Neil Diamond - Home Before Dark [Digipak] (CD 2008)

With one or two exceptions, most notably The Jazz Singer in 1980, Neil Diamond's musical output since 1976's Beautiful Noise has been dragged down by over-production and self-indulgence. It was only in 2005 when he was persuaded by Rick Rubin to allow Rubin produce what was to become 12 Songs that we were given a glimpse, once again, of the enormous songwriting talent that is Neil Diamond. That album stripped away all pretension and put Diamond's voice front and centre singing songs that were beautifully written and delivered with honesty and integrity. Home Before Dark is their second collaboration and, if anything, produces even better results. Here we have songs written from the heart, lyrically deeper than Diamond has ever gone before, melodically crafted to perfection, sometimes soothing, sometimes heart wrenching, sometimes joyful, sometimes painful: always striking powerful emotional tones. The opening track, If I Don't See You Again, running to a full seven minutes sets the tone. It is elegant and beautiful and soul-searing in its final crescendo. Pretty Amazing Grace is a hymn to the power of love and hooks the listener from the start and never lets go thereafter. It is performed masterfully by Diamond. Another Day (That Time Forgot) is a magical duet with Natalie Maines. The pitch of her voice counterpoints beautifully with the gravelly emotion of his and this song, paradoxically, is both pretty and guaranteed to tear your heart out. Forgotten, Don't Go There, and the title track are all stand-outs on a recording that contains no fillers. All in all, if you are a fan of Neil Diamond, the song-writer, you should love this collection of songs. If you have previously been turned off his music by the popular perception that his material is over the top and schmaltzy, do yourself a favour and give this recording a listen. You will be very surprised by what you hear.

Neil Diamond's 2005 collaboration with Rick Rubin, 12 SONGS, found the latter stripping the pop legend's work down to a sparse, acoustic-based sound, as he'd famously done for Johnny Cash in the '90s. Apparently the experience impressed Diamond enough to warrant a second go-round with the producer. HOME BEFORE DARK takes a similar sonic approach as its predecessor; on most of these songs Diamond is backed by little more than Tom Petty's Heartbreakers, Mike Campbell's acoustic guitar and Benmont Tench's piano (the pair contributed to Cash's recordings too), but in restrospect, 12 SONGS almost seems like a warm-up for this one. There's a sense of emotional nakedness here, as the 67-year-old Diamond peers deeply into the intricacies of his life, delivering penetrating insights in a highly reflective mode while never losing sight of his gifts as a master pop melody-maker. While most of the songs here are slow-to-medium ruminations on deep subjects, each one comes fully equipped with expert melodic turns that make these tunes as pleasing to the ear as they are to the mind.

Category: Rock/Pop, Rock, Jazz, Vocal, Contemporary Pop Vocals
Label: Columbia
Discs: 1
Release Date: May 06, 2008
Studio/Live: Studio
Mono/Stereo: Stereo

Tracks:
1. If I Don't See You Again
2. Pretty Amazing Grace
3. Don't Go There
4. Another Day (That Time Forgot)
5. One More Bite of the Apple
6. Forgotten
7. Act Like a Man
8. Whose Hands Are These
9. No Words
10. Power of Two, The
11. Slow It Down
12. Home Before Dark

Love Neil Diamond, and he still has what it takes to make a great album. This is beautiful and mellow.