| Neil
Diamond, built a career, first as a
pop songwriter and then as a pop singer,
that has withstood the changing fashions
of music, especially rock, over more
than 25 years. Born in Brooklyn, Diamond
was writing and recording in New York in
his teens, though he graduated from
Brooklyn's Abraham Lincoln High School
and attended New York University for a
time. In 1965, he signed to Bang Records
as an artist while also working as a
songwriter. In 1966, he reached the Top
Ten with his "Cherry, Cherry," while the
Monkees took his "I'm a Believer" to
number one. "Cherry, Cherry" was the
first of five straight Top 20 hits,
among them "Girl, You'll Be a Woman
Soon."
Diamond began to develop into more of
an individual writer in the mold of Bob
Dylan and Paul Simon in the late '60s,
and this led to his move to Uni Records
in 1968, where he continued to score
hits like "Sweet Caroline," "Holly
Holy," and "Cracklin' Rosie," in a
pop/rock style laced with gospel and
country influences. His albums also
began to go gold consistently beginning
with 1969's Touching You, Touching Me.
Diamond signed a lucrative contract with
Columbia Records in 1973 that began with
his soundtrack to the film Jonathan
Livingston Seagull. His 1976 album,
Beautiful Noise, was produced by Robbie
Robertson of the Band; it was his first
album to go platinum. In 1980, Diamond
starred in a remake of the film The Jazz
Singer. Its soundtrack was another
million-seller for him.
Diamond had developed into a dynamic
live performer over the years, and his
concert recordings were among his most
successful. In the late '80s and early
'90s, while updating his sound, he faded
from the singles charts, though his
albums continued to sell consistently.
And his shows continued to sell out:
according to Amusement Business, he was
the top concert draw in the U.S. for the
first six months of 1992.
In early 1996, Diamond released
Tennessee Moon, a country music album
that was his first set of newly written
material in five years. Tennessee Moon
became a hit on the country charts,
peaking at number three and going gold
within six months of its release. As
Time Goes By: The Movie Album followed
in 1998. |
