Neil Diamond: The Greatest Hits 1966-1992 : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

On The Greatest Hits 1966-1992 – one of two fine Neil Diamond anthologies released recently – Diamond covers the Elvis chestnut "Heartbreak Hotel" as a duet with Kim Carnes. This may be Diamond's sly way of publicly acknowledging once and for all what some observers have long felt about him – that Neil really is the "Jewish Elvis." In fact, however, one has to look at the title of one of Diamond's own classic compositions for an even more accurate comparison – namely that Neil Diamond is like America itself. Think of it: He's hugely successful, he's done a lot of amazing things over the years, and yet it remains utterly unhip to say anything remotely nice about him.

The release of these two double-CD sets – which together form a fairly comprehensive overview of Diamond's oeuvre – provides a perfect opportunity to throw political correctness to the wind and finally admit the man's peculiar, unfashionable but ultimately undeniable brilliance. The Columbia set has the advantage of containing the highlights of Diamond's extraordinary Sixties recordings for the Bang label – a small but crucial body of work that represents a sort of Dead Sea Scrolls for true Diamondheads. Tracks like "Solitary Man," "Cherry, Cherry," "Thank the Lord for the Night Time" and "Kentucky Woman" established Diamond's uncanny knack for creating dramatic, romantic, Brill Building-ish pop with touches of folk, rock and a healthy dash of Tin Pan Alley.

From Bang, Diamond moved on to record for the MCA subsidiary Uni during the fruitful era documented on Glory Road: 1968 to 1972. There, Diamond recorded some of his most memorable standards – "Sweet Caroline," "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show," "Cracklin' Rosie," "Song Sung Blue," "Soolaimon" and "I Am ... I Said." His songs became increasingly introspective and personal, though his incredibly deep voice suggested that while Diamond was a sensitive singer-songwriter, he was definitely no wimp. It was also during this time that Diamond started making his reputation as a charismatic live performer, as documented on the smash 1972 album Hot August Night. To this day, he can pack arenas at will.

Diamond jumped to Columbia in 1973 and hit what is arguably his creative peak with the wonderful 1976 album Beautiful Noise, produced by Robbie Robertson. The ensuing decade and a half has seen Diamond continue to establish himself as an Adult Contemporary staple, a middle-of-the-road icon who towers above the Julios or Boltons of the day and still has the occasional pop smash like "Heart-light," "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" (which he sang with Barbra Streisand), "Hello Again," "Love on the Rocks" and, of course, "America." The Columbia box cheats a bit by using live versions of songs – a number of them from Diamond's recent wildly successful tour – not released on the label. In some cases this approach works well, but at other times, as on "I Am ... I Said," one can't help but miss the dry, well-aged power of the original record's production.

Certainly there have been lapses into purple throughout Diamond's career, moments when he played the schlock-rocker role that so many critics wrongly assign him. It could be argued, for instance, that the world didn't really need the E.T.-inspired sentiments of "Heart-light," and the truth is that the new version of "Heartbreak Hotel" makes sense only symbolically. But those are exceptions to the rule. Both of these collections celebrate one of the more remarkable careers of the rock era. Ultimately, what can you say about this Mr. America except "God bless him"?