If you read this blog regularly, you know that my life is hectic. Sometimes I feel like I’m barely treading water, then when I get away, get a break like at RWA and come home feeling rejuvenated, writing again, BOOM! Another crazy thing happens. This time my sixteen year old was playing Tug of War at camp where she’s a counselor, her side let go, she didn’t and she went flying foward – onto her knee. It’s swollen and she’s in an immobilizer, on crutches, and barking orders. :dominatrix: I took her for an MRI tonight. In the process I swung her around and hit her leg against the wall. Yes, it’s been that kind of day. 
Week. Month. Year. And yes, it could be worse. I know this. Sometimes, we all need to vent!
But guess what? I got another break of a very special kind. 4 Friends and I went to Madison Square Garden Tuesday night to see NEIL DIAMOND. Now I have to say (and I’m dating myself in doing it) that I am a HUGE Neil Diamond fan. He’s all over my ipod. I always always listen to Neil. But OLD Neil. Not The Jazz Singer Neil. Oh, no. Not America. Not CD’s.
But good OLD 8 TRACKS!
The Best of Neil Diamond – 1974
I was 9 years old. Neil’s hair looked my mom’s Gyspy haircut of the day.
I listen to these Neil songs over and over to this day:
1. Sweet Caroline
2. Brother Love’s Traveling Salvation Show
3. Shilo
4. Holly Holy
5. Brooklyn Roads
6. Cracklin’ Rosie
7. Play Me
8. Done Too Soon
9. Stones
10. Song Sung Blue
11. Soolaimon
12. I Am.. I Said
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My very favorite Hanukkah gift was a 45 LP – of LONGFELLOW SERENADE and a pair of pajamas. I still remember. I hear it and it brings back that night with my family. I LOVE those memories! And as I am writing this post, the night before the concert (real pics to hopefully be added after), he’s laughing at me. Well HAH! He WISHES he had my memories! 
Yes, I’m trying to convince you all that Neil Diamond is cool. Well to me he is.
And then there is the ultimate Neil Diamond … the movie … no no, not The Jazz Singer, my taste is more basic than that: SAVING SILVERMAN. Note, if you ever see this movie, do not see the unrated version. The tasteless humor loses something when everything surrounding it is too gross. Look for the VHS version instead which is rated PG-13. I watch it often.
Now my sixteen year old is laughing as I write this and my husband is saying, “aren’t you glad you got at least half of my genes?”
Anyway, I’ve seen him in concert before, when I was younger, with another friend whose parents also listened to Neil Diamond. I think there was one other time, but I can not WAIT for this concert!!
UPDATE :
Sadly I have no pictures but happily it was every bit as fantastic as I hoped. He went on around 8:30 and played for about two hours.
SONG LIST:
1. Holly holy
2. Beautiful noise
3. Street life
4. Love rocks
5. Play me
6. Chery cherry
7. Thank the Lord for the night time
8. Home before dark
9. Don’t go there
10. Pretty amazing grace
11. Crunchy granola suite
12. Done too soon
13. Brooklyn roads
14. I am I said
15. Solitary man
16. Kentucky
17. Forever blue jeans
18. Sweet Caroline
x2
x3
19. You don’t bring me flowers
20. Song sung blue
21. I’m a believer
22. Man of god faith
23. Yeah it is ????
ENCORE
24. Cracklin Rosie
25. America
NOT BAD FOR A 67 year old man, huh? He looks pretty darn good too!
I am NOT embarrassed to admit I knew 23 of 25 songs that night!
He had a crowd of over 18,000 on their feet! Yours truly included!
Sooo …. any other Neil Diamond fans out there? Especially OLD song Neil Diamond Fans?
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Warm wishes for a Happy Birthday go out to Plotmonkey Pal, Katie Andrade, today! We hope you have a fabulous, fun-filled day!
