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
A-side	Breaking Up Is Hard to Do
B-side	As Long As I Live
Released	1962
Genre	Doo-wop, Pop
Length	2:18
Writer(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)
Music video "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" on YouTube

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" is a song recorded by Neil Sedaka, and co-written by Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. Sedaka recorded this song twice, in 1962 and 1975, in two vastly different arrangements.

1962 version

Neil Sedaka recorded both "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" and its B-side, "As Long As I Live" in Italian as "Tu Non Lo Sai" and "Finche Vivro", respectively, further endearing him to his Italian fans.

Described by Allmusic as "two minutes and sixteen seconds of pure pop magic.", Breaking Up is Hard to Do hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on August 11, 1962 and was a solid hit all over the world, 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.

1975 version

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
Single by Neil Sedaka
B-side	"Nana's Song" (US); "Lonely Night/Angel Face" (Europe)
Released	1975
Genre	Pop
Length	3:14
Label	Rocket Records (US); Polydor Records (UK)
Writer(s)	Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield
Music video "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do (1975)" on YouTube

Originally an uptempo song, Sedaka re-recorded it as a ballad in 1975. The slower arrangement was originally debuted by David Cassidy in 1974 on his Cassidy Live! album. Like The Beatles song "Help!," the slow version revealed a song of surprising depth and emotion. Sedaka's slow version peaked at #8 in February 1976 and went to number one on the Easy Listening chart. It was only the second time that an artist made the Billboard Top Ten with two different versions of the same song.^{[citation needed]}

Cover versions

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
Single by The Carpenters
Recorded	1976
Writer(s)	Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield
The Carpenters singles chronology
"Goofus" (1976) "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" (1976) "All You Get from Love Is a Love Song" (1977)

"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" has been covered by numerous other artists over the years, including:

• Paul Anka
• The Carpenters
• Dee Dee Sharp
• Nick Carter
• Gloria Estefan
• La Onda Vaselina
• The Four Seasons
• Eydie Gorme
• Lucy Hale
• Garrett Haley
• The Happenings
• Tom Jones
• Killola
• Carole King
• Little Eva
• Renee Olstead
• The Partridge Family
• Zoogz Rift
• Svenne & Lotta
• Sylvie Vartan with the French title Moi je pense encore a toi (I think about you too)
• Lenny Welch
• Andy Williams
• A duet between Sedaka and Norwegian singer Sissel Kyrkjebø
• Mak and the Dudes
• Damian McGinty of Celtic Thunder
• Clay Aiken recorded the song as a bonus track for his 2010 album,Tried and True.
• Shelley Fabares recorded the song for her 1962 album, The Things We Did Last Summer.

German version: Abschiednehmen ist so schwer

• Anna-Lena Löfgren (1962; she was a Swedish singer, born 1944, died 2010)

French version: Moi je pense encore à toi

• sung and adapted by Claude François (co-author of "My Way") the title means 'I'm still thinking of you'.

Spanish version: Qué triste es el primer adiós

• sung by La Onda Vaselina (1989).

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

Preceded by "Roses Are Red (My Love)" by Bobby Vinton

Billboard Hot 100 number one single August 11, 1962 (two weeks)

Succeeded by "The Loco-Motion" by Little Eva