>> ♪ Baby loves me, yes, yes, she does... ♪ >> NARRATOR: He is an enigmatic icon in a shiny shirt, a veteran superstar who has written a treasure trove of pop gems. >> ♪ She got the way to move me... ♪ >> Before he became the Jewish Elvis, he was really the prophet for the upcoming singer/songwriter revolution. >> ♪ Song sung blue, everybody knows one... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Neil Diamond is a living legend, a pop icon who's cut nearly 40 top-40 hits. His songs, sung blue or otherwise, are everywhere. >> I mean, he writes really great music. He's also really cute, women faint, got great hair. >> ♪ Touching me... ♪ >> He's kind of like, he's a love-slinger. He's not slinging a gun; he's slinging love. >> ♪ Sweet Caroline... ♪ >> NEIL DIAMOND: I think if people listen to my songs, they know my story, and they know who I am. >> ♪ Talkin' about Kentucky woman... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Since the '60s, Neil Diamond has blazed his own trail, defying convention, inspiring believers. >> He's the one person who can go and sell out, you know, ten nights anywhere in the world. >> It's like a cult almost. I mean, people are rabid about him. >> When you walk out on that stage, he goes, it is the ultimate orgasm. (<i> cheers and applause</i> ) >> NARRATOR: And while he has been the people's top choice for decades he's rarely been the critics' darling. >> ♪ Everywhere around the world, they're comin' to America... ♪ >> You either love Neil Diamond or want nothing to do with Neil Diamond. I've never met anyone who said, "Yeah, Neil's okay." >> DIAMOND: I had to make a conscious decision early in my career, am I to please the critics or am I to please the audience? And I felt it was more democratic to try to please the audience. >> ♪ Did you ever read about a frog who dreamed of being a king? ♪ >> NARRATOR: Now, the Diamond that is forever. >> Don't ever let anyone ever tell you that Neil Diamond doesn't rock. >> ♪ "I am," I said... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Neil Diamond, the story behind the music. >> ♪ "I am," I cried... ♪ <font color="#FFFF00"> [Captioning sponsored by THE</font> <font color="#FFFF00"> U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION</font> and VH1] >> ♪ Take my hand, sweet Lord, I will find my way... ♪ >> NARRATOR: For nearly four decades Neil Diamond has been leading the way. >> ♪ Love, love Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show... ♪ >> PAUL SHAFFER: How can you deny that Neil Diamond is a seminal rock 'n' roll artist and writer? You can't deny it. >> ELLIE GREENWICH: There is nobody else that sounds like him, there is nobody else that writes like him. >> ♪ Love... ♪ >> NARRATOR: His live shows are charged with the intensity of a revival meeting, his fans, devoted believers. >> JACK BLACK: He's a showman. He's from the showman school of rock 'n' roll. >> NARRATOR: And while his name is permanently etched into the history of American music, Neil Diamond is no relic of rock's past. His songs stand the test of time, and keep coming back in amazing ways. >> ♪ Love was out to get me... ♪ >> DIAMOND: I love the idea that my songs are recorded by other people who have their own take on the music. >> ♪ And then I saw her face now I'm a believer... ♪ >> STEVE HARWELL: I love Neil Diamond. They're great songs. He's a great songwriter. They're kind of timeless stuff, you know? >> ♪ No doubt in my mind... ♪ >> ♪ Red, red wine... ♪ >> NARRATOR: His tunes have been transformed into infectious reggae hits... >> ♪ It's up to you... ♪ ...and alternative soundtrack smashes. >> ♪ Love, you'll be a woman soon... ♪ >> NASH KATO: We've always been big Diamond heads. We're fans of a lot of the great singer/songwriters. ♪ And all they can say is "He's not your kind..." ♪ >> QUENTIN TARANTINO: I heard their version of that song and I was, like, Boom! "I wanna plug that into the movie." That's a perfect song for Mia to dance to. >> ♪ And honey's sweet... ♪ >> NARRATOR: His songs cross all boundaries and the man himself seems to be all things to all people. >> ♪ And if you'll pardon me, I'd like to stay, with you, okay forever in blue jeans... ♪ >> BLACK: Neil's voice has got kind of a dramatic, grandness to it. >> ♪ No... yeah... ♪ >> ♪ Yeah... ♪ >> BLACK: Like he's getting ready to save the world or something. I think that's what the ladies respond to. I know I do. >> ♪ Yeah! ♪ >> NARRATOR: Neil Diamond is a true pop icon, a musical pioneer who has blazed his own platinum path, selling more than 115 million records, and at every turn he's ignored critics who said his music was too mellow and wardrobe too loud. >> ♪ Holly holy song... ♪ >> DIAMOND: I'm doing good if all they can say is, you know, my shirts are sparkly. >> SHAFFER: Didn't Elvis wear sparkly shirts? The Beatles wore suits, four of them, matching, you know. God love him for wearing those sparkly shirts. >> ♪ Ah, Cracklin' Rosie get on board... ♪ >> NARRATOR: In the world of pop music Neil Diamond doesn't fit in anywhere, except at the top, where his faithful fans have kept him. >> ♪ Oh, I love my Rosie child You got the way to make me happy... ♪ >> DIAMOND: They are people who follow their own guts, and it, it just so happens that over the years enough of them have gathered together to really create a very large constituency for my music. And thank God for them. >> ♪ ...song keeps running on Play it now, play it now, play it now... