Neil Diamond 2001-2002 Concert Reviews
Pittsburgh, PA - February 25, 2002
PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE REVIEW
Concert Review: Neil Diamond relies on old hits to keep audience happy
Tuesday, February 26, 2002
By John Hayes, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
It's hard to go wrong when you've got good material. Neil Diamond has never rated high on
the "hip quotient," even during his early days when lesser songwriters were
scoring hits with his stuff. But the guy is a master craftsman, bending his songs into
tight hooks and polishing them to a razor's edge.
Last night at Mellon Arena, Diamond showed up looking younger, healthier and more vibrant
than he has in years. Although he's touring his first collection of new songs since the
mid-'90s, Diamond spent much of his stage time browsing through the archives instead of
retracing some of his newer, saccharine-sweet ballads. The recent release of several
greatest hits collections may have had something to do with the set list, or maybe Diamond
just reads his audience like a book.
Diamond's famous deep, sultry rasp started as a croak as a huge American flag was raised
to reveal him and his 17-piece band chugging through his proudly patriotic
"America." In time, the frog in his throat was replaced with that familiar,
dynamic vocal range.
After pumping the crowd of some 15,000 with compliments, Diamond delivered them with a
long string of hits from his early singer-songwriter period. "Cherry Cherry" is
still edgy and suggestive and "Red, Red Wine" wailed with a new and improved
reggae arrangement, inspired by UB40's cover of the song.
On "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon," Diamond knelt at the edge of the stage and
crooned to a blushing young woman from the first row. He beckoned her closer and kissed
her hand, ending the song lying prostate on the stage and kissing her deeply. Just when
Diamond's exaggerated poses and planned banter started to seem contrived, mechanical and
rehearsed, he'd pull out something like "Holly Holy," which grabbed the audience
by the throat and squeezed out a dangerous bass line.
Diamond dedicated a rare cover, "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother," to the
firefighters, police and military personnel whom he called "America's most recent
heroes."
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