I don’t have much time to comment on this, but I’m posting video of Neil Diamond that shows him at his best: as a real musician. He had too much flash for his own good, devolved into lounge-lizard-audio, and wrote several songs that sound like they were primarily designed to get him laid (though it is hard to imagine he needed that edge by that point in his carreer).

But I originally listened to him over and over on eight-track when I was way too young to worry about that stuff (and later I was just naive) and I still think he counts as a great–nasal baritone notwithstanding.

Cherry Cherry

[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/z2-ggEvRsVI” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]

Cracklin Rosie

[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/UZEjaXvsIjM” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]

Brother Love’s Traveling Salvation Show

[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/IXEq_-7qkKo” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]

Holly Holy

[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/2ln5shwBEHc” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]

Love on the Rocks

I liked this move from the eighties, though I’m not sure how much the song has to do with situation the movie shows as the background to the song.

[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/55w9uxUftxo” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]