The Very Best of Neil Sedaka

The Very Best of Neil Sedaka
Compilation album by Neil Sedaka
Released	August 6, 2001
Genre	Pop rock
Label	RCA
Producer	Al Nevins Don Kirshner (original recordings) Paul Williams (compilation) [1]
Neil Sedaka chronology
The Singer and His Songs (2000) The Very Best of Neil Sedaka (2001) Let The Good Times In (2002)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]

The Very Best of Neil Sedaka is a 2001 compilation album issued by RCA Records as part of their commemorative "100th Anniversary" series of albums celebrating their biggest stars. The album features some of Sedaka's best-known hits during his days with RCA, recorded from 1958 to 1963.

Track listing

All songs written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield.

1. "The Diary" (2:15)
2. "I Go Ape" (2:31)
3. "Oh! Carol" (2:16)
4. "Stairway to Heaven" (2:39)
5. "You Mean Everything to Me" (2:35)
6. "Run Samson Run" (2:51)
7. "Calendar Girl" (2:36)
8. "Little Devil" (2:42)
9. "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen" (2:37)
10. "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" (2:17)
11. "Next Door to an Angel" (2:24)
12. "Alice in Wonderland" (2:31)
13. "Let's Go Steady Again" (2:46)
14. "Bad Girl" (2:38)

Recording dates

Source: ^[1]

• October 30, 1958– "The Diary"
• January 15, 1959– "I Go Ape"
• July 31, 1959– "Oh! Carol"
• February 5, 1960– "Stairway to Heaven", "Run Samson Run"
• February 8, 1960– "You Mean Everything to Me"
• October 24, 1960– "Calendar Girl"
• March 17, 1961– "Little Devil"
• October 5, 1961– "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen"
• 1962– "Next Door to an Angel"
• February 9, 1962– "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
• January 3, 1963– "Alice in Wonderland", "Let’s Go Steady Again"
• September 23, 1963– "Bad Girl"

Personnel

Source: ^[1]

Original recordings (1958–1963)

• Neil Sedaka – vocals
• Al Nevins – producer (all tracks)
• Don Kirshner – producer (tracks 4–14)
• Bob Pollard – A&R (track 1)
• Stan Applebaum – orchestra conductor (tracks 4–8, 14)
• Alan Lorber – arranger (tracks 9–14), conductor (tracks 9–13)

Compilation release (2001)

• Paul Williams – producer
• Bill Lacey – audio restoration
• Dennis Ferrante – digital transferring
• Michael Hill – liner notes
• Victoria Sarro – project director
• Jennifer Liebeskind – project research
• BMG Entertainment Archives – photography
• Frank Harkins – art direction
• JRJ Associates, Inc. – design
• Jon Bryant, Glenn Korman, Mike Panico, Rob Santos – special thanks

References

1. (2001) The Very Best of Neil Sedaka by Neil Sedaka [CD booklet]. New York: BMG Entertainment 07863 69393–2.
2. "The Very Best of Neil Sedaka [RCA] - Neil Sedaka | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.