On October 16, 1998, Neil Diamond walked onto the set of The Rosie O’Donnell Show to promote a massive project. At 57 years old, he was not there to play his old hits. Most singers try to hit high, thin notes on this track. Neil did the opposite by using a deep, rich baritone that felt heavy with real life. This was the centerpiece of his ambitious 1998 project, The Movie Album: As Time Goes By.
He took that old classic, Unchained Melody and teamed up with the great musician Elmer Bernstein. It took real guts to slow the tempo down like that, but it allowed him to pour his entire soul into every word.
Neil Diamond – Unchained Melody (Live on Rosie O’Donnell, 1998)
Folks watching at home could tell something was different right away. One fan mentioned how his voice felt like a time machine, while another simply sat back and called it a flawless moment in television history.
That morning’s performance was only one piece of a much larger story involving months of studio labor. Neil was obsessing over every single note with the world’s best composers. He did not want to just record a collection of hits. He wanted to inhabit these songs like an actor playing a lead role.
Neil Diamond: The Making of the Movie Album (AMC Special)
In this rare look at his process, you can see him standing in the middle of a massive scoring stage. He works closely with Elmer Bernstein to find the right emotional pulse for the record. This footage shows the raw work that goes into making music sound effortless.
Neil Diamond has spent over fifty years in the music industry. He moved from writing hits in a small office to filling the biggest stadiums in the world. His style is a mix of grit and grace that never goes out of fashion. Follow Neil Diamond on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. You will find that his journey is still as powerful as ever.