Editing Neil Diamond

{{Short description|American singer-songwriter (born 1941)}}
{{about|the American singer-songwriter|the Cree-Canadian filmmaker|Neil Diamond (filmmaker)}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Neil Diamond
| image              = Neil Diamond HWOF Aug 2012 other (levels adjusted and cropped).jpg
| caption            = Diamond in 2012
| birth_name         = Neil Leslie Diamond
| birth_date         = {{birth date and age|1941|1|24}}
| birth_place        = [[New York City]], U.S.
| death_date         =
| death_place        =
| occupation         = {{flatlist|
*Singer
*songwriter
*musician
*actor
}}
| years_active       = 1962–present
| spouse             = {{unbulleted list
| {{marriage|Jaye Posner|1963|1969|end=divorced}}<!-- This is correct - her name is Jaye, not Jayne -->
| {{marriage|Marcia Murphey|1969|1996|end=divorced}}{{Efn|Sources variously list the marriage as ending in 1994 or 1995.}}
| {{marriage|[[Katie McNeil Diamond|Katie McNeil]]|2012}}
}}
| children           = 4
| website            = {{URL|neildiamond.com}}
| module             = {{Infobox musical artist <!-- See WP:WikiProject Musicians -->|embed=yes
| background   = solo_singer
| discography = [[Neil Diamond discography]]
| instrument   = {{flatlist|
*Vocals
*guitar
}}<!--- If you think an instrument should be listed, a discussion to reach consensus is needed first per: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Infobox_musical_artist#instrument--->
| genre        = {{flatlist|
*[[Rock music|Rock]]
*[[Pop music|pop]]
*[[Folk music|folk]]
*[[Country music|country]]
*[[soft rock]]
}}
| label        = {{flatlist|
*[[Bang Records|Bang]]
*[[Uni Records|Uni]]
*[[MCA Records|MCA]]
*[[Columbia Records|Columbia]]
*[[Capitol Records|Capitol]] (US)
*[[Virgin EMI Records|Virgin EMI]] (UK)
}}
}}
}}
'''Neil Leslie Diamond''' (born January 24, 1941)<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rose |first=Mike |title=Today's famous birthdays list for January 24, 2023 includes celebrities Neil Diamond, Aaron Neville|url=https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2023/01/todays-famous-birthdays-list-for-january-24-2023-includes-celebrities-neil-diamond-aaron-neville.html |access-date=January 24, 2023 |website=[[Cleveland.com]]|date=January 24, 2023 }}</ref> is an American [[singer-songwriter]]. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the [[List of best-selling music artists|best-selling musicians of all time]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-42784305 |title=Neil Diamond retires from touring after Parkinson's diagnosis
|work=[[BBC News]] |date=January 23, 2018 |access-date=January 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=September 28, 2017 |title=Neil Diamond Playlist |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/neil-diamond-top-ten-10-songs-a7970451.html |access-date=August 18, 2022 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref><ref name="billboard xmas hits">{{cite magazine|last1=Trust|first1=Gary|title=Neil Diamond Shines With 38th Adult Contemporary Chart Top 10|url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/neil-diamond-adult-contemporary-chart-christmas-medley/|access-date=April 7, 2022|magazine=Billboard|date=December 28, 2016}}</ref> 

He has written and recorded ten singles that reached No. 1 on the U.S. [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] and Adult Contemporary charts: "[[Cracklin' Rosie]]", "[[Song Sung Blue]]", "[[Longfellow Serenade]]", "[[I've Been This Way Before]]", "[[If You Know What I Mean]]", "[[Desiree (song)|Desirée]]", "[[You Don't Bring Me Flowers]]" (which he co-wrote with [[Marilyn Bergman]] and performed with [[Barbra Streisand]]), "[[America (Neil Diamond song)|America]]", "[[Yesterday's Songs]]", and "[[Heartlight (song)|Heartlight]] (co-written with [[Carole Bayer Sager]] and [[Burt Bacharach]]). A total of thirty-eight songs by Diamond have reached the top 10 on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Adult Contemporary (chart)|Adult Contemporary chart]], including "[[Sweet Caroline]]". He has also acted in films, making his screen debut in the 1980 [[Musical film|musical]] [[drama film]] ''[[The Jazz Singer (1980 film)|The Jazz Singer]]''.

Diamond was inducted into the [[Songwriters Hall of Fame]] in 1984 and into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] in 2011, and he received the [[Sammy Cahn]] Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000. In 2011, he was an honoree at the [[Kennedy Center Honors]], and he received the [[Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award]] in 2018.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/queen-tina-turner-to-receive-grammy-lifetime-achievement-award-120062/|title=Queen, Tina Turner to Receive Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=January 10, 2018|access-date=April 7, 2022}}</ref>

==Early life and education==
Diamond was born in [[Brooklyn]], New York City, to a [[Jewish]] family. All four of his grandparents were immigrants, from [[Poland]] on his father's side and [[Russia]] on his mother's.<ref>{{cite web|first=Jeannette|last=McMahon|url=http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2012/08/17/3570227.htm|title=What's Up with Neil Diamond?|work=[[1233 ABC Newcastle]]|date=August 17, 2012|access-date=April 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2006/apr/09/popandrock2 | title=Another sad lament | first=Rachel | last=Cooke | work=[[The Guardian]] | date=April 8, 2006 | access-date=April 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Anna|last=Pukas|url=https://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/43907/NEIL-DIAMOND-I-m-too-much-of-a-loner|title=NEIL DIAMOND: I'm too much of a loner|work=[[Daily Express]]|location=London|date=May 9, 2008|access-date=April 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Malina|last=Saval|url=https://variety.com/2015/music/news/this-is-big-time-neil-diamond-tells-a-sold-out-crowd-at-hollywood-bowl-1201501974/|title='This Is Big Time,' Neil Diamond Tells a Sold-Out Crowd at Hollywood Bowl|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=May 20, 2015|access-date=April 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Barry|last=Egan|url=https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/neil-diamond-in-the-rough-30690967.html|title=Neil Diamond in the rough|work=[[Irish Independent]]|date=October 27, 2014|access-date=April 28, 2018}}</ref> His parents were Rose (''[[née]]'' Rapoport; 1918–2019) and Akeeba "Kieve" Diamond (1917–1985), a [[dry-goods]] merchant.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2UT1Dxhq_XUC&q=Akeeba+Diamond+Rapoport |title=Neil Diamond: Solitary Star – Rich Wiseman |date= January 1, 1988|access-date=February 6, 2013|isbn=9780770108373 |last1=Wiseman |first1=Rich |publisher=PaperJacks }}</ref><ref name=Jackson>{{cite book |last = Jackson |first = Laura |title = Neil Diamond: His Life, His Music, His Passion |publisher = ECW Press |year = 2005 }}</ref> He grew up in several homes in Brooklyn, having also spent four years in [[Cheyenne, Wyoming]], where his father was stationed in the army.<ref name=RS88/> In Brooklyn, he attended [[Erasmus Hall High School]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/neil-diamond-reveals-erasmus-hall-in-brooklyn-as-location-of-secret-concert/|title=Neil Diamond Performs Free Pop-Up Concert At Erasmus Hall In Brooklyn|website=CBS New York|date=September 29, 2014|access-date=April 7, 2022}}</ref> and was a member of the Freshman Chorus and Choral Club, along with classmate [[Barbra Streisand]].<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|155}} 

