I loved this album and also listened to it over and over. I still remember every word. My uncle was there and described the moment he stopped singing... because he wanted the firehouses to stop trying to blast the people out of the trees "bless you tree people I'm singing for you too"
Fun flashback tunes. Music has always been my go to during tough times and the best of times. Thank you very much for the post—you brought back memories of my own childhood. Be well Mary, and carry-on.
Neil Diamond is inextricably linked to my Dad for me. Every memory I have of his songs are connected to moments with him... since my dad is a small version of tfg, not all my memories of him while growing up are good ones. But Neil Diamond somehow bridges that gap and allows me to see some of the good in him. Thanks for sharing your own memories.
ND was a little before my time (born in '76), but I'm familiar with his most popular songs. Sweet Caroline conjures up special memories of grad school - 3 of my best buds were a lanky 6'5" guy, a shorter but very buff guy with long braided hair, and an athletic, average height guy. We went to football games together, played intramural sports together, and drank together (I couldn't keep up in that department). A bunch of us liked to hang out at a hole in the wall lesbian karaoke bar a little farther from campus to avoid the undergrad crowd. One night, someone decided we should attempt a song - so there were the 3 big guys and me, the scrawny (but scrappy!) farm girl. We were able to coerce a few others from our group to come up, too, all of us in various stages of drunkenness. It sounded about as good as you can imagine, which is to say astoundingly awful, but it didn't stop us from belting out every word of Sweet Caroline. It was my one and only time singing karaoke, thankfully. But I can't listen to that song without being transported right back up to that stage with those guys, when so many of us didn't have a care in the world. Thanks for the memory! The Holly Holy song is great, too.
Respect but not a big fan. Blessed my Irish heritage mom loved books. Encyclopedias got me through deep bloody abuse by my MD dad to all on hand. A covert narcissist. One face in public one at home. I now have two doctorates in my search for meaning to this Insanity. The one in divinity teaches me love wins. And kindness and dignity are the culture I seek. Wonderful you had this flame Mary Trump.
I have been to more than 124 Neil Diamond concerts. His music changed my life. First concert, Greek Theater 1971. I wound up seeing 4 of his 6 shows that week. His music cleansed me and gave me life. Mary, your thoughts echo my thoughts. I'm so glad you found him and his music.
I love(d) the live version of Hot August Night. I have different playlists that I’ve compiled over the past few years. One is called Housework, and pumps me up to clean like a maniac, with occasional dancing breaks (how can you NOT stop what you’re doing and dance to Rubberband Man by the Spinners?) I associate so many songs with people in my past, and to speak to the listening-to-someone-elses’s-cassette vibe, I used to borrow a BMW convertible from my boss to run office errands in the seventies. He had the cassette of Fleetwood Mac, on which Landslide was recorded. I flat wore it out. My former boss is long gone, but I never fail to remember him when that song pops up on a playlist. Music recreates entire worlds and chapters in our lives.
For me, Cracklin' Rosie was part of the soundtrack for driving myself west across the country at age 17, Cape Cod to Palo Alto, especially Nebraska, where the eastern half is flat midwest, but where the western half becomes the wild west, with buttes of increasing size the further you go. Solitary Man was also part of that cross-country soundtrack.
Oooh, David. I need to download Solitary Man. At 67, I frequently rediscover music from my youth. I loved that song, and had completely forgotten about it. Thanks!
we're almost the same age. I was conceived in Truman and born in Eisenhower. I certainly hadn't thought about Solitary Man for ages, possibly since before the millennium. I think that and Cracklin Rosie are my favorites.
Sometimes, crime does pay.
I had that album and like you, every song has a memory.
I loved this album and also listened to it over and over. I still remember every word. My uncle was there and described the moment he stopped singing... because he wanted the firehouses to stop trying to blast the people out of the trees "bless you tree people I'm singing for you too"
Fun flashback tunes. Music has always been my go to during tough times and the best of times. Thank you very much for the post—you brought back memories of my own childhood. Be well Mary, and carry-on.
Neil Diamond is inextricably linked to my Dad for me. Every memory I have of his songs are connected to moments with him... since my dad is a small version of tfg, not all my memories of him while growing up are good ones. But Neil Diamond somehow bridges that gap and allows me to see some of the good in him. Thanks for sharing your own memories.
🥰 I too sat in my room with the door shut tightly listening to my music. Neil Diamond was a favorite of mine. Thank you for sharing your memory ❤
Thank you Mary, I too always loved Neil Diamond, but lost track of him. This was a lovely way to start my early morning.
I wonder if Neil Diamond had any idea how his songs would become part of the cultural lexicon of this country so many years after they were recorded.
The power of music everyday I find is a great help, especially in these times. Thank you Mary!
Thank you. Running against Boebert is heavy and I needed this breath of fresh air.
ND was a little before my time (born in '76), but I'm familiar with his most popular songs. Sweet Caroline conjures up special memories of grad school - 3 of my best buds were a lanky 6'5" guy, a shorter but very buff guy with long braided hair, and an athletic, average height guy. We went to football games together, played intramural sports together, and drank together (I couldn't keep up in that department). A bunch of us liked to hang out at a hole in the wall lesbian karaoke bar a little farther from campus to avoid the undergrad crowd. One night, someone decided we should attempt a song - so there were the 3 big guys and me, the scrawny (but scrappy!) farm girl. We were able to coerce a few others from our group to come up, too, all of us in various stages of drunkenness. It sounded about as good as you can imagine, which is to say astoundingly awful, but it didn't stop us from belting out every word of Sweet Caroline. It was my one and only time singing karaoke, thankfully. But I can't listen to that song without being transported right back up to that stage with those guys, when so many of us didn't have a care in the world. Thanks for the memory! The Holly Holy song is great, too.
Respect but not a big fan. Blessed my Irish heritage mom loved books. Encyclopedias got me through deep bloody abuse by my MD dad to all on hand. A covert narcissist. One face in public one at home. I now have two doctorates in my search for meaning to this Insanity. The one in divinity teaches me love wins. And kindness and dignity are the culture I seek. Wonderful you had this flame Mary Trump.
I have been to more than 124 Neil Diamond concerts. His music changed my life. First concert, Greek Theater 1971. I wound up seeing 4 of his 6 shows that week. His music cleansed me and gave me life. Mary, your thoughts echo my thoughts. I'm so glad you found him and his music.
I love(d) the live version of Hot August Night. I have different playlists that I’ve compiled over the past few years. One is called Housework, and pumps me up to clean like a maniac, with occasional dancing breaks (how can you NOT stop what you’re doing and dance to Rubberband Man by the Spinners?) I associate so many songs with people in my past, and to speak to the listening-to-someone-elses’s-cassette vibe, I used to borrow a BMW convertible from my boss to run office errands in the seventies. He had the cassette of Fleetwood Mac, on which Landslide was recorded. I flat wore it out. My former boss is long gone, but I never fail to remember him when that song pops up on a playlist. Music recreates entire worlds and chapters in our lives.
For me, Cracklin' Rosie was part of the soundtrack for driving myself west across the country at age 17, Cape Cod to Palo Alto, especially Nebraska, where the eastern half is flat midwest, but where the western half becomes the wild west, with buttes of increasing size the further you go. Solitary Man was also part of that cross-country soundtrack.
Oooh, David. I need to download Solitary Man. At 67, I frequently rediscover music from my youth. I loved that song, and had completely forgotten about it. Thanks!
we're almost the same age. I was conceived in Truman and born in Eisenhower. I certainly hadn't thought about Solitary Man for ages, possibly since before the millennium. I think that and Cracklin Rosie are my favorites.
Beautiful, Mary!