203 Hello Neil Diamond - Cracklin Rosie

Chart  entered : 7  November  1970

Chart  peak : 3

Number  of  hits : 14

As  an  artist  Neil  has  had  a  surprisingly  modest  haul  of  hits  to  say  he's  been  around  for  so  long.

Neil  Diamond  was  born  Neil  Diamond  - Noah  Kaminsky  was  merely  a  stage  name  he  once  toyed  with - in  Brooklyn  in  1941. He  took  up  fencing  as  a  youth  and  made  the  1960  national  championships. He  had  ambitions  to  go  into  medical  research  but  got  a  lucrative  songwriting  deal  before  he  graduated  from  New  York  University.

He  first  recorded  in  1962 as  part  of  a  duo  Neil  and  Jack  with  a  high  school  friend  Jack Peter. He  wrote  their  first  single  "You  Are  My  Love  At  Last"  which  was  released  in  March 1962. It  sounds  like  the  theme  to  an  epic  Western  with  its  stirring  strings  and  was  a  confident  though  unsuccessful  start  for  the  young  singer. The  follow-up  was  "I'm  Afraid"  which  sounds  like  an  amateur  attempt  to  sound  like  the  Everly  Brothers; the  strained  vocals  an  clumsy  production  make  it  an  uncomfortable  listen.

Neil  and  Jack  went  their  separate  ways  and  Neil  signed  for  Columbia  as  a  solo  artist  in 1963.  He  put  out  the  single  "At  Night"  in  July  1963  which  he  later  described  as  "me  trying  to  be  Neil  Sedaka.... and  not  even  coming  close". In  fairness  it's  a  reasonable  stab  at  Brill  Building  pop  with  melodic  similarities  to  Blue  Moon  and  a  nice  mariachi  trumpet  in  the  instrumental  break  but  his  voice  isn't  really  suited  to  the  material.

Columbia  were  not  interested  in  extending  the  contract  and  Neil  disappeared  into  the  Brill Building  to  work  on  his  songs. His  first  hit  as  a  writer  came  two  years  later  with  Jay  and the Americans' Sunday  And  Me.  This  renewed  interest  in  him  as  a  performer  and  he  got  a deal  with  Bang  Records  in  1966.

His  first  single  release  for  them  was  the  classic  "Solitary  Man", surprisingly  under-appreciated in  the  UK  where  it  wasn't  a  hit  for  anyone until  Finnish  rockers  HIM  took  it  to  number  9  in  2004. Starting  with  a  descending  guitar  jangle  Neil  sets  up  his  stoic  loner  persona  with  a  tale  of  betrayal  and  doubt,  told  with  devastating  terseness - "Me  and  Sue, that  died  too" - and  the  realisation  that  the  ideal  relationship  might  never  happen  for  him . Neil's  morose  tones  are  underscored  by  sympathetic  brass, at first  upbeat  and  jaunty  as  he  contemplates  happiness  then  sad  and  slow  to  match  current  reality. It  was  his first  US  hit  peaking  at  55  first  time  round  then  21  when  reissued  in  1970.

After  that  the  loosely-structured  good  time  groove  of  "Cherry  Cherry"  seems  like  a  disappointment  although  it  was  a  much  bigger  hit  ( number  6 ).  It's  still  an  effective  pop  record  with  its  Latino  breaks  effectively  the  chorus  and  Neil  growling  the  sexual  come -ons  in  the  lyric. His  first  album  "The  Feel  Of  Neil  Diamond "  came  out  shortly  afterwards  and  made  a  minor  impression  on  the  charts.  Half  the  songs  are  undistinguished  covers  but  "Love  To  Love"  ( later  covered  by  The  Monkees )  is  pretty  good  , better  than  "Oh  No  No"  which  was  issued  as  a  third  single  under  the  title  "I  Got  The  Feelin"  and  is  a  routine  sub-Righteous  Brothers  big  ballad.  Nevertheless  it  got  to  number  16. The  B-side  was  "The  Boat  That  I  Row", a  big  UK  hit  when  covered  by  Lulu  the  following  year.

In  February  1967  he  chalked  up  another  hit  ( number  18  ) with  the  early  Stones  R & B  groove  of  "You  Got  To  Me"  then  two  months  later  unleashed  his  next  classic , "Girl, You'll Be  A  Woman  Soon",  a  dark  ballad  about  fighting  against  parental  disapproval  ( her's )  that  inverts  the  usual  form  by  having  urgent  verses  followed  by  a  slow  and  doom-laden  chorus. It  reached  number  10  and  was  his  first  single  to  make  an  impact  in  Europe  when  it  reached  the  Top  30  in  Holland. Covers  have  ranged  from  excellent  ( Urge  Overkill )  to  clueless  ( Cliff  Richard ).

The  entirely  self-written  album "Just  For  You"  is  virtually  a  compilation  as  it  features  "Solitary  Man"  and  "Cherry  Cherry"  again  and  most  of  the  other  tracks  were  subsequently  released  as  singles. It  peaked  at  80  in  the  US. "Thank  The  Lord  For  The  Night  Time" from  July  1967  sounds  like  it  was  deliberately  written  with  The  Monkees  in  mind  with  an  uptempo  rhythm  very  similar  to  I'm  A  Believer.  It  reached  number  13. In  October  he  released  the  original  "Kentucky  Woman"  ( number  22 )  a  pleasant  country  pop  number  that  gives  few  clues  as  to  why  Deep  Purple  thought  it   suitable  to  cover.