Diamond recalled they were not close friends at the time: "We were two poor kids in Brooklyn. We hung out in the front of Erasmus High and smoked cigarettes."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine = Rolling Stone |date = March 21, 1996 |page = 36 }}</ref> Also in their class was chess grandmaster [[Bobby Fischer]].<ref>{{Cite book
|author=Christopher Andersen|author-link=Christopher Andersen
|title=Barbra: The Way She Is
|url=https://archive.org/details/barbrawaysheis00ande_234|url-access=limited|year=2006
|publisher=HarperCollins
|isbn=978-0-06-056256-4|pages=[https://archive.org/details/barbrawaysheis00ande_234/page/n26 15], 41
}} Streisand later said that Fischer was "always alone and very peculiar&nbsp;… But I found him very sexy." Id. at 41.</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=David Boyer|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/11/nyregion/neighborhood-report-flatbush-grads-hail-erasmus-as-it-enters-a-fourth-century.html |title= NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT: FLATBUSH; Grads Hail Erasmus as It Enters a Fourth Century |newspaper=The New York Times |date=March 11, 2001 |access-date=August 15, 2009}}</ref> After his family moved to [[Brighton Beach]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Neil Diamond Biography |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/neil-diamond |website=Jewish Virtual Library}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Berke |first1=Ned |title=Neil Diamond Will Return Home To Brighton Beach To Film Documentary This Weekend |url=https://bklyner.com/neil-diamond-will-return-home-brighton-beach-film-documentary-weekend-sheepshead-bay/ |work=Bklyner |date=September 25, 2014}}</ref> he attended [[Abraham Lincoln High School (Brooklyn, New York)|Abraham Lincoln High School]]<ref>{{cite news | last=Boyer | first=David | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/11/nyregion/neighborhood-report-flatbush-grads-hail-erasmus-as-it-enters-a-fourth-century.html| title=Neighborhood Report: Flatbush: Grads Hail Erasmus as It Enters a Fourth Century | work=[[The New York Times]] | date=March 11, 2001 | access-date=April 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | last=Hechinger | first=Fred M. | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/01/01/archives/about-education-personal-touch-helps-about-education-personal-touch.html | title=About Education: Personal Touch Helps | work=[[The New York Times]] | date=January 1, 1980 | access-date=September 20, 2009 | quote=Lincoln, an ordinary, unselective New York City high school, is proud of a galaxy of prominent alumni, who include the playwright Arthur Miller, Representative Elizabeth Holtzman, the authors Joseph Heller and Ken Auletta, the producer Mel Brooks, the singer Neil Diamond and the songwriter Neil Sedaka.}}</ref> and was a member of the [[fencing]] team.<ref name=RS88>{{cite magazine |last = Wild |first = David |title = Neil Diamond Interview |magazine = Rolling Stone |date = March 24, 1988 |pages = 102–109 }}</ref> Also on the team was his best friend, future Olympic fencer [[Herbert Cohen (fencer)|Herb Cohen]].<ref>{{cite book |first = Rich |last = Wiseman |year = 1987 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=2UT1Dxhq_XUC&q=%22herb+cohen%22+fencer |title = Neil Diamond: Solitary Star |publisher = PaperJacks |isbn = 9780770108373 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/religion/article/what-ive-learnt-neil-diamond-wv9hzmskjzw | title=What I've learnt: Neil Diamond | first=Chrissy | last=Iley | work=[[The Times]] | date=December 1, 2012 | access-date=February 8, 2018}}</ref>

For his 16th birthday, he received his first guitar.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.classicbands.com/diamond.html|title=Neil Diamond|website=Classic Bands|access-date=March 15, 2017}}</ref> When he was 16 and still in high school, Diamond spent a number of weeks at [[Surprise Lake Camp]],<ref name=Bream>{{cite book |last = Bream |first = Jon |title = Neil Diamond Is Forever |publisher = MBI Publishing |year = 2009 }}</ref>{{rp|21}} a camp in [[upstate New York]] for Jewish children, when folk singer [[Pete Seeger]] performed a small concert.<ref name=RS76>{{cite magazine |last = Fong-Torres |first = Ben |magazine = Rolling Stone |title = [Interview] |date =  September 23, 1976 |pages =  105–109 }}</ref> Seeing the widely recognized singer perform, and watching other children singing songs for Seeger that they wrote themselves, had an immediate effect on Diamond, who then became aware of the possibility of writing his own songs. "And the next thing, I got a guitar when we got back to Brooklyn, started to take lessons and almost immediately began to write songs", he said.<ref name=RS76/> He added that his attraction to songwriting was the "first real interest" he had growing up, while also helping him release his youthful "frustrations".<ref name=RS76/>

Diamond also used his newly developed skill to write poetry. By writing poems for girls he was attracted to in school, he soon learned it often won their hearts. His male classmates took note and began asking him to write poems for them, which they would sing and use with equal success.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|10}} He spent the summer after graduation working as a waiter in the [[Catskills]] resort area. There he first met Jaye Posner, who would years later become his wife.<ref name=Bream/>{{rp|26}}

Diamond next attended [[New York University]] as a [[pre-med]] major on a fencing scholarship, again on the fencing team with Herb Cohen.<ref>{{cite book |first1 = Joan |last1 = Marans Dim |first2 = Nancy |last2 = Murphy Cricco |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=oiVFGs6NT30C&dq=%22herb+cohen%22+fencer&pg=PA220 |title = The Miracle on Washington Square: New York University |year = 2001 |publisher = Lexington Books |isbn = 9780739102169 |via = Google Books |access-date =  February 8, 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/9714553/Neil-Diamond-at-71-in-fashion-and-in-love.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121203115817/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/9714553/Neil-Diamond-at-71-in-fashion-and-in-love.html |archive-date=December 3, 2012  |title = Neil Diamond at 71 – in fashion and in love |work = [[The Daily Telegraph]] |location = London |access-date = February 8, 2018 }}</ref>{{efn|His first life ambition was medicine, as he once told talk show host [[Larry King]], "I actually wanted to be a laboratory biologist. I wanted to study. And I really wanted to find a cure for cancer. My grandmother had died of cancer. And I was always very good at the sciences. And I thought I would go and try and discover the cure for cancer."}} He was a member of the 1960 [[NCAA Fencing team championship#Men's|NCAA men's championship]] fencing team.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://alumni.nyu.edu/s/1068/social.aspx?sid=1068&gid=1&pgid=2859 |title=The Archivist's Angle: Formidable Fencers at NYU |publisher=New York University |date= |access-date=August 26, 2015}}</ref> Often bored in class, he found writing song lyrics more to his liking. He began cutting classes and taking [[New York City Subway|the train]] up to [[Tin Pan Alley]], where he tried to get some of his songs heard by local music publishers.<ref name=RS76/> In his senior year, when he was just 10 units short of graduation, Sunbeam Music Publishing offered him a 16-week job writing songs for $50 a week (equivalent to about ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|50|1960|r=-1}}}} per week, in {{Inflation-year|US}}{{inflation-fn|US}}), and he dropped out of college to accept it.<ref name=RS76/>{{efn|Thirty-five years later, in 1995, New York University gave him an honorary degree.<ref name="nytimes1995">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/05/19/nyregion/commencements-words-to-live-by-music-to-dance-by.html | title=Commencements; Words to Live By, Music to Dance By | date=May 19, 1995 | work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> Later in his career, he said, "If this darn songwriting thing hadn't come up, I would have been a doctor now."<ref name=Bream/>{{rp|26}} }}

==Career==

===1960s===
Diamond was not rehired after his 16 weeks with Sunbeam, and he began writing and singing his own songs for demos. "I never really chose songwriting", he says. "It just absorbed me and became more and more important in my life."<ref name=RS76/> His first recording contract was billed as "Neil and Jack", an [[The Everly Brothers|Everly Brothers]]-type duet with high school friend Jack Packer.<ref name=RS88/> They recorded the unsuccessful singles "You Are My Love at Last" with "What Will I Do", and "I'm Afraid" with "Till You've Tried Love", both records released in 1962. ''Cashbox'' and ''Billboard'' magazines gave all four sides positive reviews, and Diamond signed with [[Columbia Records]] as a solo performer later in 1962. In July 1963, Columbia released the single "Clown Town" / "At Night"; ''Billboard'' gave a laudatory review to "Clown Town", and ''Cashbox'' was complimentary to both sides, but it still failed to make the charts. Columbia dropped him from their label and he went back to writing songs in and out of publishing houses for the next seven years.

Diamond wrote wherever he could, including on buses, and used an upright piano above the [[Birdland (New York jazz club)|Birdland Club]] in New York City. One of the causes of this early nomadic life as a songwriter was his songs' wordiness: "I'd spent a lot of time on lyrics, and they were looking for hooks, and I didn't really understand the nature of that", he says.<ref name=RS76/> He was able to sell only about one song a week during those years, barely enough to survive. He found himself only earning enough to spend 35 cents a day on food (equivalent to ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|0.35|1963}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}}{{inflation-fn|US}}).<ref name=RS76/> But the privacy that he had above the Birdland Club allowed him to focus on writing without distractions. "Something new began to happen. I wasn't under the gun, and suddenly interesting songs began to happen, songs that had things none of the others did."<ref name=RS76/> Among them were "[[Cherry, Cherry]]" and "[[Solitary Man (song)|Solitary Man]]". "Solitary Man" was the first record that Diamond recorded under his own name which made the charts. It remains one of his personal favorites, as it was about his early years as a songwriter, even though he failed to realize it at the time. He describes the song as "an outgrowth of my despair".<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|37}}

