Neil Diamond - 12 Songs [Digipak] (CD 2006)

Neil Diamond is one of the great dividers. But I have always seem that divide as being between those who pre-judge based on received opinion, and those who actually listen for themselves.

This album is the hoped-for fruition of this man's brilliant ability to "find" songs rather than write them. Which means that they sometimes seem obvious. But this belies the fact that they are created through many, many musical and lyrical decisions which songwriters know about, until the kernel is left. Neil Diamond is a master of this art of distillation.

In this album, he has aged with such intimacy and depth that I at once felt he was talking to me. His songs and singing have always had that effect, but in this album even moreso.

"Oh Mary" is the opening song and has that same quality of perfection verging on instant familiarity.

Highlights are "Evermore" which I at once leapt to the piano to play myself, in the unusually low key of B. It's partly this key that brings out the patina in Diamond's voice. The emotion is so raw, gentle and honest.

"Save me A Saturday Night" has a lovely innocence about it that was lost on me the first couple of times. The production is so clear, so pure, and the vibes are nice and natural, reflecting the meaning of the song so perfectly.



"Hell Yeah" was a track I would play in my little tape recorder before going on stage, as it gives you all you need to gather your courage before whatever daunting task lies before you, and is almost a prayer.

There is no reverb, no FX processing or anything else to distract. What is used is only used to hone and bring out what is clearly there. And please read the sleeve notes before you listen: they will enhance your listening.

I was touched and moved by this album, and it is also a slow-grow for me; I had to hear it a few times until I was completely sold over.And then I was. It will not be his best-selling album, thanks to the shallowness of the industry which judges "new" as "better", but it is his finest work. Give it a few years and Evermore will be snapped up and made into a chart-topping hit by Westzone or Boyzlife. Never mind - maybe then people will look it up and have a listen to the original.

Get the version with the extra song "Men Are So Easy" - beautiful lyrics and another of my favourite tracks.

Some songwriting is akin to finding the sculpture already buried in the hunk of rock. It means you have found something with deep and universal meaning - and I mention it again because Diamond is not just "a" but "the" master of this. It is the apparent obviousness of what he writes which, I believe, leads many to underrate him, and which makes him a great songwriter.

NOT ONE OF DIAMONDS BEST ALBUMS,ONE OR TWO NICE TRACKS BUT ALL IN ALL THE REST OF THEM WERE PRETTY DULL, WOULD BE DIFFICULT TO PICK ANY ONE TRACK TO RELEASE AS A SINGLE.

AN EVERGREEN THAT NEVER FADES, HAS ALWAYS BEEN AT THE TOP OF THE TREE.HAS ALWAYS TURNED OUT MUSIC OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY,AND THIS CD IS UP WITH THE BEST

This is one of the best cd's I have bought for along time and would highly recommend it to any Neil Diamond fan he is like a good wine improves with age.There is not a bad track on this album.

In 1972, at 16, I was dragged by my then boyfriend, kicking and screaming, to a Neil Diamond concert. We went with friends, and I was mortified at the thought that someone else might see me there.

I resigned myself just to getting through the evening, but within two songs, I was electrified by the atmosphere. By the end of the evening, along with everyone else, I was almost tearful at the powerful and emotional rendition of 'I am, I said'.

That was a long time ago, and although I still have my vinyl somewhere, and I have even bought a couple of remastered CDs, I thought my musical tastes had moved on. Certainly, I permit myself a nostalgic smile when 'Cracklin' Rosie' is played on the radio, but for me Neil Diamond was left behind in my teenage years, along with the crushed velvet flares.

I heard a track or two of '12 Songs' featured on a radio programme, and did not take much notice, but when I heard the same tracks again, and a couple more, I found that they got under my skin.

Since buying this CD, it has not been out of my car. For those of you expecting the old Neil Diamond style, well, it still gleams through, but this is also fresh and original. The melodies have hooks, but the words have barbs.

This is an era of highlighted spiky hair, impressive six-packs and waxed chests. Unlined, vacuous faces mime recycled lyrics. Watch them, and you will see them shaking their heads in mild disbelief at the crassness of it all.

Neil Diamond has lived, and it is reflected in this music. For those of the rest of us who have also been around the block in the intervening years, it has meaning and depth. It is grown-up music.

Buy it.

Neil Diamond was the sound of an era, but he then lurched into showbiz mode-duets, Las Vegas and music swamped by orchestration.

I must admit that buying 12 Songs, released earlier this year was a gamble and the very words "his best for years" almost frightened me off.

Having taken the plunge I enjoyed the album first time through, and after several listens I love the strong songs, simple clear arrangements and vocals unaffected by the ravages of time.

Strongly recommended even to listeners who switched off Neil after I am I said. God that was a long time ago!

Martin Adams