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Neil Leslie Diamond wasn't the first Diamond with a passion for music. His parents, Rose and Kiev, loved to let music move them. >> DIAMOND: My mom and dad were goers. They were doers. They would do anything to go dancing. On Saturday night, they would crash a wedding just to dance to the band. >> NARRATOR: The Diamonds lived in New York's bustling borough of Brooklyn, where Neil was born in January 1941. Making ends meet was a family affair at Diamond's dry goods store. >> DIAMOND: It was a neighborhood shop, and socks and underwear and stockings, and for women, and bras, and which I helped lots of women try to fit into. >> ♪ I can still recall smells of cooking in the hallways... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Friends say that the door was always open at the Diamonds, and the atmosphere warm and welcoming. >> HERB COHEN: And there was really love there. His family was very affectionate and, uh, very loving and very emotional. And, uh, Neil reflects that. >> ♪ Squirming into Papa's embrace and his whiskers warm on their face Where's it gone? ♪ >> COHEN: The song of Neil, you know, coming home and, and, and, and hugging his father and kissing him on the cheek and feeling his beard, it really, really touches me. >> ♪ Brooklyn Roads... ♪ >> NARRATOR: As a teen, Neil spent his summers far away from the hustle and bustle of Brooklyn. 90 miles north of the city, Surprise Lake camp opened up Neil's eyes and ears to new possibilities. >> DIAMOND: At Surprise Lake I was exposed to a lot of music. It kind of inspired me to take guitar lessons and learn how to play. >> NARRATOR: In high school Neil found his voice in choir and when he was 17, he was moved to write his first song. His muse arrived in the lovely form of a girl named Jay. >> ♪ Hear them bells, the story of our love... ♪ >> DIAMOND: I really wanted to impress her and I couldn't afford to buy her a gift or anything, so I wrote a song called "Hear Them Bells." And basically, it was a song saying, you know, will you marry me, uh... and it worked. >> ♪ Hear them bells, the story of our love... ♪ >> NARRATOR: In '59, Neil won a scholarship to New York University, not for his singing but his dueling. Neil was a natural at fencing. >> COHEN: He used to bring his guitar on our road trips and play in the back, and while all the guys were playing cards and stuff, he would always sing for us. >> NARRATOR: But soon athletic competition and higher learning lost out to Diamond's ever- growing obsession-- music. >> ♪ Don't get too close, my friends warned me... ♪ In 1962, just 13 credits shy of graduation, Neil Diamond dropped out of college. >> ♪ Made me feel like a star in the wind Don't know where I stand... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Newly married, he took a job as an apprentice songwriter for a publishing company in New York's famed music district, Tin Pan Alley. >> DIAMOND: I had no idea how I could make a living and have a family while being a musician or a songwriter, but it was something that I loved. >> ♪ Oh, no, I've been calling I'm a star in the wind... ♪ >> NARRATOR: The job put $50 a week in Neil's pocket. It also put him alone in the shadow of legendary songwriting duos like Gerry Goffin & Carole King, and Ellie Greenwich & Jeff Barry. ♪ When a guy's been made a fool of by a gal who only wants to play... ♪ >> ELLIE GREENWICH: There really was this hustle and bustle of creativity and activity. Rock and roll was a baby and you actually were part of the growing process, and it was very exciting. >> ♪ Her name is Sunday, and one day... ♪ >> NARRATOR: For two years Neil slaved day and night trying to make his name as a songwriter, but aside from one modest hit for Jay and the Americans, he was feeling like a washout >> GREENWICH: I think he was an entity unto himself. I feel badly that he feels he was a loser in that era, 'cause I don't think he was in it. >> DIAMOND: You know, I was still writing terrible songs, very sophomoric, but I could say honestly that I was a songwriter. >> NARRATOR: Next, Neil Diamond gets his first big break. >> ♪ Said she loves, me, yes, yes, she does... ♪ >> GREENWICH: You really wanted to kind of take care of Neil and know that when he was taken care of, he would take care of you. >> ♪ When you just roll over... ♪ >> NARRATOR: And later, Diamond cuts a torch song classic. >> DIAMOND: Originally, "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" was written for a television show. >> ♪ And you don't bring me flowers anymore... ♪ >> NARRATOR: When<i> Behind The</i> <i> Music</i> continues. ♪ I don't have a lot but with me, that's fine ♪ >> NARRATOR: In 1965, Neil Diamond was struggling to find his place as a songwriter at the height of Beatlemania. ♪ I don't go around with the local crowd ♪ With a wife and a new baby to support, the 24-year-old badly needed a big hit. >> DIAMOND: There was the pressure of being a dad, being a husband. I couldn't just fool around. I had to get down to business and really make it. >> NARRATOR: Looking for help, Neil Diamond sought out one of the reigning prodigies of pop, Ellie Greenwich. Her hit list included classics like "Be My Baby", "Leader of the Pack," and "Da Doo Ron Ro. >> GREENWICH: I thought he was adorable. I wanted to take him home for milk and cookies. That's exactly how I felt about Neil. You really wanted to kind of take care of Neil and know that when he was taken care of, he would take care of you. >> DIAMOND: We met. We laughed. We kibitzed. And when we were finished, she said, "You know, I'd like to have you meet my husband. I think maybe we might want to make some records with you." >> NARRATOR: With Ellie and her then-husband, Jeff Barry, in his corner, Neil landed a deal with an upstart division of Atlantic Records called Bang. And in the spring of '66 he released his first single, a song that would define him for years to come. ♪ Don't know that I will, But until I can find me ♪ At first, "Solitary Man" was only a modest success. But Neil was learning how to write hits. ♪ I'll be what I am A solitary man ♪ He had been moved to write his first single listening to his heart. But for his second, he would let the rhythm take hold. >> DIAMOND: "Cherry, Cherry" was one of those things that was based on a rhythm pattern. ♪ Baby loves me Yes, yes, she does All the girls outside yell ♪ >> SHAFFER: "Cherry, Cherry" was really, straight up, what became the, to me, the Neil Diamond signature sound. ♪ She got the way to move me, Cherry ♪ >> NARRATOR: "Cherry, Cherry" was an infectious rocker that went to number six in September of '66. Soon Don Kirshner, the architect for the made-for-TV Fab Four, The Monkees, came calling. >> DIAMOND: Don Kirshner loved the record and called Jeff and Ellie and said, "Hey, maybe you guys can put together something for this group that I'm working on." ♪ Then I saw her face Now I'm a believer ♪ >> NARRATOR: The Monkees took Neil's song, "I'm A Believer" to the top of the charts, where it stayed for seven weeks. It was Neil's first number one hit as a songwriter. ♪ You got to me Got to my soul You got to me You got control You got to me You got to me You got to be mine ♪ >>> NARRATOR: Neil's sound was simple, yet powerful, and over the next year, songs like "You Got To Me," "Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon" and "Kentucky Woman" made Neil Diamond a fixture at the top of the charts. >> SHAFFER: Before he became the Jewish Elvis, I would say that he was really the prophet for the upcoming singer-songwriter revolution. He was the first. >> NARRATOR: With hits on the radio, the New York boy took his act on the road. ♪ New York City Look at me now ♪ Not surprisingly, music's "solitary man" didn't quite fit on every bill. One night, he found himself wedged between Herman's Hermits and a new British sensation. >> DIAMOND: The closing act was The Who, who I had never heard of. And they got out there and started smashing up their amps and equipment, and guitars. I've never smashed a guitar. I leave that to other people. I like my guitars. Yeah, these guys, they can follow me. ♪ Red, red wine... ♪ >> NARRATOR: But Neil's zealous dedication to his work was taking its toll. Just as his career was coming together, Neil Diamond and his wife, Jay, split apart in 1967. ♪ Still need her so... ♪ >> DIAMOND: You just jump on this wild horse, and you're just holding on for dear life. And I think it was responsible in a large way for ending my first marriage. And it was painful. ♪ Young child with dreams ♪ >> NARRATOR: Neil threw himself deeper into his work. As he pushed himself, his music was becoming more complex and personal, and his relationship with Bang Records, more explosive. >> DIAMOND: They began to want and expect music that I had already done. They wanted more "Cherry, Cherry" and "Kentucky Woman" and "Solitary Man," and I had gone past that. >> NARRATOR: In 1968, Neil parted ways with Bang and signed on with MCA's Uni label. The next year, looking for inspiration, he left the familiar New York music scene behind and made his way south to record in the birthplace of rock and roll. >> DIAMOND: I was in a hotel room in Memphis. And, you know, I just sat down