Neil Sedaka

An excellent songwriter, Neil Sedaka came from a doo wop background (working with an early version of the Tokens), sharpened his skills with Julliard training, and enjoyed much success with a number of pre-Beatles era hits, among them "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do." Though the British Invasion stopped the flow of hits, he re-entered the charts in the mid-'70s with a brace of chart-toppers ("Laughter in the Rain," "Bad Blood," Captain & Tennille's recording of "Love Will Keep Us Together") that extended into the following decade. A major influence on Elton John, Sedaka continued performing and recording into the 2020s.