Happy Birthday, Neil Sedaka!

He's only my second favorite singer named Neil who graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School in Brooklyn. But Neil Sedaka, born on March 13, 1939 (not a Friday, but a Monday), has written and sung a lot of great songs. He is another one who should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, if not as a performer, then as a songwriter.

His best-known song is probably "Breaking Up is Hard to Do":

Another of his hits, "Oh! Carol", was written for his friend Carole King, who also became a famous songwriter and singer:

Carole then sang an answer song, "Oh, Neil":

When the British Invasion and other new music styles came along starting in the mid-1960s, Sedaka went through a period in which he didn't have any U.S. hits. But in 1974, with the help of Elton John, he began having hits again. The first one was "Laughter in the Rain":

Neil Sedaka's main songwriting partner in the early part of his career was Howard Greenfield. Later, he wrote songs with Phil Cody. Other artists also had hits with songs he wrote. The second best known one is likely "Where the Boys Are" by Connie Francis, written with Greenfield:

The best known one is likely "Love Will Keep Us Together" by The Captain and Tennille, also written with Greenfield:

Finally, a birthday song, in which both Neils from Abraham Lincoln High School, Sedaka and Diamond, sing one of Sedaka's hits, "Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen":

Happy birthday, sweet 81, Neil Sedaka!

Happy Birthday, James Taylor!

Happy birthday to James Taylor, who was born on March 12, 1948. I have never been as much of a James Taylor fan as I've been of Neil Diamond, but he has done a lot of enjoyable songs.

What a lot of people might not know is that James Taylor recorded for the Beatles' Apple label before achieving success after signing with the Warner Bros. label. He released an album and a few singles on Apple. His best-known song from this period is "Carolina on my Mind", on which he was joined by Paul McCartney on bass and George Harrison on uncredited background vocals.

His first big hit record was "Fire and Rain":

James Taylor was married to fellow singer Carly Simon from 1972-1983 and sang a few duets with her, including "Mockingbird" (considered to be a Simon recording with Taylor as a guest):

For a while in the late 1970s, James Taylor had hits with remakes of earlier hits. In fact, "Mockingbird" is such a song, having been a hit for Inez and Charlie Foxx in 1963. One such song was a remake of the Drifters' 1963 hit "Up on the Roof", which was written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. This was not the first James Taylor hit that was written by Carole King. She also wrote his 1971 #1 hit "You've Got a Friend". "Up on the Roof" is the only song I know of that was recorded by both James Taylor and Neil Diamond, although I see that Taylor has done the now-obligatory Christmas album. Chances are good that, unless all of the songs on it are originals (doubtful), there's at least one song and probably more on it that Neil Diamond has also done.

Incidentally, I much prefer James Taylor's version of "Up on the Roof" over Neil Diamond's, but I prefer the original hit by the Drifters over both of them. Here are the two James Taylor songs at least partially written by Carole King I mentioned above. First, "You've Got a Friend":

Second, "Up on the Roof":

James Taylor was raised in the Chapel Hill, NC, area. In 2009, I visited relatives who lived in the area. As I drove on U.S. 15 south of town, I noticed a bridge called the James Taylor Bridge. I figured it was named for some politician who had obtained funding for it, but then remembering the singer James Taylor's roots, I wondered if it was named for him. I researched this online after I got home and saw that it was indeed named for him.