with the guitar and went to... ♪ Daa daa daa da Daa daa da da da da da Daa daa daa daa Daa daa daa daa ♪ And then, ooh, I didn't know where to go, and you want a chord that's not even in your dictionary or in your vocabulary. And just my hands fell on this. ♪ Touching hands ♪ That's a chord which I'd never played in my life. I just made my fingers go there, and that was the chord that I wanted. ♪ Reaching out Touching me Touching you Sweet Caroline ♪ >> NARRATOR: The chord Neil discovered would launch him into the stratosphere, and "Sweet Caroline" became his first top- five hit as a singer- songwriter in the summer of '69. ♪ I've been inclined... ♪ Suddenly, Neil Diamond was finding new fans everywhere. >> DIAMOND: There's very few places in the world that I can go where "Sweet Caroline" is not known. It makes you feel that all the work and all the time and all of the stupid things you've done over your life and your career has a little bit of meaning, because it's, it's touched some people. ♪ Ah, Crackling Rosie get on board ♪ >> NARRATOR: As the '60s gave way to the '70s, Neil Diamond's life was changing. He met and married his second wife, Marcia, and moved to Los Angeles. The man who never felt like he fit in was putting down new roots. But he began questioning the path he had taken and the road he was on. His crisis of identity came to a head one day while auditioning to play Lenny Bruce in an ill-fated film version of the rebel comedian's story. >> Uh, when a guy is horny, man, he will<i> shtup</i> anything. (<i> laughing</i> ) Anything, he will... a fist, mud, a barrel, a banana, a rotten avocado. (<i> laughing</i> ) >> DIAMOND: I did my test, and I was really depressed about it. I thought, you know, I, I was a real failure. And during that lunch break, I started to write a thing and got pretty heavily into it. >> NARRATOR: The song that Neil started that afternoon would take four months to complete. When it was finally finished, he had given voice to his self-doubt and growing sense of isolation. ♪ L.A.'s fine, but it ain't home New York's home but it ain't mine no more ♪ (<i> strings swelling</i> ) ♪ "I am," I said ♪ >> DIAMOND: It drew me back again to a very common thread which are my roots and where I'm going, and what I'm, I'm doing with my life. ♪ And I am lost and I can't even say why ♪ >> NARRATOR: Next, Neil stops the music. >> DIAMOND: I felt I had proven all I had to prove, and so I, I decided to walk. (<i> "America" plays</i> ) >> NARRATOR: And later, a pop giant becomes The Jazz Singer. >> LUCIE ARNAZ: I think he could have been a very good actor had the critics been a little kinder to him in his first film. I mean, they just were horrific. >> NARRATOR: When<i> Behind the</i> <i> Music</i> continues. ♪ They're coming to America. ♪ (<i> acoustic guitar intro</i> ) >> DIAMOND: ♪ Friend, have you seen Glory Road? ♪ >> NARRATOR: Neil Diamond seemed to be on top of the world in 1972. >> ♪ And I know Glory Road's waiting for me... ♪ >> NARRATOR: He was 31 years old and had already racked up more than 20 Top 40 hits. But along with the glory, there was pain. >> DIAMOND: When you're as involved and as passionate about what you're doing as I was, it seems like everything else took a second position. You do pay a price in your personal life, and I paid that price time and time again. >> NARRATOR: He'd already lost one marriage to his work. Now, remarried with a new baby son, Neil wanted more than just a career-- he wanted a life. >> DIAMOND: ♪ You are the sun I am the moon You are the words I am the tune Play me... ♪ I had reached a point where I felt I had proven all I had to prove and so I... I decided to walk. >> NARRATOR: But before he bowed from the stage, he wanted to give fans something to remember him by. >> Ladies and gentlemen, Neil Diamond! >> NARRATOR: So in August '72, Neil Diamond played ten sold- out shows at The Greek Theater in Los Angeles. His performance would be immortalized forever, on a classic live album that would enjoy a 78-week run on the charts. >> DIAMOND (<i> onstage</i> ): It was a hot august night... Hot August Night captures a very special show for me. We went all out to really knock them dead in L.A. ♪ Everyone knows Brother Love's show... ♪ >> SHAFFER: He attained the stature of an Elvis, as a concert performer. He could sell out multi nights in huge stadiums. You know, he was an icon like Elvis. >> NARRATOR: After a short tour, Neil Diamond closed the curtain on his days as a performer. Out of the limelight, he would spend time with his family, and take stock of his life. >> DIAMOND: I left for about four years, really; did very little but spend time with my kids and, uh, write a few songs. I think it was one of the happiest times in my life. No pressure from business. It gave me a chance to know myself as an adult in a way that I never had before. I think it was the most important part of my life in the last 30 years. >> NARRATOR: Having escaped the glare of the spotlight, Neil Diamond was searching for new meaning in life and his work. >> DIAMOND: ♪ If you may Be... