Neil Sedaka: King of Song
Documentary portrait of US singer-songwriter Neil Sedaka, who recorded and sang a number of instantly recognisable tunes as well as writing a string of hits for other artists.
Neil Sedaka is one of the most successful American singer-songwriters of the last century. A classically trained musician, he won a scholarship to the Juilliard School at the age of nine and four years later he embarked on a writing career that would see him create some of the most perfect pop songs of all time. Throughout his career he wrote, recorded and sang a number of instantly recognisable and memorable tunes, as well as delivering a string of hits as a songwriter for other artists.
This documentary portrait film tells the story of Neil Sedaka's life and career, in which he had two distinct periods of success. Between 1958 and 1963 he sold over 25 million records, but then his career nose-dived after the Beatles and the British Invasion hit the USA. Leaving his homeland, he found success in the UK in the early 1970s and relaunched his career before returning to the US and achieving new stardom with songs like Solitaire and Laughter in the Rain.
Neil gives great insight into how he created catchy classics like Calendar Girl, (Is This the Way to) Amarillo, Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen and Stupid Cupid, amongst many others.
Last on
Clip
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Laughter in the Rain
Duration: 02:06
Music Played
Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes
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Neil Sedaka
Brighton
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LaVern Baker
I Waited Too Long
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Connie Francis
Stupid Cupid
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Neil Sedaka
The Diary
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Neil Sedaka
I Go Ape
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Neil Sedaka
Oh! Carol
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Neil Sedaka
Stairway To Heaven
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Neil Sedaka
Little Devil
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Neil Sedaka
Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen
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Neil Sedaka
Next Door To An Angel
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Neil Sedaka
Calendar Girl
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Neil Sedaka
Breaking Up Is Hard To Do
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Neil Sedaka
Gone With The Morning
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Neil Sedaka
Our Last Song Together
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Neil Sedaka
Solitaire
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Neil Sedaka
Solitaire
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Neil Sedaka
One More Ride On The Merry Go Round
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Neil Sedaka
Queen of 1964
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Andy Williams
Solitaire
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Carpenters
Solitaire
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Shirley Bassey
Solitaire
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Neil Sedaka
Laughter In The Rain
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Captain & Tennille
Love Will Keep Us Together
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Neil Sedaka
Breaking Up Is Hard To Do (Slow Version)
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Neil Sedaka
The Hungry Years
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Neil Sedaka
Manhattan Intermezzo
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Tony Christie
(Is This The Way To) Amarillo
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Neil Sedaka
(Is This The Way To) Amarillo
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Tony Christie & Peter Kay
(Is This The Way To) Amarillo
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Neil Sedaka
Love Will Keep Us Together
Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Director | George Scott |
| Producer | Nick de Grunwald |
Broadcasts
- Fri 14 Feb 2014 21:00
- Sat 15 Feb 2014 00:45
- Sun 16 Feb 2014 23:35
- Sat 3 May 2014 23:20
- Fri 4 Jul 2014 22:30
- Sat 5 Jul 2014 02:15
- Mon 7 Jul 2014 01:10
- Sun 4 Jan 2015 00:55
- Fri 13 Feb 2015 21:00
- Sat 14 Feb 2015 01:15
- Mon 16 Feb 2015 01:00
- Sun 19 Jul 2015 19:00
- Sun 19 Jul 2015 23:45
- Sun 28 Feb 2016 00:10
- Fri 4 Mar 2016 00:40
- Sun 19 Mar 2017 00:00
- Sun 21 Jan 2018 00:30
- Sun 28 Oct 2018 01:00
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Music Stories
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BBC Music: Neil Sedaka
Browse Neil Sedaka's profile for archive clips, interviews and reviews.