Carly Phillips would like to take 100% credit for all her stories but the truth is, Carly’s strength is writing family, emotion, funky elderly people and animals. She couldn’t plot her way out of a paper bag, which is why she smartly found her plotmonkey pals early on in her writing career. Thanks to their support, Carly is now a NYT Bestselling author of 23 plus novels. Because writing doesn’t keep her busy enough, Carly is also a wife, a mother of one preteen and one teenage daughter, the primary care giver of her soft coated Wheaten terrier and an expert carpool mom.
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I LOVE Neil Diamond as well. What a voice! Two of my faves are Brother Love’s Traveling Salvation Show and Brooklyn Roads. I just LOVE Brooklyn Roads because of the story it tells. A dad who loves his boys and who they love in return, a dad who is obviously a devoted family man. I guess that song strikes a chord with me because I didn’t have that growing up.
Carly, I hope your daughter is feeling better. I thought it was her ankle but it’s her knee. Poor baby. Give her a hug for me. I sent you an e-mail don’t know if you got it.
Have a terrific day all,
Cher
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Happy birthday Katie!
I do like Neil Diamond. It’s amazing how many younger people (in their 20′s) also like his music. My favorite song is “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon”.
I hope your daughter heals very soon.
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He was the very first live concert I’d ever been to. Grass Roots opened for him at the Portland Coloseum. I was 12, so that would have been around 1974. I remember the whole place on their feet and swaying for Song Song Blue.
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Thanks, Carly for the birthday wishes…NEIL ROCKS! I have seen him 3 times (once in the 8th row!)….I am so bummed that I can’t go when he is here in September (it’s a weeknight and school will have just started…sigh…hubby even tried to convince me to go….almost begging). I have converted him. LOL!
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Sorry Carly, not a huge Neil Diamond fan
Happy Birthday Katie!
Ev congratulations on your new job!!
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I like Neil Diamond too, but he doesn’t get to Nashville very often. I think the last time he was here the cheap seats started at about $150, so I was out on that one. I love his older songs too, but I think Sweet Caroline is my favorite.
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I love Neil Diamond! And I drive my DH crazy when it is time to clean the house and I turn up the music really loud. My three year old DD likes to dance and sing along. I have the essential Neil Diamond collection and I don’t have just one fav, I like them all.
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I have to say I like some of his songs that I’ve heard but he is out of my generation I was born in 75 but I’m glad that you had a great time at the concert Carly.
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Sorry Carly but I don’t enjoy Neil.
I like Michelle was born in ’75 and my parents weren’t fans, so he never made my list of oldies but goodies.
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I love Neil Diamond! I wish I could have gone with you! :hug2:
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Happy Birthday Katie!
I’m a very big Neil Diamond Fan! Love to see him in concert. My favorite concerts were 3 years ago when I surprised my best friend with tickets to the show in Manchester NH on a Friday night while she surprised me with tickets to the show in Boston the following Wednesday. What more can you ask for? 2 great shows with a best friend by your side! He is someone who you can always tie back to the good times in your life. Sorry Carly, I even like the Jazz Singer Neil.
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I’ll be honest here- not a fan. I was born in ’74 and my mom was a hippie child. I grew up listening to music from that scene. I still love the Doors, Henricks, Joplin etc. My favorite song growing up was Layla and I remember my mom cleaning the house to The Clockwork Orange album. I miss albums. When I was little I had a record player and my fav 45 was Blue Oyster Cult-Don’t Fear the Reaper- on one side and Tom Petty/Stevie Nicks- Stop Dragging My Heart Around- on the other.
Off subject- When I typed Blue Oyster Cult I started cracking up… has anybody seen Will Ferrell doing Cowbell? Hysterical!
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Happy Birthday Katie
I am not a Neil fan, but I do like some of his songs. I am glad you had such a great time, Carly.
I am having the worst day and it’s only 9:15. sigh Why are teachers so catty? I am the office manager at an elementary school and today is so bad with people talking about me that I am ready to QUIT! sigh…if only I were independantly weathly.