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Then his muse was sparked when he was asked to write the music for the film version of the best-selling book <i> Jonathan Livingston Seagull.</i> >> DIAMOND: ♪ As a page that aches for a word Which speaks on theme that is timeless... ♪ Everybody read<i> Jonathan</i> Seagull. It was a philosophical... flimsy little thing about a seagull who just wouldn't follow the crowd. >> NARRATOR: Like the book's title character, Neil was and always had been a loner, with his own sense of direction. >> GREENWICH: Neil is very, very sensitive. I think he's very into himself, his feelings and what he's all about. And I think Neil turns to Neil to solve all his problems and to deal with life. He<i> is</i> a solitary man. >> DIAMOND: ♪ ...make for Your way... ♪ ♪ And I've been This way before... ♪ >> DIAMOND: The process itself-- the writing, the understanding which you had to come to-- was also a very interesting kind of a part of my life then and also reflects part of my idea of self-improvement and, you know, moving on and not necessarily traveling with the flock and, uh... it was a great experience. >> NARRATOR: The movie of <i> Jonathan Livingston Seagull</i> plummeted to earth upon its release in 1973, but Neil's soundtrack became another high- flying smash, selling millions, and earning Neil a Grammy. >> ♪ Longfellow serenade... ♪ >> NARRATOR: During his self- imposed exile, Neil Diamond felt he had regained his perspective, and by 1976 he was ready to come back full steam. >> ♪ There I will sing to you my Longfellow serenade... ♪ >> DIAMOND: I came back with a new enthusiasm, uh, toward writing and recording and also toward performing. And I think I was a different and a better performer when I came back. It seemed like I grew up somewhat in those four years. ♪ What a beautiful noise Coming up from the street... ♪ >> NARRATOR: The album that would herald his return was an ambitious and personal project; an emotional look back at his musical roots, it was called<i> Beautiful Noise.</i> >> DIAMOND: I thought that I'd like to try somehow to tell this story of what it was like in Tin Pan Alley with all the other aspiring young writers. Some of them huge successes; most of us knocking around on the streets and hoping for a break. >> NARRATOR: To help bring this vision to life, Neil turned to a man who knew all about roots music-- Robbie Robertson, leader of one of rock's most respected groups, The Band. >> DIAMOND: ♪ Dry your eyes Take your song out Well, it's a newborn afternoon... ♪ >> ROBERTSON: When I worked with Neil on this record<i> Beautiful</i> <i> Noise...</i> and to a lot of people, they were like wait a minute, "Is this a put on? What's going on here? This doesn't fit musically, like: you, Neil Diamond, your background... And I felt like, "Don't you tell<i> me</i> what fits. I'll<i> show</i> you what fits." And we made a record that I'm very, very proud of. It was probably his, you know, best-received record, ever, that he did. >> NARRATOR: Fans bought millions of copies of<i> Beautiful</i> <i> Noise</i> and critics praised it as one of Diamond's best, but when Neil took his show on the road, the rock press wasn't so kind. >> DIAMOND: I don't think being hip has played any real meaningful part in my career, because it hasn't affected what I write. Basically, I do my own thing, but I've never really fit into that genre of hip. >> PETER ASHER: I think the fact that Neil's fan base is so huge and so committed and so devoted is also why he becomes, you know, the butt of other people's humor. And in the music community, he was always held in tremendous respect. >> DIAMOND: ♪ And the radio Played, like a carnival tune As we lay in our bed In the other room When we gave it away For the sake of a dream In a penny arcade If you know what I mean... ♪ >> NARRATOR: The critics weren't knocking his songs so much as his shirts. In the angry era of punk, Neil's polished and shimmering performances were an easy target. >> DIAMOND: I've worn these glass-beaded shirts for years because it makes it a little bit easier for people to see me. And a little bit of me is a contrarian, and if somebody says, you know, "I really hate those shirts," I'm going to order another dozen of those shirts. >> SHAFFER: It's show business. Rock 'n' roll is about pizzazz and show business and selling- - selling a song. >> DIAMOND: ♪ Baby loves me, Yes, yes, she does Now-now-now-now... ♪ >> SHAFFER: Didn't Jerry Lee Lewis get on top of his piano? You can't play the piano from up there, you know, what was he doing up there? Showmanship-- come on, it's part of rock 'n' roll. >> ARNAZ: You're basically the only one they're gonna look at, so you better