Neil Sedaka is 84 years old and he still looks great

Neil Sedaka has been married to his true love for nearly 61 years, therefore he doesn’t have a lot of experience when it comes to saying that “Breaking Up is Hard to Do.”

The charming “down doobie do down down” singer, who recently celebrated his 84th birthday and charmed hearts with his songs, is gushing about his grandchildren and is overjoyed to have been “born married to his wife.”

Flickr / Bradford Timeline

How could Neil Sedaka be loved by anyone? The amazing vocalist has blessed us with his voice and presence for many years. He has given us so much.

Naturally gifted, Neil Sedaka has written and recorded some of the most memorable songs in musical history. However, he once admitted that he was shy around public singing as a child.

Sedaka said, “I was embarrassed because my voice was so high, even though I knew it was remarkable.” “But the rabbi cried when I sang at my bar mitzvah.”

The pianist, who had received classical training and was enrolled in Julliard’s Preparatory for Children’s Saturday scholarship program at the age of 13, teamed up with 16-year-old Howard Greenfield to write music for Sedaka’s school band, the Linc-Tones, which would eventually change its name to the Tokens.

Flickr / Brett Jordan

Operating out of the iconic Brill Building in New York, the pair went on to pen number-one singles including “Breaking up is Hard to do” by Sedaka, “Love will keep us Together” by Captain & Tenille, and “Stupid Cupid” by Connie Francis.

“We didn’t have a window, but our cubicle had a piano and a bench. Sedaka remarked, “You only got a room with a window after you’d had a hit song,” and mentioned that the two were making $50 per week. We used to write every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and then perform our writing for representatives of record labels. It was challenging, but the instruction was excellent.

Inspired by his high school lover Carole King, he was the first person at the facility to record his own compositions and become the first to have his hit song “Oh! Carol” (1959) enter the Top 10.

Greenfield, who was openly gay, worked with Sedaka until the middle of the 1970s. In 1986, Greenfield passed away due to consequences from AIDS.

Regarding Sedaka, he departed The Tokens at the age of 19, just before the group achieved its greatest success in 1961 with the songs “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” and “Tonight I Fell in Love.”

NEW YORK – CIRCA 1956: The Linc-Tones aka The Tokens (L-R Hank Medress, Cynthia Zolotin, Neil Sedaka and Eddie Rabkin at top) pose for a portrait circa 1956 in New York City, New York. (Photo by James Kriegsmann/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

His first three solo albums did not chart, but one song got him an appearance on American Bandstand alongside Dick Clark, and shortly after that he signed a record deal.

His first hit single was “The Diary”–a song inspired by Connie Francis’ diary because Sedaka really wanted “to look into that little book”–that peaked at 14 in the Billboard Top 100 in 1958. In 1960, Sedaka released “Calendar Girl,” his sixth hit in two years, and his popularity was reaching massive heights.

In 1962, he married Leba Strassberg, whom he met while performing at the now abandoned Esther Manor resort in the Catskills Mountains, NY.

The resort was co-owned by Leba’s mother, Esther, a businesswoman who wasn’t fond of her daughter being courted by a lowly musician.

Wikipedia Commons / AVRO

Despite Esther’s disapproval, the couple stayed together, all the while dealing with another meddling mom, Eleanor Sedaka.

Earlier confessing that she rode rollercoasters when she was pregnant with him, hoping to miscarry, Eleanor was also pushing her son into pursuing a career as a classical pianist, and not as a pop star.

“She soon changed her mind when I got a royalty cheque for $62,000 for “Stupid Cupid.” My father was a taxi driver and never made more than $10,000 a year,” Sedaka said, adding that he made the mistake of giving the money to his mom, who along with her lover later controlled most of his rights as an artist, including his royalties and finances.

“My father knew about him and accepted him so after the initial shock so did I. I even understood it, in a way. My parents lived in two rooms with nine other relatives and my dad was very thrifty whereas the other man bought her jewels and furs and took her to nice places.” He continued, “Only they were living the high life on my money. They went through hundreds of thousands of dollars. I couldn’t pay my taxes, nothing. My wife and I had to start from scratch.”

Firing his mother’s boyfriend, Sedaka explained that Eleanor almost overdosed on sleeping pills “because she couldn’t stand to see her son and her lover at odds. She said she didn’t realise it was my money they were spending. I didn’t speak to her for a year.”

Wikipedia Commons / Carl Lender

It was in that time that his loyal wife became his new manager.

Just as he was poised to make some money, The Beatles came around and disrupted Sedaka’s popularity.

Though he continued writing music for others, his waning chart appeal in the U.S. motivated him to move Leba and their children, Dara and Marc, to London, the hot spot of hit makers.

Referring to his slide in fame, Sedaka said: “Well, I used to walk down the street and people asked, ‘Didn’t you used to be Neil Sedaka?’ I said, ‘well, I’m still Neil Sedaka, you haven’t heard the last of me.’ I had to change my style. It was the early ‘70s, and I met a guy by the name of Elton John. Did you ever hear of him?”

Sedaka, who met the singer of “I’m Still Standing” at a London party, said he was asked to sign with John’s former label, the Rocket Record Company.

And, as the label suggests, Sedaka’s fame skyrocketed with 1974’s album “Sedaka’s Back”–the first of three albums with Elton John–and the singer was again charting hits in the U.S.

Shutterstock

In 1983, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and he later received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In 2003, he appeared as a guest judge on American Idol, where season two runner-up Clay Aiken later recorded and released Sedaka’s 1972 song “Solitaire,” that became the top selling single of 2004.

During COVID, Sedaka started releasing mini concerts through his social media to keep fans entertained, and last September for his 60th anniversary with Leba, he shared a special concert with three songs he composed for her. The heart-warming tribute reads: “I’d like to dedicate today’s mini-concert to my beautiful wife, Leba. In September, we will be celebrating our 60th Anniversary. Here are three songs especially written for Leba!”

In early May, Sedaka posted a video on his Facebook, announcing that he joined the Cameo family. He shared that he looks forward to taking requests for birthdays, anniversaries, or any special occasion where he can deliver a special message. He ended the short clip with a few bars of “Breaking Up is Hard to Do,” and fans praised him. One said, “Been listening to your songs since I was a teenager, I’m now 75 and love your music! Please don’t stop!!”

Another fan wrote a thoughtful message that many can relate: “Dear Neil, your songs brighten up the day. I often find myself humming melodies you created…as if they have become a part of me. Thank you for the joy you bring to the world!”

While he continues to bring joy to everyone who hears his music, Sedaka is mostly focused on his wife and family.

LOS ANGELES, CA – MARCH 11: Neil Sedaka is seen at Craig’s restaurant on March 11, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by JOCE/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

“I was born married… if you’re lucky to have that companion that does it for you, that’s a great gift,” said Sedaka, a devoted grandfather of three, including one set of twins.

As for their kids, Dara (born 1963) is an actress and singer known for movies like Where the Boys Are, and Marc (born 1967) is a writer and editor for TV and film.

Referencing his successful career, Sedaka said, “I could have been bigger but I wasn’t controversial enough. I didn’t do drugs or wreck rooms. There were no dramas in my private life…I had talent and I was hungry for fame, and you can’t say I didn’t get it.”

LOS ANGELES, CA – APRIL 21: Neil Sedaka is seen on April 21, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by jfizzy/Star Max/GC Images)

It’s so inspiring that Neil Sedaka and Leba have been married for so many years, not allowing fame the opportunity to divide their beautiful relationship.

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