Oh, Cracklin' Rose, get on board. We're gonna ride 'til there ain't no more to go. We're takin' it slow. Let's all do the best we can. And I can turn invincible if I really try hard!
Posted on 09/30/2005 11:47:13 PM PDT by Walkingfeather
Just got back from Neil Diamonds concert at staples center in Los Angeles. AMAZING show. His voice is stronger than it was in the 80's ( maybe he quit smoking) He played 95% old stuff. I was amazed. If you get a chance to go it is worth it. Show up and see if you can get tickets after the show starts if you cant afford the ticket cost. I have seen him 3 x's starting in 1982 and I would say he is just as strong of a performer now as he was 25 years ago. Just my opinion, if you think he sucks thats up to you.
I've been thrown out of better places than a Neil Diamond concert.
Saw Neil Diamond in Norman, OK concert back in the '80's and I thought the concert sucked. Was a huge fan & was hugely disappointed. Had to walk about a mile from where we were able to park to get to the show and all the 'show' consisted of was ND standing on stage and singing. Might as well have listened to him on tape, saved the cost of the concert, the hassle and some very sore feet from hiking. ND had a lot of great songs but a showman, he ain't.
He may be an old Lib but at least he does seem to know how to "Shut up and sing."
Thanks for the review. I always liked Neil Diamond.
I still have some of his old 45s, like Holly Holy, Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show, Sweet Caroline, etc.
Review: Diamond aims for high drama
Monday, August 29, 2005
By John Young
Neil Diamond worked on his forthcoming album with Rick Rubin. Apparently the producer pushed Diamond to strip down his songs to musical essentials, asking the singer/songwriter to reconnect with his early days simply accompanying himself on acoustic guitar.
It will be all the more interesting to hear the results given Diamond's performance Friday night at Mellon Arena. Diamond led a musical revue worthy of Vegas or Branson, a two-hour, 26-song show played with a 14-piece band. Earnest lyrics and high showmanship defined the big, taut concert.
Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with that. In fact, the faithful reveled in it. Diamond's "Jazz Singer" soundtrack hit "America" came complete with images of Ellis Island immigrants flashing across two video screens while the singer peppered the song with snatches of "My Country ('Tis of Thee") and talk about his grandparents' arrival here 100 years ago. "Red Red Wine" began as slow, lilting country but built up to a rollicking climax, including Diamond's reworded version of the toasting that British reggae band UB40 added to the coda of their hit version of the tune. Diamond closed the set with "Brother Love?s Travelling Salvation Show," complete with his version of Baptist-style preaching about how we're all God's children.
The only nod to a potential new musical direction came during a two-song interlude near show's end. Diamond sat down to play acoustic guitar, backed only by two other guitars and a bit of keyboard. Rather than trying new tunes, however, he dipped far back into his catalog for "Glory Road" and "The Grass Won't Pay No Mind."
Occasionally Diamond's show veered dangerously close to being overly serious. Maybe it was the way he made the verses sound like shouted dramatic readings during "I'm a Believer" and "Cracklin' Rosie." Maybe it was the introductions for songs that discussed thematic concerns the lyrics would eventually make evident of their own accord. Maybe it was the way Diamond remained straight-faced singing this refrain to a song he wrote expressly for introducing each member of his band:
"Brew the coffee/ring the bell/ play it nasty/give 'em hell."
But no sooner did Diamond indulge a bit too much in his show-biz persona than he became real again. His request that everyone turn to the person on their right and say, "I love you so much" earned hale, awkward laughter as intended. His story about when he stuck his legs out of his hotel window to enjoy the rain the last time he was in Pittsburgh was distinctive if a bit unusual. And when the house lights came up during "Cherry, Cherry" and "Sweet Caroline" so that Diamond could observe the sing-alongs he inspired there was no denying the quality of the material or the genuine joy throughout the room.
Diamond's concert didn't feature the great showman doing anything he hadn't done before. He does schmaltz well, but it's intriguing to ponder what new musical tricks Diamond might still have up his sleeve and how they might impact future shows.