have something flashy on. People who just wear jeans and a T-shirt-- to a certain crowd that's okay, but Neil's crowd was never like that. >> ♪<i> She got the way to move</i> <i> me</i> ♪ >> ♪ Ah, Cherry, baby! ♪ >> BLACK: I don't think anyone can judge him for his fashion faux pas. I don't really see any faux pas, because, you know, they're costumes more than, like, outfits that he would, like, wear just going to the supermarket. >> NARRATOR: As usual, Neil forged on, ignoring the critics barbs. In 1978, he sat down at the piano and wrote what he thought would be a theme song for a new sitcom. >> DIAMOND: ♪ And you don't Bring me flowers... ♪ >> NARRATOR: In the end, he saved "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" for his next album. Neil's recording of the romantic ballad received only modest airplay, but it resonated with his former high school classmate, Barbara Streisand, who recorded her own rendition. >> STREISAND: ♪ Well, I learned How to laugh And I learned how to lie... ♪ >> DIAMOND: A few months later, we started to get tapes from disk jockeys who had intercut the two versions. They fit beautifully together. And so we both thought it was a really good idea, and, uh, we went into the studio and did a real duet of it, which came out soon after and became an enormous worldwide hit record. >> STREISAND/DIAMOND: ♪ You don't bring me flowers Anymore. ♪ >> NARRATOR: The duet became a number one hit and earned two Grammy nominations. >> DIAMOND: I would say it was a very, very successful reunion of two members of the Erasmus Hall High School Chorus. >> NARRATOR: But Neil Diamond had his eyes on even a bigger prize. After years of toying with acting, he finally decided to make his big Hollywood move. He signed on to star in and write the music for a story close to his heart: a remake of the classic film<i> The Jazz</i> <i> Singer.</i> ♪ On the boats and on the planes They're coming to America... ♪ >> NARRATOR: The plot mirrored Neil's own life: the story of a New Yorker who leaves everything behind to pursue pop music in Los Angeles. >> DIAMOND: ♪ Home... ♪ It's the story of someone who wants to break away from a traditional family situation and find his own path. And in that sense, it is my story. >> NARRATOR: Neil had found his big-screen vehicle, but for an artist who'd made his name working solo, making movies would prove difficult. Coming up: Neil Diamond gets ready for his close-up. >> DIAMOND: I was like a fish out of water. >> NARRATOR: And later, Diamond is rediscovered by a new generation. >> I think what's important about Neil Diamond's songs is it's some of the only music out there that bridges the gap between young and old. When<i> Behind The</i> Music<i> continues.</i> >> DIAMOND: ♪ Hello again, Hello... ♪ >> NARRATOR: From humble roots, Neil Diamond had risen to pop superstardom. >> ♪ Maybe it's been crazy, Maybe I'm to blame... ♪ >> NARRATOR: He'd traveled from Brooklyn roads to the beaches of Malibu. By 1980, after years of flirting with Hollywood, he was finally on the silver screen in a project he'd helped bring to life. >> DIAMOND: I finally found out where I belong. It's not back there, it's here. >> NARRATOR: A remake of the film classic<i> The Jazz Singer.</i> >> DIAMOND: I felt it was time for me to try something on film that would give me a real chance to see if I had any acting chops, and also, more importantly, would give me a chance to write some music. >> NARRATOR: Diamond found himself in heady company. While the role of his love interest went to big screen newcomer Lucie Arnaz, his father was played by legendary actor Sir Laurence Olivier. >> You think its an accident that you can sing? God gave your voice for his use, not yours! >> All right, Pop, I'm sorry. >> NARRATOR: But for this solitary man who was used to calling his own shots, the process would prove trying. >> ARNAZ: I really think that Neil was just a regular guy, scared to death to be acting in his first film. >> DIAMOND: I'd come home at night exhausted, just mentally exhausted. After the first few weeks, you know, I didn't think I could handle it anymore. Olivier would come home after a day's work on the set, swim laps in his hotel swimming pool and go out with friends for dinner. I came home and fell into bed, exhausted, knowing that I'd have to get up at 4:00 the next morning to study my lines for the day. >> GAUDIO: I think that was very difficult for him to deal with, especially because he's used to saying when things will happen. >> DIAMOND: ♪ Hey,<i> mon cherie</i> If I take you home... ♪ >> NARRATOR:<i> The Jazz</i> Singer<i> was</i> released in the spring of 1980. Predictably, the public supported Neil and the critics did not. >> ARNAZ: They crucified him so bad. I think he could have been a very good actor had the critics been a little kinder to him in his first film. >> DIAMOND: My performance, Olivier's