Diamond spent his early career in the [[Brill Building]]. His first success as a songwriter came in November 1965 with "[[Sunday and Me]]", a Top 20 hit for [[Jay and the Americans]]. Greater success followed with "[[I'm a Believer]]"; "[[A Little Bit Me, a Little Bit You]]"; "Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)"; and "Love to Love", all performed by [[the Monkees]]. He wrote and recorded the songs for himself, but the other versions were released before his own.<ref>{{cite news |title = Interview |work = [[Friday Night with Jonathan Ross]] |date = May 23, 2008 |publisher = BBC One }}</ref> The unintended consequence was that Diamond began to gain fame as a songwriter. "I'm a Believer" became a gold record within two days of its release and stayed at the top of the charts for seven weeks, making it the Popular Music Song of the Year in 1966.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|44}}

"[[And the Grass Won't Pay No Mind]]" brought covers from [[Elvis Presley]] (who also interpreted "Sweet Caroline") and [[Mark Lindsay]], former lead singer for [[Paul Revere & the Raiders]]. Other notable artists who recorded his early songs were [[Lulu (singer)|Lulu]], [[Cliff Richard]] and the English hard-rock band [[Deep Purple]].{{efn|Richard released versions of "[[I'll Come Running (Neil Diamond song)|I'll Come Running]]", "Solitary Man", "[[Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon]]", "I Got the Feelin' (Oh No No)", and "Just Another Guy".}}

In 1966, Diamond signed a deal with [[Bert Berns]]'s [[Bang Records]], then a subsidiary of [[Atlantic Records|Atlantic]]. His first release on that label was "Solitary Man", which was his first true hit as a solo artist.{{efn|Prior to the release of "Solitary Man", he had considered using a stage name; he came up with "Noah Kaminsky" and "Eice Charry".<ref>{{cite news|last=Devine|first=Rachel|title=Pick of the week: Neil Diamond|url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/pick-of-the-week-neil-diamond-v2nqcm9vcmc|access-date=March 11, 2011|newspaper=The Sunday Times|date=June 1, 2008|location=London}}</ref> Bang Records asked him which name to use, and he thought of his grandmother, who had died prior to the release of "Solitary Man"; he told Bang to "go with 'Neil Diamond' and I'll figure it out later."}} Diamond followed with "Cherry, Cherry" and "[[Kentucky Woman]]".<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|37}} His early concerts featured him opening for bands such as [[Herman's Hermits]] and [[the Who]].<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|45}} As a guest performer with The Who, he was shocked to see [[Pete Townshend]] swinging his guitar like a club and then throwing it against walls and off the stage until the instrument's neck broke.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|46}}

Diamond began to feel restricted by Bang Records because he wanted to record more ambitious, introspective music, such as "Brooklyn Roads", starting in 1968. Berns wanted to release "Kentucky Woman" as a single, but Diamond was no longer satisfied writing simple pop songs, so he proposed "[[Shilo (song)|Shilo]]" about an imaginary childhood friend. Bang believed that the song was not commercial enough, so it was relegated to being an LP track on ''[[Just for You (Neil Diamond album)|Just for You]]''. Diamond was also dissatisfied with his royalties and tried to sign with another record label after discovering a loophole in his contract that did not bind him exclusively to either WEB IV or Tallyrand, but the result was a series of lawsuits that coincided with a slump in his record sales and professional success. A magistrate refused WEB IV's request for a temporary injunction to prevent Diamond from joining another record company while his contract dispute continued in court, but the lawsuits persisted until February 1977, when he triumphed in court and purchased the rights to his Bang-era master tapes.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|51}}

In March 1968, Diamond signed a deal with [[Uni Records]]; the label was named after [[Universal Pictures]], the owner of which, [[MCA Inc.]], later consolidated its labels into [[MCA Records]] (now called [[Universal Music]] after merging with PolyGram in 1999). His debut album for Uni/MCA was in late 1968 with ''[[Velvet Gloves and Spit]]'', produced by [[Tom Catalano]], which did not chart, and he recorded the early 1969 follow-up ''[[Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show]]'' at [[American Sound Studios]] in [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]] with [[Tommy Cogbill]] and [[Chips Moman]] producing.

===1970s===
In mid 1969, Diamond moved to Los Angeles. His sound mellowed with such songs as "[[Sweet Caroline]]" (1969), "[[Holly Holy]]" (1969), "[[Cracklin' Rosie]]" (1970) and "[[Song Sung Blue]]" (1972), the last two reaching No.&nbsp;1 on the Hot 100. "Sweet Caroline" was Diamond's first major hit after his slump. In 2007, Diamond said he had written "Sweet Caroline" for [[Caroline Kennedy]] after seeing her on the cover of ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' in an equestrian riding outfit,<ref>{{cite news |title = [Interview]<!--should replace with the actual segment name--> |publisher =CBS |work = Sunday Morning |date = November 5, 2008 }}</ref> but in 2014 he said in an interview on the ''Today'' show that it was written for his then wife, Marcia. He could not find a good rhyme with the name "Marcia" and so used the name Caroline.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/20/showbiz/music/neil-diamond-sweet-caroline/ |title = Neil Diamond reveals story behind 'Sweet Caroline'|first= Lisa Respers |last=France|publisher = CNN |date = October 20, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Dawn |first1=Randee |title=Neil Diamond sparkles on TODAY, reveals 'Sweet Caroline' secret |url=https://www.today.com/toyotaconcertseries/neil-diamond-reveals-sweet-caroline-secret-today-1D80228037 |website=TODAY.com |access-date=April 7, 2022 |date=October 20, 2014}}</ref> It took him just one hour in a Memphis hotel to write and compose it. The 1971 release "[[I Am... I Said|I Am...I Said]]" was a Top 5 hit in both the US and UK and was his most intensely personal effort to date, taking over four months to complete.<ref name="jackson">{{cite book | last=Jackson | first= Laura | author-link= Lara Jackson | title = Neil Diamond: His Life, His Music, His Passion | publisher=[[ECW Press]] | year=2005 | pages = 80–81}}</ref>

In 1971, Diamond played seven sold-out concerts at the [[Greek Theater (Los Angeles)|Greek Theater]] in Los Angeles. The outdoor theater, which was noted for showcasing the best of current entertainers, added a stereo sound system for the first time. Diamond was also backed by a 35-piece string orchestra and six backing singers.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|86}} After the first night, one leading newspaper called it "the finest concert in Greek Theater history."<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|87}}

{{quote box|align=right|width=25em|bgcolor = LightCyan|quote=I have a love-hate relationship with songwriting. I love it because it's so satisfying...when it works. I hate it because it forces you to dig inside yourself. It is without question the most difficult thing I do.<br /><br />Performing, on the other hand, is the most joyful and happiest thing I do. The bigger the audience the more anticipation, the more excitement.|source=Neil Diamond, 1977<ref name=Billboard-1977/>}}

In August 1972, he played again at the Greek, this time doing ten shows. When the show was first announced, tickets at the 5000-seat theater sold out rapidly.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|93}} He added a quadraphonic sound system for his performance to create full surround sound. The performance of August 24, 1972, was recorded and released as the live double album ''[[Hot August Night]]''. Diamond recalled: "''Hot August Night'' captures a very special show for me. We went all out to really knock 'em dead in LA."<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|93}} Many consider it his best work; critic [[Stephen Thomas Erlewine]] called ''Hot August Night'' "the ultimate Neil Diamond record... [showing] Diamond the icon in full glory."<ref>{{cite web|author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |first = Stephen Thomas |last = Erlewine |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/hot-august-night-mw0000098473 |title=Hot August Night – Neil Diamond|website=[[AllMusic]] |date=August 24, 1972 |access-date=April 17, 2014}}</ref> The album became a classic, and was remastered in 2000 with additional selections. In Australia, which at the time was said to have the most Neil Diamond fans per capita of any country,<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|94}} the album ranked No. 1 for 29 weeks and stayed in their top 20 bestsellers for two years.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|94}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://abc.net.au/myfavouritealbum/top100.htm |title=My Favourite Album : The Top 100 |website=Abc.net.au |access-date=April 17, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140414184400/http://www.abc.net.au/myfavouritealbum/top100.htm |archive-date=April 14, 2014 }}</ref>

In the fall of 1972, Diamond performed for 20 consecutive nights at the [[Winter Garden Theater]] in New York City.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|95}} That theater had not staged a one-man show since [[Al Jolson]] in the 1930s.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|95}} The approximately 1,600-seat Broadway venue provided an intimate concert setting not common at the time, with every performance reportedly sold out.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|95}} It also made Diamond the first rock-era star to headline on Broadway.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|95}} The review in ''The New York Times'' stated:
{{blockquote|Neil Diamond's one-man show seemed, on the face of it, to be a brash idea. One-man shows have traditionally been associated with talents like [[Judy Garland]] and [[Danny Kaye]]. But Mr. Diamond is clearly a brash young man and one with both the musical track record and the performance macho to bring it off...He needn't worry about comparisons with the likes of Garland and Kaye.<ref name=Jackson/>{{rp|95}}}}