(John Young is a freelance reviewer.)
http://tinyurl.com/d7xvr
I could also do without diamond boy. I liked him when I was a little girl, but little girls have notoriously bad taste and we weren't fighting for our very existence at the time. If anybody wishes to contribute funds to the enemy, a Neil Diamond (probably not his real name) concert is a great place to start. Might want to follow that up by giving money to Babs Streisand and Mikey Moore.
It is painful to see him wearing those tight pants though.
And, by the way, have any of you actually been to Kentucky lately? Those may be fried chickens but I'm not sure that everything that is fried there is really a chick.
I'm glad you enjoyed his show. I never liked his "singing." He has always had a voice like a rock crusher and his (intentional?) missed pitches grate on my poor ears.
'Course, some people enjoy the sound of cars colliding, too, I guess.
You are ill.
Well the local stage and casino announcements came before the show, then the lights went down and I'm thinking, my gawd here we go, two hours of shear torture I have to endure...
The ladies began to scream. But to my amazement in the dark, six seperate spotlights began to shine on six different American flags strategically placed across the stage and on the drum riser. And from out of the back as the music swelled came the sillouhette of Mr. Bolton, walking down a set of stairs belting out the refrains of "America The Beautiful". My heart melted and swelled with pride and I ain't ashamed to admit my eyes got a little misty.
Folks, I gotta tell ya, I still don't like the guys music, but he sure gained my respect for his love of country and his appreciation for the country that has allowed him to reap the benefits of his talent and hard work. God bless you Mr. Bolton. My wife enjoyed you immensely, and I even managed a smile at one or two of your tunes. But you will forever be in my heart as a good American who understands what this country can offer anyone. And to sticking to the point of the topic, Neil Diamond has always been another entertainer who appreciates our country and its values. Like him or not, God Bless him and I hope his tour is tenfold successful.
Oh, Cracklin' Rose, get on board. We're gonna ride 'til there ain't no more to go. We're takin' it slow. Let's all do the best we can. And I can turn invincible if I really try hard!
I saw a movie with David Spade where he performs "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show." Can't remember the name of the film. Spade played a caterer who was trying to convince a bank president that he's innovative enough to deserve a small business loan to start a new restaurant. He catered some society event where Neil Diamond was supposed to appear but couldn't make it at the last moment. In order not to disappoint the bank president's wife on her birthday, Spade jumped onstage and lip-synched the number himself. A rival character pulled the plug on Diamond's vocal track and exposed Spade for lip-synching, but he continued the performance in his own voice. Happy ending: got the loan, the restaurant, and some French girl with a little dog, too.
I don't follow Neil Diamond's political activities, so I can't comment on anything but his music, which has definitely stood the test of time. There have been other interesting cover versions of his work over the years in movie soundtracks, too. It's 4:00 am as I'm typing this, so I keep drawing mental blanks, sorry. I wish I could remember the name of the group who did "Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon" and what film it was in -- "Pulp Fiction," maybe? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
My own favorite Neil Diamond song is "Solitary Man."
Pleasant dreams, y'all...
I am soooo sorry I missed this. Really! Well, no, not really.
I am, I said! :-)
A couple of years ago, I saw the Moody Blues for the first time in my life. They were absolutely fantastic: one of the best concerts I'd ever seen (or heard) in my life. When the review came out in the Dallas papers, practically all they talked about was the age of the band and the audience. It reminded me of when I was in college, at a school famous for its jazz program, and the musicians I hung out with had nothing but contempt for Rolling Stone music critics because they said they didn't know anything at all about music, they just filled up their reviews with their personal prejudices and socio-political opinions.
His "The Essential Neil Diamond" CD is a 2-CD set. One CD has his old stuff; the other, his new stuff. I prefer the older songs -- lots of brass and tambourines that are missing from some of the newer songs.
He also wrote stuff for The Monkeys including their biggest hits, Daydream Believer and I'm a Believer.
Interesting about M. Bolton. My younger sister, who is a raging lib,btw, always calls him 'Michael Bolthead.' Guess I'll have to buy her one of his CDs for Christmas.
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