Hope you all have a FATASTIC day!
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I’m so jealous – I so wanted to go – I saw Neil Diamond back in 1984 (now I am dating myself) – it was amazing and so was he – I still do my Saturday cleaning to a tape (yes I still have cassette tapes) of Neil and when America comes on – watch out –
I hope your daughter feels better, I have a 16 year old too – happy times!!!!
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Neil Diamond! SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! :wub: Diamond’s songs are the soundtrack of my life! From “Kentucky Woman” (I went to college in Kentucky and this song was dedicated to me at my senior prom in Oklahoma) to “I Am, I Said”, the personal anthem of my emo years. I’ve seen him in concert several times but didn’t go this last time around. My old ears just don’t take the noise level well. So many of his songs just beg to be turned into romances. I swear I’m going to write a whole series based on them one of these days.
Hope the kiddo gets better soon, Carly. Katie,
!!
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I agree that some of his music is well-done, but the man himself has not
been one of my special favorites. So sorry!
Pat Cochran
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Carly, sounds like you had a great time at the concert. I do like some of his music but I was raising two small children in the 70′s and not keeping up with all the music! I know some of his songs, love You Don’t Bring Me Flowers duet with Barbara Streisand & America, Sweet Caroline. Some of the titles I don’t recognize but might know the music when I hear it!
I hope your daughter’s knee heals soon. Hang in there. :pray:
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I saw Neil Diamond in concert in Las Vegas in the late seventies. I still like his songs, too.
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Ev — I totally missed that you got the job. Huge congratulations!
Now you’ve got me curious — what company are you working for, and what is your position? It sounds like it has something to do with books!
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Ev – big congrats on getting the job!!!
I’m so glad I stopped back by here. Earlier this morning I hopped on and was in a big rush. I’m not a Neil fan so I just sortof skimmed and totally missed the part about Katie’s BD. And somehow, I’d missed about Ev’s job too. Man….it pays to pay attention!
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Thanks again for the birthday wishes…I just went and saw “MOMMA MIA!”…Okay, I was SO totally WRONG…not miscast…I was singing in my brain
And, Pierce Brosnan is 
This seems to be my Greece week…I have seen two movies set in Greece and I am reading a book about a Greek family…anyone want to go with me to Greece? I am so on a plane!
:darth:That was for Julie…Clone Wars opens tomorrow…middle boy won’t let me forget!
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janelle- the job is with Pearson, the parent company of Penguin Publishing. They also do all the professional testing worldwide- NCLEX, GMAT and things like that. that is where I will be working. I am hoping to maybe work my way into the company headquarters someday. (And I get a 60% discount on all penquin titles- heck, I’ll pay them to let me work!)
On to Neil- the last time I saw him was 3 years ago when hubby gave me a tix for mother’s day. All by myself. In the 3rd row. I love his music but then I also love all the old rock stuff including BOC, etc… And I crank it all on my ipod. Am I dating myself too??
and don’t get me going on Barry Manilow.
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I hope you had a great b-day
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Ev congrats on your new job
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Hi Carly,
Glad you had a great time at the Neil Diamond concert.
One of my co-workers has Sweet Caroline has her ring tune I don’t know if it is because she likes Neil or because her name is Caroline
I like Amererica and Sweet Caroline
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Hey Carly. I love Neil Diamond. He was just in Philly last weekend and I was on Ebay last Friday to see if I could get tickets. I love the old Neil too, not the new. I think his pic looks great. He’s aged well. You’re lucky to have seen him. Maybe……one day…… I love I Am I Said and Forever in Blue Jeans.
Give my best to your daughter – poor thing.
Happy Birthday Katie. Hope you enjoyed your day!
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Hey,
Katie! Hope you’ve had a wonderful day!
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Ev- congrats on the new job!
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No convincing needed, Carly — Neil Diamond rocks! I’ve never seen him live, but he is a key part of the soundtrack of my life. When I hear him, I’m seventeen again.