After the Winter Garden shows, Diamond announced that he needed a break, and he engaged in no live performances until 1976. He used those four years to work on the score for [[Hall Bartlett]]'s film version of [[Richard Bach]]'s ''[[Jonathan Livingston Seagull]]'' and to record two albums, ''[[Serenade (Neil Diamond album)|Serenade]]'' and ''[[Beautiful Noise]]''. He said years later, "I knew I'd come back, but I wasn't sure when. I spent one year on each of those albums...I'd been on the road six years. I had a son 2½ and I felt he needed me more than the audience did. So for four years I devoted myself to my son Jesse." He also said he needed to get back to having a private life, one where he could be anonymous.<ref name=Billboard-1977>{{cite magazine |first = Eliot |last = Tiegel |title = Neil Diamond's Emergence on All Fronts Will Make Him Recognizable Once and for All |magazine = Billboard |date = February 19, 1977 |pages = 32–33 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=jkUEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA58 |via = Google Books |access-date = August 22, 2022 }}</ref>

In 1973, Diamond switched labels again, returning to Columbia Records for a million-dollar-advance-per-album contract (about ${{Inflation|US|1.000000|1973|r=1}}&nbsp;million per album in {{Inflation-year|US}}{{inflation-fn|US}}). His first project, released as a solo album, was the soundtrack to ''[[Jonathan Livingston Seagull (film)|Jonathan Livingston Seagull]]''. The film received hostile reviews and did poorly at the box office, and the album grossed more than the film did. Richard Bach, author of the best-selling source story, disowned the film, and he and Diamond sued Bartlett, though for differing reasons; in Bach's case, it was because he felt the film omitted too much from the original novella, whereas in Diamond's case, it was because he felt the film had butchered his score. "After 'Jonathan,'" Diamond declared, "I vowed never to get involved in a movie again unless I had complete control." Bartlett angrily responded to Diamond's lawsuit by criticizing his music as having become "too slick...and it's not as much from his heart as it used to be." Bartlett also added, "Neil is extraordinarily talented. Often his arrogance is just a cover for the lonely and insecure person underneath."<ref>{{cite news|last=Arrington |first=Carl |url=https://people.com/archive/having-survived-a-tumor-and-the-jazz-singer-neil-diamond-eases-his-life-back-into-shape-vol-17-no-13/ |title=Having Survived a Tumor and ''The Jazz Singer'', Neil Diamond Eases His Life Back into Shape |work=People|date=April 5, 1982|access-date=April 7, 2022}}</ref>

Despite the controversy surrounding the film, the soundtrack was a success, peaking at No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' albums chart. Diamond also won a [[Golden Globes|Golden Globe Award]] for Best Original Score and a [[Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media|Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture]]. Thereafter, Diamond often included a ''Jonathan Livingston Seagull'' suite in his live performances, as he did in his 1976 ''Love at the Greek'' concert and for his show in Las Vegas that same year.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyBkeUmUkfI |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/nyBkeUmUkfI| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Neil Diamond live (1/2) - Jonathan Livingston Seagull|date=September 25, 2011|access-date=August 18, 2018|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

Diamond returned to live shows in 1976 with an Australian tour, "The 'Thank You Australia' Concert", which was broadcast to 36 television outlets nationwide. He also again appeared at the Greek Theater in a 1976 concert, ''[[Love at the Greek]]''. An album and accompanying video/DVD of the show includes a version of "Song Sung Blue" with duets with [[Helen Reddy]] and [[Henry Winkler]], a.k.a. [[Arthur "The Fonz" Fonzarelli]] of ''[[Happy Days]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7F38csaCYws |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/7F38csaCYws| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Neil Diamond live, 1976, "Song Sung Blue"|date=June 14, 2015|access-date=August 18, 2018|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

He began wearing colorful beaded shirts in concert, originally so that everyone in the audience could see him without binoculars.<ref>{{cite AV media |title = An Audience With Neil Diamond |date = May 31, 2008 |publisher = ITV1 }}</ref> [[Bill Frank Whitten|Bill Whitten]] designed and made the shirts for Diamond from the 1970s until approximately 2007.<ref>{{cite news|author= |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/3673084/Neil-Diamond-the-hurt-the-dirt-the-shirts.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/3673084/Neil-Diamond-the-hurt-the-dirt-the-shirts.html |archive-date=January 11, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Neil Diamond: the hurt, the dirt, the shirts |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date= May 3, 2008|access-date=April 17, 2014 |location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In 1974, Diamond released the album ''Serenade'', from which "[[Longfellow Serenade]]" and "I've Been This Way Before" were issued as singles. The latter had been intended for the ''Jonathan Livingston Seagull'' score, but Diamond had completed it too late for inclusion. That same year he appeared on a TV special for [[Shirley Bassey]] and sang a duet with her.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axH_nNprRSg |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/axH_nNprRSg| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Shirley Bassey & Neil Diamond – Play Me / Diamond – Sweet Caroline / Longfellow Serenade (1974 TV)|date=March 19, 2011|access-date=March 15, 2017|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

[[File:Neil Diamond Aladdin Theater For the Performing Arts 1976.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Diamond performing on opening night of the Theater For the Performing Arts at the [[Aladdin Hotel & Casino]], on July 2, 1976.]]

In 1976, he released ''Beautiful Noise'', produced by [[Robbie Robertson]] of [[The Band]]. On Thanksgiving 1976, Diamond made an appearance at The Band's farewell concert, ''[[The Last Waltz]]'', performing "Dry Your Eyes", which he wrote jointly with Robertson, and which had appeared on ''Beautiful Noise''. He also joined the rest of the performers onstage at the end in a rendition of [[Bob Dylan]]'s "[[I Shall Be Released]]".

Diamond was paid $650,000 (about ${{Inflation|US|.650000|1976|r=1}}&nbsp;million in {{Inflation-year|US}}{{inflation-fn|US}}) by the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, to open its new $10 million Theater For the Performing Arts on July 2, 1976. The show played through July 5 and drew sold-out crowds at the 7,500-seat theater. A "who's who" of Hollywood attended opening night, ranging from [[Elizabeth Taylor]] to [[Chevy Chase]], and Diamond walked out on stage to a standing ovation. He opened the show with a story about an ex-girlfriend who dumped him before he became successful. His lead-in line to the first song of the evening was, "You may have dumped me a bit too soon, baby, because look who's standing here tonight."

He performed at [[Woburn Abbey]] on July 2, 1977, to an audience of 55,000 British fans. The concert and interviews were taped by film director [[William Friedkin]], who used six cameras to capture the performance.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pdsa_-WPZIQ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/Pdsa_-WPZIQ| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Neil Diamond enters the stage to 55000 screaming fans at Woburn Abbey in 1977|date=June 30, 2013|access-date=August 18, 2018|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In 1977, Diamond released ''[[I'm Glad You're Here with Me Tonight]]'', including "[[You Don't Bring Me Flowers]]", for which he composed the music and on the writing of whose lyrics he collaborated with [[Alan Bergman]] and [[Marilyn Bergman]]. Barbra Streisand covered the song on her album ''[[Songbird (Barbra Streisand album)|Songbird]]'', and later, a Diamond-Streisand duet was recorded, spurred by the success of radio mash-ups. That version hit No. 1 in 1978, his third song to top the Hot 100. They appeared unannounced at the 1980 [[Grammy awards]] ceremony, where they performed the song to a surprised and rapturous audience.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpyduY49CE0| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151207205151/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpyduY49CE0| archive-date=December 7, 2015 | url-status=dead|title=YouTube|via=[[YouTube]]|access-date=August 18, 2018}}</ref>

His last 1970s album was ''[[September Morn (album)|September Morn]]'', which included a new version of "I'm a Believer". It and "[[Red Red Wine]]" are his best-known original songs made more famous by other artists. In February 1979, the uptempo "Forever in Blue Jeans", co-written and jointly composed with his guitarist, Richard Bennett, was released as a single from ''You Don't Bring Me Flowers'', Diamond's album from the previous year.<ref>Diamond had originally titled that particular album ''The American Popular Song'', but he changed its title after his and Streisand's duet, "You Don't Bring Me Flowers", charted.</ref>