performance, you know, anybody was in the film or came near it was savaged, but it was totally irrelevant to me. But the album, thank goodness, was accepted, and brought some of my better songs to the public. >> ARNAZ: So, P.S.: The movie goes in the toilet, the album makes bazillions of platinum money, and I get nothing. >> DIAMOND: ♪ Far We've been traveling far... ♪ >> NARRATOR:<i> The Jazz Singer</i> soundtrack became the most popular album of Neil Diamond's career, with sales of over five million in the U.S. alone. >> ♪ On the boats And on the planes They're coming to America... ♪ >> NARRATOR: "America," one of three top-ten hits from the album, was Neil's boldest song yet. He dedicated this to his own immigrant grandparents. >> ♪ Make our bed and we'll say our grace Freedom's light burning warm... ♪ >> BLACK: My mom was really into Neil, I remember. ♪ We coming to America Today! ♪ As I matured, I grew to understand the subtleties of "Love on the Rocks." >> DIAMOND: ♪ Love on the rocks Ain't no surprise... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Thanks to<i> The</i> Jazz <i> Singer</i> soundtrack, Neil Diamond's star was shining as bright as ever. >> ♪ First they say they want you Hey, how they really need you... ♪ >> NARRATOR: But with the '80s came the dawn of music television and its new brand of instant stars. More than ever, Neil seemed out of step with the pop scene. >> ♪ We're headed for the future And the future's now... ♪ >> NARRATOR: But Neil stubbornly refused to fade away. Out on the concert trail, he was a bigger draw than ever. >> ♪ Turn on your heartlight In the middle of a young boy's dream... ♪ >> RICHARD BENNETT: I can't tell you how many people have been brought kicking and screaming to a Neil show, who, after two- and- a-half-hours are sort of genuflecting at the altar of Diamond. >> ♪ We gonna take a ride across the moon... ♪ >> ASHER: The shows are fantastic. And it's so obvious that he cares so profoundly for his audience, equally as much, if not more, as they care for him. >> ♪ Sweet Caroline... ♪ >> LINDA PRESS: He brings out really good feelings from an audience. They love his songs. He makes everybody, whether they're three years old or 300 years old, that comes away from our concert, they all feel good. >> DIAMOND: Thank you. You're good. >> NARRATOR: Neil toured throughout the '80s. The father of four made every effort to make the road feel more like home and his band feel more like family. >> ♪<i> Saying I love you...</i> ♪ >> BENNETT: I never felt that Neil was a boss. I always felt that I worked with Neil, that we were all working together. And I think that's part of the reason why he's kept a band, some of them, for 30 years now. >> DIAMOND: ♪ Yesterday's songs Don't stay around long Not much anymore... ♪ >> DIAMOND: They've been with me in the trenches. I have a very deep sense of loyalty to them, not only as musicians but as people, and I think that's why we've been together for so long. >> REINE PRESS: Neil goes to great lengths to keep us really kind of insulated from the craziness that could be out there on the road. So we have our home, we have our Diamondville, we call it. >> NARRATOR: Bass player Reine Press and his wife Linda, a backing vocalist, have been residents of Diamondville for more than a quarter century. They even raised their daughter there. >> DAISY PRESS: The legend is they went up to Neil and said "Neil, what do we do? We're going to have this child. The road is really no place to raise a child." And he said, "No, it's not really, but we'll make it one, so bring her along." Everybody came together in a way to make a sort of family. I felt like all of the people on the road who weren't my parents were aunts and uncles. >> DIAMOND: ♪ You are the best Part of me... ♪ She gave a lot to this group, just having a little girl in the front of the bus, and most of us had left our children at home, so Daisy became our child. >> NARRATOR: But traveling with his surrogate family often kept Neil separated from his true loved ones. And in Spring of 1985, Neil received devastating news. >> DIAMOND: I got a call from my wife after I had done a show, and she said, "Honey, it's not good news. Your dad passed away earlier today." >> NARRATOR: Neil shut down his tour to mourn his loving father. When he finally returned to the road, he took solace that his own son, Jesse, had joined him onstage, playing guitar. >> DIAMOND: ♪ If you're gonna be True to me... ♪ >> DIAMOND: I said, "Jess, as long as I can turn around, look at you and get a smile, I'll get through the show," and he was there for me, which I'll always be thankful for. ♪ I'll be there by your... Side. ♪ >> NARRATOR: Next, Neil once again becomes a solitary man. >> DIAMOND: I think I'm a very difficult person to be with, and to live with. I don't know how these amazing women that I was married to were able to do it. >> NARRATOR: When<i> Behind The</i> <i> Music</i> continues. >> ♪ I was in search of a dream Underneath the Tennessee Moon... ♪ >> NARRATOR: By the mid-'90s, Neil Diamond was playing a new tune. Badly in need of a change of scene, he left Los Angeles to write and record in Nashville, Tennessee. The lonely sound of country music suited the heartbreak Neil was going through. >> ♪ One good love... ♪ >> NARRATOR: After nearly 25 years of marriage, his wife Marcia filed for divorce. >> DIAMOND: I think that going to Nashville was getting away, running away from a terrible emotional situation, and going to a place that I felt that was friendly and would be friendly and was friendly. >> ♪ And, baby, you're reason That I haven't played this song In years... ♪ >> NARRATOR: The later half of the '90s were a bumpy time for Neil personally, and for a time, he stopped writing music altogether. >> DIAMOND: I think there was somewhat of a block-- call it writer's block-- but it's really a mental block. ♪ Girl... You'll be a woman soon... ♪ >> NARRATOR: But professionally, Neil Diamond was experiencing a remarkable resurgence. His classic songs were featured prominently in films like<i> Pulp</i> <i> Fiction</i> and<i> Beautiful Girls,</i> and his concerts were bigger than ever, making him the top solo tour act of the decade. >> ♪ Baby loves me, yes, yes, She does... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Soon, there wasn't enough of the real Neil to go around. Even performers who borrowed his act were becoming wildly popular. >> ♪ She got the way to move me, Cherry... ♪ >> NARRATOR: But nobody has mined Neil's musical gems with more success than a band called Super Diamond. They consistently play to sellout crowds everywhere. >> SURREAL NEIL: Neil has a lot of followers out there, young and old, so we get some of the people who have been into Neil from the beginning, and then we get a lot of people that are just now rediscovering Neil Diamond. >> ♪ We've got things we've got To catch up on... ♪ >> DAISY: They're just such cool songs. They span the generations, and I think it's very easy for people my age to get into that. >> ♪ Can't stand still While the music is playing... ♪ >> DIAMOND: I guess it's flattering, but-- and it is a little weird-- but it's good. It just... it tells me that people are interested. ♪ I believe in happy Endings... ♪ >> NARRATOR: In the spring of 2001, the Surreal Neil phenomenon inspired the movie <i> Saving Silverman.</i> A comedy centered around a Neil Diamond tribute band, the real Neil made a cameo appearance and agreed to write a tune for the soundtrack-- a challenge that pulled Neil out of his songwriting slump. >> ♪ I believe in happy Endings... ♪ >> ASHER: Having to write an end title song for the movie to order, you know, Brill Building-style, uh, "I Believe In Happy Endings," seemed to get him on to sort of a writing spree. >> ♪ I believe in new Beginnings... ♪ >> DIAMOND: Doing this music for, uh, the movie opened up that-- whatever-- the clogged valves of my creative mind and showed me that I could do it and that was all I needed. ♪ Singing Elijah's song... ♪ >> NARRATOR: Neil began writing fast and furiously. After years of collaborating, this loner returned to the studio. The result:<i> Three Chord Opera,</i> the first album Neil has written and arranged by himself in a quarter-century. >> DIAMOND: It's one man's tiny little story of joy and agony and triumph and failure, but I think, through all the angst and emotion that I go through in writing these songs, there is always a sense of optimism, because, if there wasn't, there'd be no reason for me to write these songs. ♪ You are the best part Of me... ♪ >> NARRATOR: The songs on<i> Three</i> <i> Chord Opera</i> are perhaps Neil's most personal yet, but then again, Neil Diamond's music has always come from his heart. >> ♪ You're the part that allows Me to open my heart and let Love inside... ♪ >> NARRATOR: This solitary man has always followed his own path, turning his triumphs and tragedies into timeless tunes that move generations of true believers. >> ♪ You're the best part of Me... ♪ >> GREENWICH: I think he made a lot of people very happy. I think he has something to say in many areas, and I think he accomplished that. I mean, he will go down in history as being one of the main writer/performers of an era. >> SURREAL NEIL: Neil Diamond is eternally hip, definitely. He'll stand the test of time. >> DIAMOND: If you listen to the body of work over the last 35 years, you know pretty much who I am. Some of the names and dates have been changed, but the basic heart of me is in all of those songs. <font color="#FFFF00"> [Captioning sponsored by THE</font> <font color="#FFFF00"> U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION</font> <font color="#FFFF00"> and VH1</font> Captioned by <font color="#FF0000"> The Caption Center</font> WGBH Educational Foundation]
