|
|
|
||||||||||
|
Neil Diamond Concert Reviews - Rotterdam 5/24 & 5/25/2008
Reviews by Ian Graham, photos by Shelley Beckwith
Flawless Diamond rocks Rotterdam.
The Ahoy Arena, Rotterdam. Holland;
On stage; 8.15pm
Off stage; 8.29pm
Concert time; 2hrs 09mnts.
by Ian Graham
Neil wore; Dark jacket with white stitching on cuffs & lapels, Dark shirt with Maroon patterns & understated sparkles.
Dark trousers with white stitching down sides.
After an absence of 9 years the legendary Neil Diamond backed by the
greatest band of musicians on the planet returned in triumph to Holland
tonight and stunned the wildly enthusiastic crowd with a sensational
show of old & new hits that rocked this famous Arena to the rafters.
This was a return journey for me also, having last seen Neil perform
here way back in 1984, and on this night of a zillion highlights Neil
made it so special for each and every fan inside the arena.
Few would have won a bet on the opening song; as the house lights went
down the band took their places and then we became aware that, as so
many times before, Neil appeared from the rear centre of this
extraordinary stage strumming his guitar and singing One more bite of
the Apple; As Neil approached the front with the crowd already on
their feet cheering and clapping he changed gear into Holly Holy.
The incredible stage then moved the various sections of the band around
as Neil tore into Street Life and then while we were still trying
to take in all these wonderful happenings he talked proudly of where he
came from and followed up with Beautiful Noise and then 2 more
classics from that fabulous album, the breathtaking Lady Oh and
the magnificent If you know what I mean. Neil then asked “are you
ready to rock” and took us charging into Cherry Cherry. The band
were fantastic as Neil let them do part of the song as an instrumental
and he gave special praise to Tom, Alan, Linda, Maxine & Julia & the
Horn dogs as they all strutted their stuff. Then a wonderfully fresh
Thank the Lord for the Nighttime after which Neil threw off his
jacket and reacquainted us all with the Jazz Singer era by delivering
Hello Again and Love on the Rocks; every song was cheered
massively by this great audience but it was clear that for many these
were 2 special favourites. Neil then moved to the right side of the
stage as seen from the floor and talked a little of his new album before
magnificently presenting the superb title track Home before Dark,
the cover of which had been highlighted on the 2 giant screens either
side of the stage. Then Neil rocked into Don’t go there that had
everyone stomping again and while we tried to catch breath he quickly
went on to the hugely popular Pretty Amazing Grace.
 All
the band members were really having fun, and Doug & Hadley were simply
awesome on their guitar work, just normal for such a class act, while
Linda Maxine & Julia could easily take charge of a class for aerobics
and still have energy to burn!
Neil then talked about the wonderful Hot August Night album before
launching into Crunchy Granola Suite in true Greek Theatre style
and then stunned us all with a truly sensational Done too soon.
Someone will no doubt correct me if I am wrong, but I have not heard
Neil perform this masterful song in concert since the early 70s, a truly
special moment on a night of many special moments!
Not for the first time over many decades Neil was displaying
unbelievable energy levels and did not let up as he had every single
person in the arena singing along with Forever in Blue Jeans, and it was
nice to see a number of the Arena very audience-friendly security staff
singing along as well!
Another old friend then returned as Neil sat on his stool and sand the
beautiful Brooklyn Roads, complete with some wonderful Diamond
family archive video material on the 2 giant screens. The next surprise
followed immediately as Neil continued with I Am.. I Said.. in a
new position in the set and he had to stop before his closing lines as
the audience, singing along as always to this most famous of anthems
burst into thunderous applause before Neil was able to complete the song
to even more of the same appreciation and yet another richly deserved
standing ovation.
Then it was back to the 1960s again with Solitary Man, greeted
with huge affection by this knowledgeable crowd and followed by the
perennial favourite I’m a Believer that again left every seat in
the arena untouched by human bottoms!
The arena then went quite as a small table, bedecked with red & white
chequered cloth appeared at the Left of the stage. It held a half drunk
bottle of Red Wine (well maybe it was Cranberry juice!) and a glass as
well as a single red rose. Neil then sang sitting down You don’t
bring me Flowers. He was greeted from the far right of the stage by
Linda Press who delivered her part of this superb duet in the high
quality style that has become her personal calling card over the years.