In 1979, Diamond collapsed on stage in San Francisco and was taken to the hospital, where he endured a 12-hour operation to remove what turned out to be a tumor on his spine.<ref name="juke/ref">{{cite magazine |magazine = [[Juke Magazine]] |date = June 9, 1983 }}</ref> He said he had been losing feeling in his right leg "for a number of years but ignored it". When he collapsed, he had no strength in either leg.<ref name="juke/ref"/> He underwent a long rehabilitation process just before starting principal photography on his film ''[[The Jazz Singer (1980 film)|The Jazz Singer]]'' (1980).<ref name="entertainment.timesonline.co.uk"/> He was so convinced he was going to die that he wrote farewell letters to his friends.<ref name="juke/ref"/>

===1980s===
A planned film version of "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" to star Diamond and Streisand fell through when Diamond instead starred in a 1980 remake of the Al Jolson classic ''The Jazz Singer'' alongside [[Laurence Olivier]] and [[Lucie Arnaz]]. Though the movie received poor reviews, the soundtrack spawned three top-10 singles, "Love on the Rocks", "Hello Again", and "[[America (Neil Diamond song)|America]]", the last of which has emotional significance for Diamond. "'America' was the story of my grandparents," he told an interviewer. "It's my gift to them, and it's very real for me ... In a way, it speaks to the immigrant in all of us."<ref name=Bream/>{{rp|89}} The song was performed in full by Diamond during the film's finale.<ref>{{cite AV media |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc-v8CFJzu4 |title = Neil Diamond - America - Original Video - DTS Sound |via =  [[YouTube]] }}</ref> An abbreviated version played over the film's opening titles.

The song was also the one he was most proud of, partly because of when it was later used: national news shows played it when the hostages were shown returning home after the [[Iran hostage crisis]] ended; it was played on the air during the 100th anniversary of the [[Statue of Liberty]];<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_7gcu1dmGk |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/g_7gcu1dmGk| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Neil Diamond "America" Live 1986 New York City (Full version with reprise)|date=June 22, 2016|access-date=August 18, 2018|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and at a tribute to slain civil rights leader [[Martin Luther King Jr.]], as well as the Vietnam Vets Welcome Home concert, he was asked to perform it live. At the time, a national poll found the song to be the number-one most recognized song about America, more than "God Bless America".<ref name=RS88/> It also became the anthem of his world tour two weeks after the attacks on America on September 11, 2001, when he changed the lyric at the end from; "They're coming to America", to "Stand up for America!" Earlier that year he performed it after a request from former heavyweight champion [[Muhammad Ali]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7UuesqOD0g |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/C7UuesqOD0g| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Neil Diamond takes live song request from Muhammad Ali|date=June 4, 2016|access-date=August 18, 2018|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

The film's failure was due in part to Diamond never having acted professionally before. "I didn't think I could handle it," he said later, seeing himself as "a fish out of water".<ref name=Bream/>{{rp|85}} For his performance, Diamond became the first-ever winner of a Worst Actor [[Razzie Award]], even though he was nominated for a [[Golden Globe Award]] for the same role. Critic [[David Wild]] noted that the film showed that Diamond was open about his religion: "Who else but this Jewish Elvis could go multi-platinum with an album that featured a version of '[[Kol Nidre|the Kol Nidre]]?'"<ref name=RS88/><ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IEDLZayfdU  |title = Neil Diamond - The Jazz Singer - Kol Nidrei |date = October 6, 2011 |via = [[YouTube]] }}</ref> Diamond later told the ''Los Angeles Times'', "For me, this was the ultimate [[bar mitzvah]]."<ref name=Bream/>{{rp|85}}

Another Top 10 selection, "[[Heartlight (song)|Heartlight]]", was inspired by the blockbuster 1982 movie ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]''. Though the film's title character is never mentioned in the lyrics, Universal Pictures, which had released ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' and was the parent company of the Uni Records label (by then called MCA Records), for which Diamond had recorded for years, briefly threatened legal action against both Diamond and Columbia Records.

Diamond's record sales slumped somewhat in the 1980s and 1990s, his last single to make the ''Billboard'' Pop Singles chart coming in 1986, but his concert tours continued to be big draws. ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' magazine ranked Diamond as the most profitable solo performer of 1986.<ref>Music Choice Television – on screen facts</ref> He released his 17th studio album in 1986, ''[[Headed for the Future]]'', which reached number 20 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]]. Three weeks later he starred in ''Hello Again'', his first television special in nine years, performing comedy sketches and a duo medley with [[Carol Burnett]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7RKnZMd2pA&t=72s| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225051122/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7RKnZMd2pA&gl=US&hl=en| archive-date=February 25, 2019 | url-status=dead|title=YouTube|via=[[YouTube]]|access-date=August 18, 2018}}</ref>

In January 1987, Diamond sang the national anthem at the [[Super Bowl XXI|Super Bowl]]. His "America" became the theme song for the [[Michael Dukakis]] 1988 presidential campaign. That same year, British band [[UB40]]'s reggae interpretation of Diamond's ballad "Red Red Wine" topped the ''Billboard'' Pop Singles chart and like the Monkees' version of "I'm a Believer", became better known than Diamond's original version.

===1990s===
During the 1990s, Diamond produced six studio albums. He covered many classic songs from the movies and from famous Brill Building-era songwriters. He also released two Christmas albums, the first of which peaked at No. 8 on Billboard's Album chart. Diamond also recorded two albums of mostly new material during this period. In 1992, he performed for President [[George H. W. Bush]]'s final ''Christmas in Washington'' [[NBC]] special. In 1993, Diamond opened the Mark of the Quad Cities (now the iWireless Center) with two shows on May 27 and 28 to a crowd of 27,000-plus.

The 1990s saw a resurgence in Diamond's popularity. "Sweet Caroline" became a popular sing-along at sporting events. It was used at [[Boston College Eagles football|Boston College football]] and [[Boston College Eagles men's basketball|basketball]] games. College sporting events in other states also played it,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Brfj-s4llGo |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/Brfj-s4llGo| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Penn State. Sweet Caroline. October 12, 2013|author=Gerry Balz|date=October 12, 2013|access-date=March 15, 2017|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and it was even played at sports events in other countries, such as a [[Hong Kong Sevens]] rugby tournament<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOmwEdf13Xw |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/TOmwEdf13Xw| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Neil Diamond wishes Hong Kong Sevens|date=March 27, 2011|access-date=March 15, 2017|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> or a soccer match in Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvFBm797ebw |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/TvFBm797ebw| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Northern Ireland fans singing Sweet Caroline|date=June 17, 2015|access-date=March 15, 2017|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> It is played at every home game of the Sydney Swans of the Australian Football League. It became the theme song of [[Red Sox Nation]], the fans of the [[Boston Red Sox]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wisnia |first1=Saul |title=Sweet Caroline—a Nice Tradition or the End of Real Red Sox Fans? |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1303749-sweet-caroline-a-nice-tradition-or-the-end-of-real-red-sox-fans |website=Bleacher Report |access-date=April 7, 2022 |date=August 20, 2012}}</ref>{{efn|Although Diamond noted that he had been a lifelong fan of the [[History of the Brooklyn Dodgers|Brooklyn]]/[[Los Angeles Dodgers]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spinner.com/2009/08/19/how-baseball-started-neil-diamonds-career/|title=Neil Diamond Owes His Career to the Brooklyn Dodgers|author=Steve Baltin|date=August 19, 2009|website=Spinner.com|access-date=December 10, 2010|archive-date=July 29, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120729144519/http://www.spinner.com/2009/08/19/how-baseball-started-neil-diamonds-career/|url-status=dead}}</ref>}}

The [[New York Rangers]] also adapted it as their own and played it whenever they were winning at the end of the third period of their games. The [[Pittsburgh Panthers football]] team also played it after the third quarter of all home games, with the crowd cheering, "Let's go Pitt". The [[Carolina Panthers]] played it at the end of every home game they won. The [[Davidson College]] pep band likewise played it in the second half of every [[Davidson Wildcats men's basketball]] home game.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

[[File:Neil Diamond hand prints.jpg|thumb|The handprints of Diamond in front of [[The Great Movie Ride]] at [[Walt Disney World]]'s [[Disney's Hollywood Studios]] theme park.]]

===2000s===

A more severely stripped-down-to-basics album, ''[[12 Songs (Neil Diamond album)|12 Songs]]'', produced by [[Rick Rubin]], was released on November 8, 2005, in two editions: a standard 12-song release, and a special edition with two bonus tracks, including one featuring backing vocals by [[Brian Wilson]]. The album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard chart, and received generally positive reviews; Erlewine describes the album as "inarguably Neil Diamond's best set of songs in a long, long time."<ref>{{cite web|author=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/r805249 |title=12 Songs – Neil Diamond &#124; Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards |website=[[AllMusic]] |date=November 8, 2005 |access-date=April 17, 2014}}</ref> ''12 Songs'' also became noteworthy as one of the last albums to be pressed and released by [[Sony BMG]] with the [[Extended Copy Protection]] software embedded in the disc. (See the [[2005 Sony BMG CD copy protection scandal]].)

