Neil Diamond Retiring

So sad...I have ALWAYS loved Neil Diamond! Such a great singer!!!

“It is with great reluctance and disappointment that I announce my retirement from concert touring. I have been so honored to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years,” said Diamond.

Read Here

This is really sad news.  I've been a Neil fan since I was a kid.  Amazing singer and songwriter.  Here's one of my favorites.

Stones would play inside her head,
and where she slept, they made her bed.
And she would ache for love and get but stones...

I have so many favorites, and can't begin to name them all.  Everybody loves "Sweet Caroline"!  I mean, who can actually listen to it without singing along? ♪♫♪Bah, bah, bah..♪♫♪  And the loneliness felt when he sings, "I AM!" hits me right at the heartstrings...His songs are the perfect road trip tunes!!! He says he's still going to be writing songs, just not touring and performing them.
Here you go...

Perfect! Did you know that Sweet Caroline was inspired by Caroline Kennedy?

One of my favorite live concert albums is still Neil's "Hot August Night" recorded at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles in 1972.  Here are the two closing numbers, "Soolaimon" and "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show."  The vocals starting at 5:20 send a chill up my spine.  Good Lord.  It's amazing how a Jewish kid from Brooklyn was able to channel a backwoods southern preacher so effectively!  (Sorry about the goofy visuals in the vid. )

I love Neil Diamond and I am so sorry to hear he is retiring.

Rob wrote:

Perfect!  Did you know that Sweet Caroline was inspired by Caroline Kennedy?

Yes!  I had heard that!  And could he belt it out!!!  

Rob wrote:

One of my favorite live concert albums is still Neil's "Hot August Night" recorded at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles in 1972.  Here are the two closing numbers, "Soolaimon" and "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show."  The vocals starting at 5:20 send a chill up my spine.  Good Lord.  It's amazing how a Jewish kid from Brooklyn was able to channel a backwoods southern preacher so effectively!  (Sorry about the goofy visuals in the vid. )

OH, come on Rob!  We both grew up in the '60's...how are those goofy visuals any different from what we had back then???

Rhonda wrote:

OH, come on Rob!  We both grew up in the '60's...how are those goofy visuals any different from what we had back then???

These are probably tamer.   But they just seem so unrelated to the music.  Speaking of that, has anyone ever successfully categorized Neil's music?  I guess for the past 30 years or so you could call it pop.  But the earlier stuff is very hard to label.

I googled what music genre was Neil Diamond's music and it came up with;

Neil Diamond Genres
Pop music
Rock music
Folk music
Country music
Soft rock

Now, if you want to take his songs and list them where they belong, go for it!  I think he is his own genre...

Good Reading

Rhonda wrote:

Now, if you want to take his songs and list them where they belong, go for it!  I think he is his own genre...

I think you're right! And thanks for that link. Interesting indeed.

I once read an interview where Neil talked about why he went from being a critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter to someone viewed by many as an unhip middle-of-the-road crooner. He said he felt it was all because of a shirt. Sometime in the '70s he played a concert wearing a shirt with puffy sleeves and glitter on it. The next day he read a review that basically said, "Great concert, but ugh, that shirt has to go!" Having a contrary streak, Neil thus began wearing shirts that were even more glittery and puffy. Before long he looked like a refugee from the Vegas strip, and the critics started treating him accordingly. That's his theory anyway. Maybe there's some truth to it, but in all honesty, his music in the mid-'70s did take a turn toward the middle of the road.

He reminds me of my oldest...he's his own person and if you mock that, he'll carry it even further just to make his point!

The first sentence of that article I posted holds a powerful bit of trivia..."Singer and songwriter Neil Diamond wrote "I'm A Believer" for The Monkees." That was one of the Monkees most popular songs, and then YEARS later it was used in Shrek and became popular with that generation. A very talented artist and I can't wait to see and hear the songs he will be creating since he won't be touring anymore!

Rhonda wrote:

He reminds me of my oldest...he's his own person and if you mock that, he'll carry it even further just to make his point!

Good for him.

Rhonda wrote:

The first sentence of that article I posted holds a powerful bit of trivia..."Singer and songwriter Neil Diamond wrote "I'm A Believer" for The Monkees." That was one of the Monkees most popular songs, and then YEARS later it was used in Shrek and became popular with that generation.  A very talented artist and I can't wait to see and hear the songs he will be creating since he won't be touring anymore!

When the Beatles stopped touring, their music went up to a whole 'nother level. I hope it's the same with Neil.

Neil's birthday is tomorrow. He'll be 77 years old. I bet he never dreamed he would be retiring from his concert tours because of an illness. I'm just glad he'll continue his career by writing songs. I would imagine he'll still go to the recording studio for as long as he can...

Happy Birthday, Neil Diamond!

I read that the average age of Parkinson's diagnosis is 60. I wonder if Neil was just diagnosed, or if he's known of it for some time and is retiring now that he's feeling its effects. I know someone who was diagnosed in his mid-50s, but only experienced minor symptoms 'til he was in his early 70s.

Rob wrote:

Perfect!  Did you know that Sweet Caroline was inspired by Caroline Kennedy?

  Neil has broken his silence about who the song was inspired by and for... Read Here