As they met on the small moving island that is the front piece of this
superbly designed stage they danced together for a while as the band
played the instrumental version of this classic before Neil & Linda
finished off the song in style. Generous as ever Neil thanked Linda and
she deserved the huge ovation given her by the audience. Neil then asked
Linda to stay and sing with him and said that ”maybe this crowd will
sing with us too” and then, for the first time in at least a couple of
tours we had the fun sing-along of Song Sung Blue. Neil inviting
Maxine & Julia to join himself & Linda at the front of the stage to lead
the massed chorus in welcoming the return of this classic US chart
topper.
It is impossible to do justice to this impressive stage in words alone,
but it was almost like an additional band member, all singing & dancing
and Neil then had fun with the moveable front part. Basically it could
move the entire length of the front of the stage and looked like a small
baseball Diamond or even a tiny island, though that is probably far too
simplistic a description. Neil pretended to call it back and forth, the
way you would when training a new puppy, and surprise surprise, it
obeyed his every command!
Then Neil stood on his personal little moving island and gave us an
exquisite version of Man of God followed by a show-stopping
Hell Yeah that had to be experienced in the flesh to fully
understand the hairs standing up on the back of several thousand necks!
After soaking up a deserved standing ovation Neil left the stage but the
cheers were so loud and long that he simply had to return and did so,
having changed into a dark grey shirt with a different design and some
more subtle sparkles
And what a return! The universally popular Sweet Caroline brought
yet another full scale party sing-along and hot on its heels came the
greatest of all #1 hits Cracklin’ Rosie. America followed
featuring the same superb video footage we had seen in US shows in 2005,
that wonderful black & white vintage developing into modern day with the
great soaring Eagle, Old Glory and Lady Liberty coming together at the
climax!
But how can Neil finish such a magnificent show with anything other than
the peerless Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show. And he
stood proudly atop his personal moving island to take the acclaim! I
don’t want to upset folks, and over the decades there have been other
show closers, but this giant is a show within a show; OK so it is my #1
song too, but all those thousands of people can’t be wrong either! After
saving all our souls Neil took the deafening final ovations and then,
generous to the end he left the magnificent band to take their own bows
before they too left the stage for the last time, for tonight at least!
After over two hours of the highest quality we were all coaxed out of
the arena by the friendly security staff. Of course there was still time
to spend even more money at the merchandise stalls, with numerous great
tee shirts, a tea towel even, a great Home Before Dark mug and a
tour book that takes its place in the history of high quality world tour
books Neil has enriched us with over the decades.
A last word about that magnificent stage. I am a technophobe so don’t
understand the intricacies of such a magnificent design but when it
comes to your town or city it will simply blow your socks off!
Now we are already desperate for tomorrow to come and more of the same
as Neil delights everyone lucky enough to have a ticket for this
spectacular show in this vibrant and friendly town. And one thing is for
sure, great though the title of this magnificent new album is, I
guarantee that none of us will be “Home Before Dark”!
Diamond Delivers Double Delight for Dutch Fans
25 May 2008
The Ahoy Arena, Rotterdam. Holland;
On stage; 8.16pm
Off stage; 10.20pm
Concert time; 2hrs 04mnts.
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.
How do you top perfection? Impossible, but the unsurpassed talents of
Neil Diamond ensured that this wonderful Arena witnessed a second
consecutive night of magic as he turned in another performance at the
Ahoy for which the term superlative is simply not adequate.
The play list was slightly changed from last night with Forever in
Blue Jeans moved from immediately after Done too soon to
immediately after Song Sung Blue. Neil also left out America
tonight. Each and every song he performed was a highlight as the
fervent fans saluted every bar, every single lyric and kept up a
deafening noise level that must surely have convinced the Solitary Man
that he still has a zillion devoted fans the world over, and none more
so than here in Holland.
We all have our own special favourites and of course want Neil to sing
every one of them; even for someone with Neil’s enormous reserves of
energy that is not possible, it would need to be a 5 or 6 hour show!
But the old familiar favourites were again mixed with songs not heard
for a long time in a joyful reunion of superb music and well crafted
lyrics of the highest order.
Special mention for superlative songs like Lady Oh, If you know
what I mean,( in my view the best song on the Beautiful Noise
album alongside the as yet unheard in concert Dry your Eyes)
the applause for which could possibly have been heard back in Brooklyn
and reminding Neil what a huge favourite this superb song has been for
30 plus years! Brooklyn Roads & the superb Done too soon.
Taking their place alongside the “must do” giants Cherry Cherry,(again
part instrumental and featuring the band) I Am.. I Said.. Sweet
Caroline, Cracklin’ Rosie & Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation
Show and next to the fun sing-along’s of Forever in Blue Jeans,
Song Sung Blue & I’m a Believer this was a potent arsenal
to delight fans right across the musical spectrum.