In 2007, Diamond was inducted into the [[Long Island Music Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.limusichalloffame.org/inductees/07inductees.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070217232729/http://www.limusichalloffame.org/inductees/07inductees.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 17, 2007|title=LIMHOF - 2007 Inductees|date=February 17, 2007|access-date=August 18, 2018}}</ref>

On March 19, 2008, it was announced on the television show ''[[American Idol]]'' that Diamond would be a guest mentor to the remaining ''Idol'' contestants, who would sing Diamond songs for the broadcasts of April 29 and 30, 2008. On the April 30 broadcast, Diamond premiered a new song, "Pretty Amazing Grace", from his then recently released album ''[[Home Before Dark]]''.<ref>{{cite web |author= |url=http://www.spinner.com/2008/04/29/neil-diamond-goes-home-before-dark/ |title=AOL Radio – Listen to Free Online Radio – Free Internet Radio Stations and Music Playlists |website=Spinner |date= |access-date=April 17, 2014 |archive-date=September 10, 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120910031620/http://www.spinner.com/2008/04/29/neil-diamond-goes-home-before-dark/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> On May 2, 2008, Sirius Satellite Radio started Neil Diamond Radio. On April 8, 2008, Diamond made a surprise announcement in a big-screen broadcast at Fenway Park that he would be appearing there "live in concert" on August 23, 2008, as part of his world tour. The announcement, which marked the first official confirmation of any 2008 concert dates in the US, came during the traditional eighth-inning singalong of "Sweet Caroline", which had by that time become an anthem for Boston fans.

On April 28, 2008, Diamond appeared on the roof of the [[Jimmy Kimmel]] building to sing "Sweet Caroline" after Kimmel, who had been singing the song dressed as Diamond, was "arrested" for impersonating the singer.

[[File:Neil Diamond- in 2010.jpg|thumb|upright|Diamond performing at [[The Roundhouse]], London on October 30, 2010.]]
''Home Before Dark'' was released May 6, 2008, and topped the album charts in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7402651.stm |title=Entertainment &#124; Diamond tops chart for first time |work=[[BBC News]] |date=May 15, 2008 |access-date=April 17, 2014}}</ref>

On June 29, 2008, Diamond played to an estimated 108,000 fans at the [[Glastonbury Festival]] in Somerset, England on the Concert of a Lifetime Tour; technical problems, including the sound cutting out, marred the concert.<ref>{{cite web |title=Neil Diamond overcomes technical problems to wow Glastonbury |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/neil-diamond-6-1323806 |website=NME |access-date=April 7, 2022 |date=June 29, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_8gQMUYnXlxOW7Syx-FN8g|title=Neildi|website=YouTube|access-date=August 18, 2018}}</ref> In August, Diamond allowed cameras to record his entire four-night run at New York's Madison Square Garden; he released the resulting DVD in the US in 2009, one year to the day of the first concert.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-daijUbwBs| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170628072557/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-daijUbwBs&gl=US&hl=en| archive-date=June 28, 2017 | url-status=dead|title=YouTube|via=[[YouTube]]|access-date=August 18, 2018}}</ref> ''[[Hot August Night/NYC: Live from Madison Square Garden|Hot August Night/NYC]]'' debuted at No. 2 on the charts. On the same day the DVD was released, CBS aired an edited version, which won the ratings hour with 13 million viewers. The next day, the sales of the DVD surged, prompting Sony to order more copies to meet the high demand.

On August 25, 2008, Diamond performed at The Ohio State University while suffering from laryngitis. The result disappointed him as well as his fans, and on August 26, he offered refunds to anyone who applied by September 5.<ref>{{cite web |title=Neil Diamond offers concert audience a refund |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-diamond/neil-diamond-offers-concert-audience-a-refund-idUSN2743510520080827 |website=Reuters |access-date=April 7, 2022 |date=August 27, 2008}}</ref>

Diamond was honored as the [[MusiCares Person of the Year]] on February 6, 2009, two nights before the 51st Annual [[Grammy Awards]].

Long loved in Boston, Diamond was invited to sing at the July 4, 2009, Independence Day celebration.

On October 13, 2009, he released ''[[A Cherry Cherry Christmas]]'', his third album of holiday music.

===2010s===
[[File:1afin-2795f.jpg|thumb|upright|Diamond performing in 2015]]
On November 2, 2010, Diamond released the album ''[[Dreams (Neil Diamond album)|Dreams]]'', a collection of 14 interpretations of his favorite songs by artists from the rock era. The album also included a new slow-tempo arrangement of his "I'm a Believer". In December, he performed a track from the album, "[[Ain't No Sunshine]]", on NBC's ''[[The Sing-Off]]'' with [[Committed (group)|Committed]] and [[Street Corner Symphony (group)|Street Corner Symphony]], two [[A cappella|a cappella groups]] featured on the show. ''The Very Best of Neil Diamond'', a compilation CD of Diamond's 23 studio recordings from the Bang, UNI/MCA, & Columbia catalogs, was released on December 6, 2011, on the Sony Legacy label.

The years 2011 and 2012 were marked by several milestones in Diamond's career. On March 14, 2011, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at a ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. In December, he received a lifetime achievement award from the Kennedy Center at the 2011 [[Kennedy Center Honors]].<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Steinmentz|first1=Kelly|title=Neil Diamond Unites Washington at the Kennedy Center Honors|url=https://entertainment.time.com/2011/12/05/neil-diamond-unites-washington-at-the-kennedy-center-honors/|access-date=September 12, 2015|magazine=Time|date=December 5, 2011}}</ref><ref name="RS Inductee">{{cite magazine|last1=Greene|first1=Andy|title=Neil Diamond, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee, Says He Feels 'Very Lucky'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/neil-diamond-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-inductee-says-he-feels-very-lucky-247642/|access-date=April 7, 2022|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=December 14, 2010}}</ref> On August 10, 2012, Diamond received a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://abc7.com/archive/8769615/|title=Neil Diamond receives Walk of Fame star|publisher=KABC-TV|location=Los Angeles|date=August 10, 2012|access-date=April 7, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120813004341/http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news%2Fentertainment&id=8769615|archive-date=August 13, 2012}}</ref> In November 2012, he topped the bill at the centenary edition of the [[Royal Variety Performance]] in the UK, which was transmitted{{Where|date=November 2016}} on December 3. He also appeared in the [[Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/rockandpopfeatures/9714553/Neil-Diamond-at-71-in-fashion-and-in-love.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/rockandpopfeatures/9714553/Neil-Diamond-at-71-in-fashion-and-in-love.html |archive-date=January 11, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Neil Diamond at 71 – in fashion and in love |website=Telegraph.co.uk |date= December 3, 2012|access-date=April 17, 2014 |location=London |first=Chrissie |last=Iley}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

On April 20, 2013, Diamond made an unannounced appearance at Fenway Park to sing "Sweet Caroline" during the 8th inning.<ref name="cbs2013">{{cite news |last1=Perry |first1=Dayn |title=Neil Diamond sang at Fenway . . . uninvited |url=https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/neil-diamond-sang-at-fenway----uninvited/ |access-date=September 8, 2019 |work=CBS Sports |date=April 20, 2013}}</ref> It was the first game at Fenway since the [[Boston Marathon bombing]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Michael A.|last=Memoli|url=https://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-red-sox-game-neil-diamond-20130420,0,7369793.story |title=Red Sox game: Neil Diamond live = 'So good, so good, so good{{'-}}|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=April 20, 2013 |access-date=August 7, 2013}}</ref> On July 2, he released the single "Freedom Song (They'll Never Take Us Down)", with 100% of the purchase price benefiting One Fund Boston and the [[Wounded Warrior Project]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Ryan|first=Patrick|title=Neil Diamond's 'Freedom Song' will ring out|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2013/07/02/neil-diamond-freedom-song-fourth-of-july/2479845/|work=USA Today|access-date=July 22, 2013|date=July 2, 2013}}</ref> Sporting a beard, Diamond performed live on the west lawn of the [[United States Capitol|U.S. Capitol]] as part of ''[[A Capitol Fourth]]'', which was broadcast nationally by PBS on July 4, 2013.<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Billboard Staff and AP|title=Neil Diamond, Barry Manilow Lead 'Capitol Fourth' Celebrations in DC|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/neil-diamond-barry-manilow-lead-capitol-fourth-celebrations-in-dc-1569226/|access-date=April 7, 2022|magazine=Billboard|date=July 5, 2013}}</ref>

