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Neil Diamond Concert Review - Munich 2008
Magnificent Diamond Mesmerises Munich
27 May 2008
The Olympiahalle, Munich. Germany;
On stage; 8.18pm
Off stage; 10.26pm
Concert time; 2hrs 08mnts.
by Ian Graham
Neil wore; Dark jacket with Black satin pattern on cuffs, Black with
Black beads pattern on collar, cuffs & shoulders, Dark trousers with
silver stitching down sides.
Neil Diamond’s return to Germany began in triumph tonight as the great
arena packed with avid fans who had waited 9 long years to say “Hello
Again” to the celebrated performer gave him a tumultuous welcome
befitting one of the foremost singer-songwriters of recent generations.
Long before Neil hit the stage the excited anticipation of the fans was
evident as they waited impatiently for the great man to appear. And when
he made his entrance from the back of this impressive stage it was to a
tidal wave of noise that came close to detaching the roof from the rest
of the arena!
The opening lyrics to One more bite of the Apple were a clear
statement of intent and when Neil followed up with the much more
familiar Holly Holy the party was already kicking into top gear!
Neil has always been very skilful in taking his fans down the musical
pathways of his career and this carefully constructed set list
highlighted many significant milestones to be visited along the way.
Kicking into Street Life took us instantly back to 1976.
Then there was a slight change of plan! There were some minor sound
problems with what Neil described to the audience as his “butt pack” and
Neil explained he could not hear through his earpieces. Such problems
are temporary, class however is permanent, and Neil, the consummate
professional told the audience that they would still get a show that
night and he said he could sing Sweet Caroline while the running
repairs were affected to his power pack by the ever reliable and
multi-talented Greg “Chico” Lopez. The audience simply loved Neil’s
honesty and professionalism and they loved joining in on the song. At
the end Neil told the audience he could not hear the song through his
earpiece but he heard the audience and that they were great. He then
said that he thought he should do Sweet Caroline again, and he
did. The last chorus however Neil conducted and urged the audience to
sing solo! Fantastic stuff and a lesson in how to overcome difficulties
from a great professional!
Neil then talked about how he had performed in Munich many times before
and praised the City for its beauty and the warmth of the people before
he went on to talk about New York City and this led into Beautiful
Noise that underlined the quality of writing on that great album.
The wistful Lady Oh struck a chord with many in this vast arena
while the stunning If you know what I mean was awe-inspiring.
Time for some rock & roll and Neil asked the audience were we ready, the
response was emphatically yes, he then asked the band the same question,
and also got a vigorous yes! Cherry Cherry rang a reminder bell
to Neil’s early creative years while at the same time showcasing the
remarkable talents of this fabulous band of musicians he is so proud to
call his friends. Neil discarded his jacket as the band went through
their paces. Thank the Lord for the Nighttime in an invigorating
new style served to emphasise that wonderful period as well as keeping
us all on our feet!
The much cherished Hello Again and Love on the Rocks had
many reliving Neil’s Jazz Singer debut, can it really be nearly 3
decades since we all flocked to the cinema to see the movie?
Neil is rightly proud of his new album and we are all so happy it has
given him the #1 slot in the USA & UK as well as top 10 chartings around
the world. The beautiful title track Home Before Dark, the
up-tempo cautionary tale Don’t Go There, and the wonderful
Pretty Amazing Grace, surely one of Neil’s finest singles for some
considerable time, emphasized that Neil’s creativity is far from spent
and the reaction of the knowledgeable audience to the trilogy of songs
reinforced that fact. All three songs were again performed on Neil’s
fantastic “slide show” moving island.
The very mention of The Greek Theatre and the iconic Hot
August Night album always seizes the attention of the loyal legions
and the superb 1-2 of Crunchy Granola Suite and Done too soon
were rapturously welcomed!
The superb autobiographical trilogy followed with the superb Brooklyn
Roads and the wonderful video footage followed by the anthem I
Am.. I Said.. predictably sending the crowd into raptures, and the
classy Solitary Man equally well received.
I’m a Believer
had many sections up and dancing once more and then the wonderful 3-part
You don’t bring me Flowers at the end of which Neil said that
though he had never given Linda Press any flowers he thought it was
better fun to sing the song with her. Linda as always was superb and the
crowd showed their great appreciation accordingly.
Song Sung Blue
was again performed with Linda at front stage with Neil, and Maxine &
Julia did their usual fantastic support on the sing-along favourite. All
three girls wore fetching outfits of Black sparkling tops and pedal
pushers.
Man of God
was classy yet again while the hugely impressive Hell Yeah
continues to grow in stature and deserved the standing ovation that
followed.
As Neil did his first walk off the applause was deafening. When he
reappeared he was wearing a great maroon shirt with darker maroon
patterns across the back of the shoulders, collar and cuffs. He went
straight into Cracklin’ Rosie that had simply everyone up and
dancing, before closing out another top-drawer performance with the
peerless Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show.
Neil left out Forever in Blue Jeans tonight, but bear in mind he
had already done back-to-back renditions of Sweet Caroline very
early in the show.
My apologies for another late posting, there were difficulties on the
Underground (Subway/Metro) system leaving the Olympic Park and again in
the centre of Munich which made us late back to our hotel. We have
another early morning departure for Antwerp tomorrow but all being well
will post a review of Neil’s maiden show in Belgium, and if he keeps
this superb performance level up then everyone is in for another
fantastic show!
Another superb shirt worn by King tonight too!
Tonight’s playlist;
#1;One more bite of the Apple/Holly Holy; #2; Street Life; #3; Sweet
Caroline; 4; Sweet Caroline (final chorus by the audience conducted and
encouraged by Neil!) #5; Beautiful Noise; #6; Lady Oh; #7; If you know
what I mean; #8; Cherry Cherry (part band intro/instrumental); #9; Thank
the Lord for the Nighttime; #10 Hello Again; #11; Love on the Rocks;
#12; Home Before Dark; #13; Don’t go there; #14 Pretty Amazing Grace;
#15; Crunchy Granola Suite; #16 Done too soon; #17; Brooklyn Roads; #18;
I Am.. I Said..; #19; Solitary Man; #20; I’m a Believer; #21; You don’t
bring me Flowers; #22 Song Sung Blue; #23; Man of God; #24; Hell Yeah;
WALK-OFF; #25; Cracklin’ Rosie #26 BROTHER LOVE’S TRAVELLING SALVATION
SHOW; Final walk-off Band Walk-off
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