After the wonderful 3-part production that You don’t bring me
Flowers has become (complete with table, wine & rose again) Neil
joked with Linda that he never bought her flowers and said, “hey this
is Holland, they have lots of flowers, after the show we will get you
some”. Linda deserves flowers as well as the mighty ovation she
received from another pumped up audience.
The performance of songs from the transatlantic #1 album Home
Before Dark proved the extra icing on a very substantial and
enjoyable cake with the opener One more bite of the Apple, the
stark beauty of Home Before Dark, the up-tempo Don’t go
there and the excellent Pretty Amazing Grace received with
equal enthusiasm to the more established numbers. These last 3 songs
from the new album performed from right to Left on the stage courtesy
of Neil’s moving island!
Once again Neil was as relaxed as I have seen him in many years and
with this incredible band of musicians supporting his every move with
their own unique talents he had every reason to be as hugely satisfied
with this highly charged and ultra professional performance as were
the legions of fans crammed into the Ahoy.
For those fans like me who still feel a little nostalgic for Neil’s
more colourful shirts, then check out King’s shirts of last night and
tonight, simply awesome!
I Am.. I Said..
fits well in its earlier slot on the play list between those other
autobiographical favourites Brooklyn Roads (When the tour
comes your way make sure you watch out for the fantastic video footage
on the large screens during this classic!) & Solitary Man,
all of these done without need of stool as Neil commanded the stage as
only he can and allowed every section of the arena to get as good a
view of his talents as was possible, and paying special attention to
the riser seats either side of the stage; and how those dedicated fans
responded, dancing and singing along to their Hearts content!
The impressive Man of God & the emerging giant that is Hell
Yeah reminded us all of the depth of quality of Neil’s previous
12 Songs album.
If ever there was a high energy finish then surely this was it, as
again the rarely occupied arena seats were empty as everyone bounced
along in collective triumphant joy when Neil returned, (resplendent in
a change shirt that looked purple, though maybe the lights played
tricks on our eyes) to lead us all through Sweet Caroline, Cracklin’
Rosie, and the soul-saving awesome Brother Love’s Travelling
Salvation Show!
Neil left the stage after receiving huge applause; This again allowed
the audience to show generous appreciation of the multi talented band;
everyone a star, from King with those great shirts, to Linda, Julia &
Maxine, the Horn Dogs, who were simply superb, the industrious Tom &
Alan, to Ron, surely one of THE great drummers of this or any other
generation, and the quiet but effective Reine, not forgetting the
duelling twosome of Hadley & Doug
The busy merchandise stalls seem to have another delight to offer
every time you turn around and who knows what more there will be
before this remarkable journey ends? At last count there were 10
different tee shirts, the tea towel, mug, CDs of course and the must
have tour book.
An unashamed hint to the creative merchandise designers; how about a
model of the famous Travelling Salvation Show wagon somewhere
down the road, that would be fantastic and I feel certain it would
have massive appeal!
My apologies to those folk who pointed out my concert times were a
little off key last night. The 1st show started at 8.15pm
and ended at 10.24 (not 8.29!) and I cannot even blame jet lag for my
error!
As we all drifted out into the cool night air it is farewell to
Rotterdam, as welcoming a city now as it was for us 24 years ago; we
have an early morning departure for Munich tomorrow and the next stop
on this exciting adventure that only the remarkable Neil Diamond can
inspire!
Tonight’s playlist;
#1;One more bite of the Apple/Holly Holy; #2; Street Life; #3;
Beautiful Noise; #4; Lady Oh; #5; If you know what I mean; #6; Cherry
Cherry (part band intro/instrumental); #7; Thank the Lord for the
Nighttime; #8 Hello Again; #9; Love on the Rocks; #10; Home Before
Dark; #11; Don’t go there; #12 Pretty Amazing Grace; #13; Crunchy
Granola Suite; #14 Done too soon; #15; Brooklyn Roads; #16; I Am.. I
Said..; #17; Solitary Man; #18; I’m a Believer; #19; You don’t bring
me Flowers; #20 Song Sung Blue; #21; Forever in Blue Jeans; #22; Man
of God; #23; Hell Yeah; WALK-OFF; #24 Sweet Caroline; #25; Cracklin’
Rosie #26 BROTHER LOVE’S TRAVELLING SALVATION SHOW; Final
walk-off Band Walk-off
Features | News | Tourdates | Concert Reviews | Links Tribute Artists | Message Board | Live Chat © 2008 NeilDiamondHomepage.com |