By  1968  Neil  was  in  dispute  with  Bang , wanting  to  record  more  ambitious  material  and  the  label  , knowing  that  he  may  not  be  theirs  for  much  longer  began  to  release  singles  willy-nilly. First  there  was  his  ordinary  cover  of  "New  Orleans" from  the  first  album ( number  51 )  then  the  morose  original   of   "Red  Red  Wine"  ( minus  any  reggae  stylings )  from  the  second ( number  62 ).

Neil  found  a  loophole  in  his  contract  that  allowed  hin  to  sign  for  Uni  Records  who  released  "Brooklyn  Roads "  in  May  1968.  This  auto-biographical  account  of  his  childhood , attractively  bathed  in  strings  by  Artie  Schroeck   isn't  willfully  uncommercial  but  doesn't  have  a  recognisable  chorus  and  peaked  at  58. He  pushed  the  envelope  a  bit  further  with  "Two-Bit  Manchild  "  with  its  Day  Tripper  -like  central  riff , queasy  organ  and  Neil's  yelping  delivery  of  the  lyric  of  unfocused  defiance. It  got  to  number  66. Neil's  remarkably  consistent  ability  to  hit  the  middle  reaches  of  the  chart  continued  with  the  pleasant  "Sunday  Sun",  enlivened  by  female  harmonies  , which   reached  68  ( its  performance  might  have  been  compromised  by  Bang  releasing  "Shilo"  from  the  second  album  at  the  same  time ).

The  three  singles  ( and  two  of  their  B-sides )  all  appeared  on  the  album  "Velvet  Gloves  And  Spit" released  in  October  1968  . With  so  much  previously  released  material  on  it  and  a  scanty  running  time  of   just  over  27  minutes  it's  perhaps  unsurprising  that  it  failed  to  chart. The  new  material  ranges  from  the  brilliant  "A  Modern-Day  Version  Of  Love"  to  the  irredeemably  stupid  "Pot  Smoker's  Song"  which  has  to  be  the  musical  low  point  of  his  career.

In  January  1969  he  produced  a  bigger  hit  single  ( number  22 )  with  "Brother  Love's  Travelling  Salvation  Show"  , an  appropriately  gospel-flavoured   account  of  the  fervour  kicked  up  by  a  travelling  preacher  with  a  big  chorus. It  became  the  title  track  of  his  next  LP  ( although,  when  his  next  single  "Sweet  Caroline"  made  number  4  it  was  quickly  added  and  the  LP  reissued  under  that  title )  which  reached  number  80. A  certain  blandness  is  already  creeping  into  his  music  and apart  from  the  single  only  the  Elvis-covered  ballad  "And  The  Grass  Won't  Pay  No  Mind"  and  the  annoying  country  novelty "You're  So  Sweet  Horseflies  Keep  Hanging  Around  Your  Face"  stand  out.

The   success  of  "Sweet  Caroline ",  inspired  by  a  magazine  photo  of  President  Kennedy's  daughter  with  its  big  singalong  chorus   only  accelerated  the  trend. That's  not  to  diss  the  single  which  is  a  fine  piece  of  pop  with  a  brilliant  arrangement  by  Charles  Calello  but  the  brooding  songwriter  of  the  mid-sixties  would  only  be  fitfully  glimpsed  now  ( his  best  song  of  the  seventies,  "I  Am  I  Said"   sounds  like  a  requiem  for  his  old  self )  as  the  performer  took  centre  stage. That  said  his  next  single  "Holly  Holy", a  slow  building  spiritual  epic  with  clear  gospel  influences  is  pretty  good  and  reached  number  6.

Another  album  quickly  followed  before  the  decade  closed  although  "Touching  You  Touching  Me"   is  filled  out  with  covers ; I  sometimes  think  it  would  be  easier  to  list  those  who  didn't  cover  "Everybody's  Talkin".  Neil's  higher  profile  was  indicated  by  it  reaching  number  30 .It  does  contain  a  gem  in  "And  The Singer  Sings  His  Song"  though  the  choice  for  a  second  single  fell  on  his  cover  of  Buffy  Saint-Marie 's  "Until  It's  Time  For  You  To  Go"  which  is  creditable  but  only  reached  number  53  because  Bang  again  released  "Shilo"  and  this  time  it  reached  number  24. Neil's  response  was  to  re-record  the  song  himself , add  it  to  "Velvet  Glove  And  Split"  and  reissue  it  under  the  new  title.

He  then  turned  his  attention  to  his  next  album  "Tap  Root  Manuscript"  the  second  side  of  which  would  be  a  20  minute  suite  of  songs  inspired  by  Africa. The  song  "Soolamain"  ( meaning  "welcome"  )   proved  so  popular  when  performed  live  it  became  his  next  single  ,  the  unusual  percussion  and  exotic  title  not  preventing  it  reach  number  30  in  the  charts. Bang  got  in  the  way  again  by  re- releasing  "Solitary  Man"  but  this  didn't  prevent  "Cracklin  Rosie" from  becoming  his  first  US  number  one.

I  wonder  how  many  people  called  Rose  who  love  this  song  realise  it's  an  ode  to  cheap  liquor  from  the  point  of  view  of  a  train-jumping  hobo  whose  lifestyle  prevents  him  from  enjoying  physical  comforts  hence  she's  "a  poor  man's  lady"  and  "store  bought  woman". However  Neil  disguises  the  rather  sad  subject  matter  with  a  bright  and  bouncy  country  rock  arrangement  and  those  two  dramatic  pauses  -"Play  it  now, play  it  now !"  - which   suggest  a  big  chorus  is  coming  but  actually  just  re-boot  the  song  from  the  beginning.It  is  one  of  his  most  memorable  songs  and  finally  broke  him  in  the  UK  where  it  remains  his  biggest  hit.