You were an icon of the late 1950s, who plowed through the 1960s to become an icon of the 1970s and thereafter, an emblematic singer/songwriter for all time.
Your tunes were always catchy and memorable, identifiable and touching: "Laughter in the Rain," "Calendar Girl," "Oh! Carol," "Bad Blood," "Next Door to an Angel," "Happy Birthday Sweet 16," "Stupid Cupid," "La terza luna (Waiting for Never)," "Solitaire" ... and "Breaking Up is Hard to Do" (both versions: one fast, one slow, and each a hit). And let's not forget your collaborations with Howard Greenfield, "Love Will Keep Us Together," which became the big, breakout tune for Captain and Tennille, and the theme for "Where the Boys Are," sung by the incomparable Connie Francis, as well as your sentimental team-up with Carole Bayer, "When Love Comes Knockin' at Your Door," composed for the Monkees. For the record (pun intended), your excellent, piano playing really enlivened good ol' Bobby Darin's pop classic, "Dream Lover."
You gave us nostalgia, joy and memories to last many lifetimes over and then some, Mr. Sedaka. You were also one of those genuine, down-to-earth guys, which is all part of your humble legend ... a legend that has come to define and uplift so many of us, and for that, how can we not be grateful?
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