If Neil Diamond is the Jewish Elvis, these are his Sun Sessions. Timed to celebrate the man's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, The Bang Years is the anthology his fans have always craved — the first definitive collection of his Sixties nuggets, when he was just another Brooklyn punk hustling his way into the business with a guitar, groovy sideburns and a solitary-man glare. These 23 tracks include hits ("Cherry, Cherry"), surprisingly tough rockers ("You Got to Me"), songs made famous by others ("I'm a Believer," "Red Red Wine") — all delivered in that lung-busting Neil Diamond baritone.

Listen to "Solitary Man":

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“Time to Pretend”

Listening to MGMT’s breakthrough song, one might interpret it as being about the excesses of rock stardom, but it’s actually about the duo’s pet praying mantis. Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden told Rolling Stone they got the idea from the insect's jerky movements. The mantis died, but the two bandmates kept the egg sack and allowed the hundreds of eggs to hatch. “We tried to name them all, but they died after a day,” said Goldwasser, with VanWyngarden chiming in, “But the praying mantis dance inspired us.”