2026-02-27T21:04:33","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T02:04:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/2026\/02\/27\/neil-sedakas-biggest-billboard-hot-100-hits-breaking-up-is-hard-to-do-beyond\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T21:04:33","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T02:04:33","slug":"neil-sedakas-biggest-billboard-hot-100-hits-breaking-up-is-hard-to-do-beyond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/2026\/02\/27\/neil-sedakas-biggest-billboard-hot-100-hits-breaking-up-is-hard-to-do-beyond\/","title":{"rendered":"Neil Sedaka\u2019s Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits: \u2018Breaking Up Is Hard to Do\u2019 &\u00a0Beyond"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n\t\u201cI have a theory that there are three kinds of songwriting,\u201d Neil Sedaka<\/a> posited to Billboard<\/em><\/a> in 2010.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe emotional is when you go through some trauma and get it out on the page,\u201d he mused. \u201cThe intellectual writing is when you have a tune in your head spinning around for many years and you almost rewrite it. And the last is spiritual writing, which is something that comes from a higher power that kind of writes itself and you\u2019re channeling. It\u2019s my theory, but I find that over the years, these are the three types of writing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tNeil Sedaka, Legendary Singer-Songwriter of \u2018Bad Blood\u2019 & More, Dead at\u00a086\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

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\n\tDuring his lifetime, Sedaka, who died<\/a> Feb. 27 in Los Angeles at age 86, translated his craft into beloved Billboard<\/em> chart hits, including three No. 1s among nine top 10s as a recording artist on the Billboard Hot 100<\/a>. He totaled 30 entries on the chart overall as a singer, from 1958 to 1980, 26 of which he co-wrote, the bulk with writing partner Howard Greenfield (who passed in 1986). Sedaka co-penned all of his top 10s.<\/p>\n

\n\tSedaka additionally crowned the Hot 100 as the co-writer, with Greenfield, of Captain & Tenille\u2019s debut smash, \u201cLove Will Keep Us Together,\u201d for four weeks in 1975. (Sedaka had first recorded the song in 1973; the duo\u2019s version famously shouts him out near its close.)<\/p>\n

\n\tSedaka initially appeared on the Hot 100 in December 1958 with \u201cThe Diary\u201d and first reached the top 10 the following December with \u201cOh! Carol.\u201d He claimed his first No. 1 with \u201cBreaking Up Is Hard To Do,\u201d for two weeks in June-July 1960. He and Greenfield co-authored all three songs.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Brooklyn-born entertainer tallied his first 20 Hot 100 hits, all on RCA Victor, through 1966. Sedaka returned in 1974, on Rocket Records \u2014 which Elton John had co-founded the year before \u2014 with \u201cBad Blood.\u201d The song led for a week in February 1975. He reigned again for three weeks that October with \u201cBad Blood,\u201d which includes John on backing vocals. He co-wrote both tracks with Phil Cody.<\/p>\n

\n\tSedaka last reached the Hot 100\u2019s top 10 with a slowed-down interpretation of \u201cBreaking Up Is Hard To Do,\u201d which hit No. 8 in 1976.<\/p>\n

\n\tSedaka charted his last Hot 100 title with the Elektra Records single \u201cShould\u2019ve Never Let You Go\u201d \u2014 a duet with his daughter, Dara. It rose to No. 19 in 1980.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn his 2010 Billboard<\/em> Q&A, Sedaka shared his belief that a tenet of creating hit songs is to \u201cwrite something that\u2019s not predictable, something that has turns and twists. Simple is the hardest to write, but if you have a surprise in the song lyrically or melodically, you\u2019re ahead of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIn honor of Sedaka\u2019s chart legacy, below is a recap of his 10 biggest Hot 100 hits.<\/p>\n

\n\tNeil Sedaka\u2019s Biggest Billboard Hot 100 hits chart is based on actual performance on the weekly Billboard Hot 100, through the Feb. 28, 2026, ranking. Songs are ranked based on an inverse point system, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at No. 100 earning the least. Due to changes in chart methodology over the years, eras are weighted to account for different chart turnover rates over various periods.<\/em><\/p>\n