In January 2014, it was confirmed that Diamond had signed with the [[Capitol Music Group]] unit of [[Universal Music Group]], which also owned Diamond's Uni/MCA catalog. UMG also took over Diamond's Columbia and Bang catalogues, which meant that all of his recorded output would be consolidated for the first time.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/neil-diamond-signs-with-capitol-records-exclusive-5876964/ |title=Neil Diamond Signs With Capitol Records (Exclusive) |magazine=Billboard |access-date=April 7, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.universalmusic.ca/press-releases/capitol-records-signs-legendary-artist-neil-diamond/ |title=Capitol Records Signs Legendary Artist Neil Diamond &#124; Universal Music Canada |website=Universalmusic.ca |date=January 21, 2014 |access-date=April 17, 2014}}</ref>

On July 8, 2014, Capitol Records announced, via a flyer included with Diamond's latest greatest hits compilations, ''All-Time Greatest Hits'', which charted at 15 on the ''Billboard'' 200, that his next album, ''[[Melody Road]]'', which was to be produced by Don Was and [[Jacknife Lee]], would be released on September 30, 2014. In August, the release date was moved to October 21.<ref name="abc news">{{cite web|last1=ABC News Radio Staff|title=Neil Diamond to Release New Studio Album, "Melody Road," Next Month|url=http://abcnewsradioonline.com/music-news/2014/9/9/neil-diamond-to-release-new-studio-album-melody-road-next-mo.html|website=ABC News Radio|access-date=September 11, 2014}}</ref>

In September 2014, Diamond performed a surprise concert at his alma mater, Erasmus High School in Brooklyn. The show was announced via Twitter that afternoon. On the same day, he announced a 2015 "Melody Road" World Tour.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Marcius, Chelsea Rose and|first1=Molinet, Jason|title=Neil Diamond Rocks Brooklyn|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/neil-diamond-rocks-brooklyn-school-pop-up-concert-article-1.1957525|access-date=June 8, 2015|newspaper=New York Daily News|date=September 29, 2014}}</ref> The North American leg of the World Tour 2015 launched with a concert in Allentown, PA at the [[PPL Center]] on February 27 and ended at the [[Pepsi Center]] in Denver, Colorado on May 31, 2015.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://neil-diamond.concerttournewshub.com/ |title=Neil Diamond 2015 Melody Road Tour Schedule |website=ConcertTourNewsHub.com |date=February 23, 2015 |access-date=March 27, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402104833/http://neil-diamond.concerttournewshub.com/ |archive-date=April 2, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Diamond used new media platforms and social media extensively throughout the tour, streaming several shows live on Periscope and showing tweets from fans who used the hashtag #tweetcaroline on two large screens. ''[[The San Diego Union-Tribune]]'' wrote: "This, my friends, wasn't your grandfather's Neil Diamond concert. It was a multimedia extravaganza. Twitter. Periscope...It was a social media blitzkrieg that, by all accounts, proved to be an innovative way to widen his fan base."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rocha|first1=Michael James|title=Neil Diamond: So good, so good, so good!|url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/entertainment/music/sdut-neil-diamond-concert-review-2015may16-story.html|access-date=April 7, 2022|newspaper=[[The San Diego Union-Tribune]]|date=May 16, 2015}}</ref>

In October 2016, Diamond released ''Acoustic Christmas'', a folk-inspired Christmas album of original songs as well as acoustic versions of holiday classics. Produced by Was and Lee, who had produced ''Melody Road'', the idea for the album began to take shape as the ''Melody Road'' sessions ended. To "channel the intimate atmosphere of '60s folk, Diamond recorded ''Acoustic Christmas'' with a handful of musicians, sitting around a circle of microphones, wires and, of course, Christmas lights."<ref name="RS xmas album">{{cite magazine|last1=Bilstein|first1=John|title=Neil Diamond Preps Folk-Inspired 'Acoustic Christmas' Album|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/neil-diamond-preps-folk-inspired-acoustic-christmas-album-124656/|access-date=April 7, 2022|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=September 16, 2016}}</ref>

In March 2017, the career-spanning anthology ''[[Neil Diamond 50 – 50th Anniversary Collection]]'' was released. He began his final concert tour, the [[50 Year Anniversary World Tour (Neil Diamond)|50 Year Anniversary World Tour]] in Fresno, California, in April.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.neildiamond.com/news/l/|title=Live Nation Announces Neil Diamond 50 Year Anniversary World Tour |website=Neildiamond.com|date=November 30, 2016 |access-date=March 15, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Bb">{{cite magazine|last1=Kaufman|first1=Gil|title=Neil Diamond Releasing 50th Anniversary Box Set|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/neil-diamond-releasing-50th-anniversary-box-set-7668908/|access-date=April 7, 2022|magazine=Billboard|date=January 24, 2017}}</ref>

In 2019, his 1969 signature song "Sweet Caroline" was selected by the [[Library of Congress]] for preservation in the [[National Recording Registry]] for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".<ref name="Andrews">{{cite news |last=Andrews |first=Travis M. |date=March 20, 2019 |title=Jay-Z, a speech by Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and 'Schoolhouse Rock!' among recordings deemed classics by Library of Congress |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/jay-z-a-speech-by-sen-robert-f-kennedy-and-schoolhouse-rock-among-recordings-deemed-classics-by-library-of-congress/2019/03/19/f7eb08ea-4a58-11e9-9663-00ac73f49662_story.html? |access-date=March 25, 2019}}</ref>

=== 2020s ===
On March 7, 2020, despite his retirement due to Parkinson's disease, Diamond gave a rare performance at the Keep Memory Alive Power of Love Gala at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, where he was being honored.<ref name="USAT-20200309">{{cite web |last1=Trepany |first1=Charles |title=Neil Diamond gives surprise performance 2 years after retiring due to Parkinson's disease |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2020/03/09/neil-diamond-surprise-performance-gala-retirement-parkinsons/5006146002 |website=[[USA Today]] |access-date=May 2, 2020 |date=March 9, 2020}}</ref>

On March 22, 2020, Diamond posted a video to YouTube playing "Sweet Caroline" with slightly modified lyrics ("...washing hands, don't touch me, I won't touch you...") in response to the widespread social distancing measures implemented due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.<ref name="YouTube post">{{cite web |last1=Diamond |first1=Neil |title=Hands... Washing Hands |date=March 22, 2020 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPLgsV_Ms3Q  |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/sPLgsV_Ms3Q| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|via=YouTube |access-date=March 23, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In April 2021, the ''New York Times'' reported that ''[[A Beautiful Noise (musical)|A Beautiful Noise]]'', a musical based on Diamond's life and featuring his songs, would open at the Emerson Colonial Theater in Boston in the summer of 2022. The musical was scheduled to open on Broadway following the month-long run in Boston.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Libbey|first=Peter|date=April 6, 2021|title=Neil Diamond Bio-Musical Sets Sights on Broadway|language=en-US|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/06/theater/neil-diamond-musical-a-beautiful-noise.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/06/theater/neil-diamond-musical-a-beautiful-noise.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited|access-date=June 11, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
[[File:A Beautiful Noise, the Neil Diamond musical opened on Broadway in December 2022.jpg|thumb|''A Beautiful Noise'', the Neil Diamond musical, opened at the Broadhurst Theater on Broadway in December 2022.]]
Universal Music Group acquired Diamond's songwriting catalog and the rights to his Bang Records, Columbia Records, and Capitol recordings in February 2022. The acquisition also included 110 unreleased tracks, an unreleased album and archival videos.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sisario |first=Ben |date=February 28, 2022 |title=Neil Diamond Sells Entire Catalog to Universal Music |language=en-US |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/28/arts/music/neil-diamond-catalog-sale.html |access-date=March 1, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

