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Cover of Rockihnroll by Greg Kihn Band
Cover: Rockihnroll

Song · Greg Kihn Band

“The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em)” by Greg Kihn Band

From the album Rockihnroll (1981)

“The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em)” by Greg Kihn Band appears on 24 radio countdowns from 15 stations between 1982 and 2026. It was first released in 1981 on the album Rockihnroll. Its best result is #184 on the WZLX Memorial 500 (2002). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #5,151 alternative song of all time.

24countdowns
15stations
#184best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1982–2026years charted

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Greg Kihn Band-The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em)

Video from YouTube (Howman). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

Greg Kihn and Steve Wright wrote "The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em)" as a lament with a wink: the guy singing it is nursing a fresh breakup and grousing that nobody writes a proper breakup song anymore, not the way rock used to. It was the first single from RocKihnRoll, the Greg Kihn Band's sixth studio album, out on Beserkley in 1981, with Matthew King Kaufman producing and the band working up the arrangement themselves.

It's power pop with a pop-rock shine, and it went to 15 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song has kept turning up ever since, in films such as Beautiful Girls, The Groomsmen and Let Me In, in an episode of The Sopranos, on the Los Santos Rock Radio station in Grand Theft Auto V, and sampled in Yelawolf's "Gone".

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

Classic Rock

All Rock Formats

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1982 196 95.5 KLOS KLOS Memorial Day 500 (1982) 499
1996 442 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1996) 500
2002 184 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (2002) 500
2002 1729 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) 2002
2003 1430 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) 2044
2011 372 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2012 375 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2016 415 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2016) 500
2016 193 103.5 The Fox The Fox Memorial Day 500 (2016) 299
2019 365 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2019) 499
2020 396 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2020) 500
2021 353 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '80s 909
2021 449 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2021) 500
2021 358 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2021) 499
2022 475 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2022) 500
2022 233 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2022) 500
2022 214 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2022) 500
2022 430 94.1 KRNA KRNA Memorial Day 500 (2022) 500
2023 430 101.5 WPDH WPDH Top 1015 (2023) 1015
2023 339 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time 909
2024 320 KQRS KQRS KQ 500 (2024) 499
2024 486 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2024) 499
2026 290 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2026) 500
2026 378 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2026) 500

Also listed as: Breakup Song; The Breakup Song; The Break-up Song; The Break Up Song.

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