Happy Birthday Neil Diamond

[Ted]

Today is Neil Diamond's birthday.

How do I know this?

I was scrounging for something interesting to say to my e-mail list of local songwriters, other than just to remind them that we have a meeting tonight. (I thought that saying "Happy New Year" was a little too unoriginal.)

So I went to Wikipedia and looked for auspicious events in history that happened on January 24. Paydirt.

I've never been too excited about Diamond. But I know that he's highly regarded, so I have difficulty dismissing him.  Here's what I wrote to my list of songwriters:

The album with which I'm most familiar is the soundtrack to Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I received it for Christmas or a birthday when I was about 11 years old. I could probably still hum a few tunes from memory.

When I was about 20, I was pretty smug about my musical tastes. (Like I said, I was about 20.) I was working at a strip mall pizza restaurant in Glendale, AZ. It was called Best Bite. One slow night this high school kid came in bent my ear for at least an hour telling me about how awesome Neil Diamond is.

He was so earnest. He wore me down. I have not been able to be as dismissive of Neil Diamond since that night--almost 30 years ago. And for almost 30 years, I've had the very low-priority intention to investigate what the fuss is all about.

I'd love to hear the thoughts of Songcrafters about Neil Diamond.

[Facemask93]

Dont get me wrong for one minute that i like Neil Diamond , or even buy his records , but , i can understand why people do , he has made some very good songs , some of which i enjoy singing , and possibly might cover one day , but he has a massive following , young and old , and anyone that stands the test of time musically,  is ok with me

Rob

[Greeny]

It's easy to knock him for his sparkly stage suits and 'old lady' following, but I think he's one of the all-time great songwriters. 'Love on the Rocks' is like a masterclass in songwriting, and the 'first they say they want you...' part in that song where it just takes off and soars has always given me chills with it's moving brilliance. He's had occasional lapses in taste IMO with certain songs, but you can't really argue with a back catalogue like he has. And what a voice... !

Apart from the predictable Love on the Rocks, this is my personal fave. I LOVE THIS SONG SO MUCH!!!!  


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQLWF_ItzYs

[Ted]

I think he's one of the all-time great songwriters.

Too bad there's nobody else here at my work who knows the Songcrafters community. If there were, I'd have bet that person a dollar that Greeny would be the standard bearer for Neil Diamond.

[64Guitars]

Apart from the predictable Love on the Rocks, this is my personal fave. I LOVE THIS SONG SO MUCH!!!!  

I always thought he was singing "Reverend Blue Jeans". 

[Greeny]

I think he's one of the all-time great songwriters.

Too bad there's nobody else here at my work who knows the Songcrafters community. If there were, I'd have bet that person a dollar that Greeny would be the standard bearer for Neil Diamond.

I've never worried too much about street cred! Even as a little kid, I liked taking songs apart as I listened to them, trying to work out what made them good. There's plenty of good songwriting that is deeply unfashionable, lol

[64Guitars]

Neil and Babs...  

"You Don't Smell Like Flowers"
Parody of "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" by Barbra Streisand and Neil Diamond

You don't take a shower
You don't put the seat down
You hardly cook for me anymore
When I come home from the bar
Where I spend half the day

And I remember when your manners didn't bug me
You used to aim when you'd pee
Now after frank 'n beans, late at night
Well, I can't hold it in so I just let it fly
And it stinks like a meadow full of steaming cow pies

You could say "excuse me"
You could turn the fan on
You don't smell like flowers anymore

     

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[Gritter]

He's the Jewish Elvis!

[FuzzFace]

Neil Diamond taught me to play guitar.

As an impressionable teenager I was snooping around the house and found "How To Play Guitar" by Neil Diamond.

I did the first lesson on the first page, where it taught me the D, A and C chords, and a simple picking pattern.

I instantly wrote my first song, entitled "No Brain", and never looked at the book again.

[Greeny]

I hope we get around to considering a Neil Diamond fest one of these days. There are some rich pickings to be had.