Laughter in the Rain
"Laughter in the Rain" is a song composed and recorded by Neil Sedaka, with lyrics by Phil Cody. It includes a 20-second saxophone solo by Jim Horn. Background. The song was released on Elton John's Rocket Records. After hearing a version of "Laughter in the Rain" by singer Lea Roberts on the radio several weeks before the planned release of his single, Sedaka phoned Elton John to have MCA Records rush the Sedaka version to release within five days. The opening chord of the chorus was based on that used by John in "Goodbye  Yellow Brick Road", which Sedaka has described as a "drop-dead chord." He combined that with a pentatonic melody inspired by Aaron Copland. Cody claims to have written the lyrics in about five minutes after smoking marijuana and falling asleep under a tree for a couple of hours. Chart performance. In the U.S., "Laughter in the Rain" reached #1 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 on February 1, 1975 (Sedaka's first single to top the Hot 100 since 1962). The song spent two weeks at the top of the adult contemporary chart. The record was also a major hit in  Canada, reaching #2 on the pop singles chart and #1 on the adult contemporary chart. It was also released in the U.K., where it spent nine weeks on the Singles Chart, peaking at #15 on June 22, 1974. Weekly charts. Lea Roberts Neil Sedaka