On June 18, 2022, Diamond sang "Sweet Caroline" during the 8th-inning stretch of a Red Sox game at Fenway Park. In a surprise appearance, he was joined by [[Will Swenson (actor)|Will Swenson]], who portrays Diamond in the musical ''A Beautiful Noise''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Watch: Neil Diamond sings 'Sweet Caroline' at Fenway Park |url=https://www.boston.com/sports/boston-red-sox/2022/06/19/watch-neil-diamond-sings-sweet-caroline/ |access-date=June 20, 2022 |website=www.boston.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Retirement from touring==
In January 2018, Diamond announced that he would stop touring after he was diagnosed with [[Parkinson's disease]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2018/01/22/neil-diamond-announces-parkinsons-diagnosis-immediate-retirement/1056520001/|title=Neil Diamond announces Parkinson's diagnosis, immediate retirement|first=Andrea|last=Mandell|work=[[USA Today]]|date=January 22, 2018|access-date=January 22, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/22/entertainment/neil-diamond-parkinsons/index.html|title=Neil Diamond diagnosed with Parkinson's, retires from touring|first=Rob|last=McLean|publisher=[[CNN]]|date=January 22, 2018|access-date=January 22, 2018}}</ref> Tour dates on the final leg of Diamond's "50 Year Anniversary World Tour" in Australia and New Zealand were cancelled. An announcement on his official website said he was not retiring from music and that the cancellation of the live performances would allow him to "continue his writing, recording and development of new projects."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.neildiamond.com/news/neil-diamond-announces-retirement-concert-touring-australian-new-zealand-tour-dates-cancelled/|title=Neil Diamond announces retirement from concert touring Australian and New Zealand tour dates cancelled |work=Neil Diamond|location=United States|publisher=[[Capitol Records]]|date=January 22, 2018|access-date=January 23, 2018}}</ref>

On July 28, 2018, Diamond and his wife, Katie, made a surprise visit to the Incident Command post in [[Basalt, Colorado]], near Diamond's home, to thank firefighters and their families for efforts to contain the [[Lake Christine Fire]], which began on July 3 and scorched {{convert|12000|acre|ha sqkm}}. Diamond performed a solo acoustic guitar concert in their honor.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/see-neil-diamond-surprise-colorado-firefighters-with-impromptu-performance-704594/|title=See Neil Diamond Surprise Colorado Firefighters With Impromptu Performance|first=Daniel|last=Kreps|date=July 29, 2018|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=August 18, 2018}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
In 1967, Diamond was featured on the fourth episode of the detective drama ''[[Mannix]]'' as the 'featured' artist in a small underground club called 'The Bad Scene' and was interrupted during his singing by one of many fights that took place weekly on the show.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0641672/|title="Mannix" The Many Deaths of Saint Christopher (TV Episode 1967) |website=IMDb|date=October 7, 1967 |access-date=August 23, 2021}}</ref>

In 2000, Neil Diamond appeared onstage with a Diamond tribute band, [[Super Diamond]], surprising them before their show at House of Blues in Los Angeles.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Bernstein|first=David|date=September 30, 2003|title=Not Quite the Real Thing But Stars Just the Same|language=en-US|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/30/arts/not-quite-the-real-thing-but-stars-just-the-same.html|access-date=April 17, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

In the 2001 comedy film ''[[Saving Silverman]]'', the main characters play in a Diamond [[cover band]]; Diamond made an extended cameo appearance as himself. Diamond even wrote and composed a new song, "I Believe in Happy Endings", for the film. He sat in with the tribute band Super Diamond at the film's premiere party.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Knopper|first=Steve|title=Super Diamond is an almost 30-year-old dream come true for Randy Cordeiro, who believes in the power of Neil Diamond|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/music/ct-ott-super-diamond-0117-20200116-f6dj7zixazgb3bfpqksam4ft4a-story.html|access-date=April 17, 2021|website=Chicago Tribune|date=January 16, 2020 }}</ref>

In recent times, fans of the [[England national football team|England national football]] team sing [[Sweet Caroline]] since Tony Parry ([[Wembley Stadium|Wembley]] DJ) played it after England had defeated Germany at Wembley in [[UEFA Euro 2020|Euro 2020]]. He said "I thought Sweet Caroline went slightly better than Three Lions in the post-match sing-song."<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-07-29 |title=Why do England fans sing the song Sweet Caroline? |url=https://www.bbc.com/newsround/62340201 |access-date=2024-07-12 |work=BBC Newsround |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==Personal life==

Diamond has been married three times. In 1963, he married his high-school sweetheart, Jaye Posner, <!-- not a typo, her name is Jaye! -->who had become a schoolteacher. They had two daughters.<ref name = us2012 /> The couple separated in 1967<ref name=people1996 /> and divorced in 1969.<ref name=us2012>{{cite journal|url=https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/neil-diamond-71-marries-his-manager-42-2012224|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120423193955/https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/neil-diamond-71-marries-his-manager-42-2012224|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 23, 2012| title=Neil Diamond, 71, Marries His Manager, 42|date= April 22, 2012|journal = [[Us Weekly]]}}</ref>

On December 5, 1969, Diamond married production assistant Marcia Murphey.<ref name = us2012 /> They had two sons.<ref name = us2012 /> The marriage ended in 1994<ref name = us2012 /> or 1995.<ref name = people1996>{{cite journal|journal=[[People (magazine)|People]] |url=http://people.com/people/article/0,,20141128,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512110102/http://people.com/people/article/0,,20141128,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 12, 2012| title= Period of Change| first= Karen S | last= Schneider| date= April 29, 1996| quote = The sadness permeating much of the album is evoked not only by Diamond's artistic expression but by his very real sense of loss since the end last year of his 25-year-marriage to Marcia Murphey, 54.}}</ref>

In 1996, Diamond began a relationship with Australian Rae Farley after the two met in [[Brisbane]], [[Australia]]. The songs on ''[[Home Before Dark]]'' were written and composed during his struggle with chronic back pain.<ref name="entertainment.timesonline.co.uk">{{cite news | url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article4220719.ece | title=Neil Diamond Heads To Glastonbury: Neil Diamond is a bigger hit than ever — at the darkest time of his life | date=June 27, 2008 | first=Andrew | last=Billen | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615101427/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article4220719.ece | archive-date=June 15, 2011 | location=London | work=[[The Times]] | url-status=dead | df=mdy-all }}</ref>

On September 7, 2011, in a message on Twitter, the 70-year-old Diamond announced his engagement to the 41-year-old [[Katie McNeil Diamond|Katie McNeil]]. The couple married in front of family and close friends in Los Angeles in 2012.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://music.yahoo.com/news/neil-diamond-married-154058232.html|title=Neil Diamond gets married!|publisher=Access Hollywood via Yahoo News|date=April 22, 2012|access-date=April 22, 2012}}</ref> In addition to serving as Diamond's manager, McNeil produced the documentary ''Neil Diamond: Hot August Nights NYC''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Fernandez |first1=Sofia M. |title=Neil Diamond Engaged to Manager Katie McNeil |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/music-news/neil-diamond-engaged-manager-katie-232318/ |website=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=April 7, 2022 |date=September 7, 2011}}</ref> Diamond said that his 2014 album ''Melody Road'' was fueled by their relationship, explaining:
<blockquote>
There's no better inspiration or motivation for work than being in love. It's what you dream of as a creative person. I was able to complete this album—start it, write it and complete it—under the spell of love, and I think it shows somehow.<ref name="BB/Melody Road">{{cite news|title=Neil Diamond on His Walk Down 'Melody Road:' 'I Was...Under the Spell Of Love'|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/neil-diamond-on-his-walk-down-melody-road-i-wasunder-the-spell-of-love-6289429/|access-date=April 7, 2022|publisher= Billboard|date=October 22, 2014}}</ref>
</blockquote>

==Discography==
[[File:Neil Diamond 2.jpg|thumb|Diamond performing in 2005]]
{{Main|Neil Diamond discography}}

==Filmography==
*''[[Mannix]],'' "The Many Deaths of Saint Christopher", 1967, as himself
*''[[The Jazz Singer (1980 film)|The Jazz Singer]],'' 1980, starring role as Jess Robin
* ''[[Saving Silverman]]'', 2001, appearing as himself
* ''[[Keeping Up With The Steins]]'', 2006, appearing as himself
* ''Trevor Noah: Where Was I'', 2023, appearing as himself

== Explanatory notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links |n=no |b=no |wikt=no |d=Q294531 |mw=no |m=no |species=no |voy=no |v=no |s=no |commons=Category:Neil Diamond}}
* {{Official website|http://www.neildiamond.com/}}
* [http://www.diamondville.com Neil Diamond's Band's Official Site] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804112701/http://www.diamondville.com/ |date=August 4, 2020}}
* {{Rockhall}}
* {{IMDb name|0004871}}

{{Neil Diamond}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for Neil Diamond
|list1 =
{{Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score}}
{{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor}}
{{Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media}}
{{Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award}}
{{Kennedy Center Honorees 2010s}}
{{MusiCares Person of the Year}}
{{2011 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}
}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diamond, Neil}}
[[Category:Neil Diamond| ]]
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[[Category:20th-century American guitarists]]
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[[Category:Abraham Lincoln High School (Brooklyn) alumni]]
[[Category:American acoustic guitarists]]
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[[Category:People with Parkinson's disease]]
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Bang Records artists]]
[[Category:Kennedy Center honorees]]