Imagine hearing a famous song for the first time again. That is what happens here. A veteran singer goes back into the studio, teams up with the London Symphony Orchestra, and rebuilds his classics from the ground up. Even if you have never followed his career, this is the kind of “goosebumps” music that can turn anyone into a fan.
For years, Neil Diamond’s songs have lived in our cars, our kitchens, our old record players. We know every word. Or at least we think we do.
All this while Neil has already stepped away from touring because of Parkinson’s. No big world tour. No endless arena shows. Just these studio performances, captured with care, passing his songbook to the next generation.
Most casual fans still do not know this project even exists.
The voice of a legend
The official Classic Diamonds album trailer pulls the curtain back. It takes you inside Abbey Road Studios, shows the London Symphony Orchestra filling the room, and lets you watch Neil, at 79, recording those new vocals that make his classics feel so rich and lived-in.
Even if you only know a couple of his songs, seeing how they turned a simple band track like “Beautiful Noise” into something this big and cinematic makes the whole project click in a different way.
Neil Diamond with the London Symphony Orchestra (Album Trailer)
To really feel the weight behind that line, “the voice of a legend,” you have to see what came before this album. In his CBS Sunday Morning interview, Neil talks openly about being diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2018, the news that forced him to cancel his 50th Anniversary tour and walk away from the road. He admits he can no longer run around a stage like he used to, so Classic Diamonds became his way of giving fans one more true encore.