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91-1007: Diamond was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011, and he received the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000. In 2011, he was an honoree at the Kennedy Center Honors , and he received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018. Diamond was born in Brooklyn , New York City, to a Jewish family. All four of his grandparents were immigrants, from Poland on his father's side and Russia on his mother's. His parents were Rose ( née Rapoport; 1918–2019) and Akeeba "Kieve" Diamond (1917–1985),

182-403: A cover version of the same song in 1979, with vocalese lyrics describing the club at its peak. U2 references the club in the song " Angel of Harlem " with the lyrics "Birdland on 53, the streets sounds like a symphony..." The club was however, on Broadway near 52nd street, not 53rd. In the play Send Me No Flowers , George Kimball relates a story concerning a female friend who ran off with

273-596: A dry-goods merchant. He grew up in several homes in Brooklyn, having also spent four years in Cheyenne, Wyoming , where his father was stationed in the army. In Brooklyn, he attended Erasmus Hall High School and was a member of the Freshman Chorus and Choral Club, along with classmate Barbra Streisand ; Diamond recalled they were not close friends at the time: "We were two poor kids in Brooklyn. We hung out in

364-511: A "bongo player from Birdland" after her husband died. The bongo player subsequently "took her for every cent". In the play Middle of the Night , the husband remembers the good old days at Birdland with his wife, in an attempt to save their marriage. Sesame Street featured a night club called Birdland, run by Hoots the Owl , which was occupied by multiple birds. William Claxton took a picture of

455-579: A Memphis hotel to write and compose it. The 1971 release " I Am...I Said " was a Top 5 hit in both the US and UK and was his most intensely personal effort to date, taking over four months to complete. In 1971, Diamond played seven sold-out concerts at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles. The outdoor theater, which was noted for showcasing the best of current entertainers, added a stereo sound system for

546-413: A TV special for Shirley Bassey and sang a duet with her. In 1976, he released Beautiful Noise , produced by Robbie Robertson of The Band . On Thanksgiving 1976, Diamond made an appearance at The Band's farewell concert, The Last Waltz , performing "Dry Your Eyes", which he wrote jointly with Robertson, and which had appeared on Beautiful Noise . He also joined the rest of the performers onstage at

637-478: A big band—the Count Basie Orchestra was a regular booking. The venue had a long bar, tables, booths, and a fenced-in bullpen, several rows of folding chairs, some directly alongside a corner of the bandstand, accessible with just the $ 1.50 admission fee to the venue; a drink could be carried there by an adult, but teenagers were admitted there, too. Irving Levy and Morris Levy were the main owners but

728-533: A crowd of 27,000-plus. The 1990s saw a resurgence in Diamond's popularity. "Sweet Caroline" became a popular sing-along at sporting events. It was used at Boston College football and basketball games. College sporting events in other states also played it, and it was even played at sports events in other countries, such as a Hong Kong Sevens rugby tournament or a soccer match in Northern Ireland. It

819-764: A great deal to further the successes of songwriters. Abe Olman was an American songwriter and music publisher. He was later director of ASCAP, and a founder of the Songwriters Hall of Fame which, in 1983, named the Abe Olman Publisher Award . In his honor, the Abe Olman Scholarship is given out each year by his family in the interest of encouraging and supporting the careers of young songwriters. The scholarship has been awarded since 1989 to individuals such as Matt Katz-Bohen , John Legend , and Bebe Rexha . Created in 2010,

910-569: A guitar when we got back to Brooklyn, started to take lessons and almost immediately began to write songs", he said. He added that his attraction to songwriting was the "first real interest" he had growing up, while also helping him release his youthful "frustrations". Diamond also used his newly developed skill to write poetry. By writing poems for girls he was attracted to in school, he soon learned it often won their hearts. His male classmates took note and began asking him to write poems for them, which they would sing and use with equal success. He spent

1001-500: A long rehabilitation process just before starting principal photography on his film The Jazz Singer (1980). He was so convinced he was going to die that he wrote farewell letters to his friends. A planned film version of "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" to star Diamond and Streisand fell through when Diamond instead starred in a 1980 remake of the Al Jolson classic The Jazz Singer alongside Laurence Olivier and Lucie Arnaz . Though

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1092-461: A loophole in his contract that did not bind him exclusively to either WEB IV or Tallyrand, but the result was a series of lawsuits that coincided with a slump in his record sales and professional success. A magistrate refused WEB IV's request for a temporary injunction to prevent Diamond from joining another record company while his contract dispute continued in court, but the lawsuits persisted until February 1977, when he triumphed in court and purchased

1183-547: A more traditional style of jazz, rather than the "way-out" artists. In 1965, Goodstein closed Birdland. The premises was taken over by Lloyd Price , an R&B and rock-and-roll singer who re-dedicated the venue and named it the Turntable. A new Birdland Club, initially owned by John R. Valenti, opened in the Upper West Side of Manhattan in 1985, at 2745 Broadway at 105th Street, and presented emerging artists to

1274-532: A neighborhood audience . In 1996, Valenti moved the club to West 44th Street, west of Eighth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan where it features a full weekly schedule of performers. These have included Michael Brecker , Pat Metheny , Lee Konitz , Diana Krall , Dave Holland , Regina Carter , and Tito Puente . It is the club where Toshiko Akiyoshi 's jazz orchestra played its final concert on December 29, 2003. As mentioned above, she had also played at

1365-448: A new song, "Pretty Amazing Grace", from his then recently released album Home Before Dark . On May 2, 2008, Sirius Satellite Radio started Neil Diamond Radio. On April 8, 2008, Diamond made a surprise announcement in a big-screen broadcast at Fenway Park that he would be appearing there "live in concert" on August 23, 2008, as part of his world tour. The announcement, which marked the first official confirmation of any 2008 concert dates in

1456-406: A number of weeks at Surprise Lake Camp , a camp in upstate New York for Jewish children, when folk singer Pete Seeger performed a small concert. Seeing the widely recognized singer perform, and watching other children singing songs for Seeger that they wrote themselves, had an immediate effect on Diamond, who then became aware of the possibility of writing his own songs. "And the next thing, I got

1547-437: A request from former heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali . The film's failure was due in part to Diamond never having acted professionally before. "I didn't think I could handle it," he said later, seeing himself as "a fish out of water". For his performance, Diamond became the first-ever winner of a Worst Actor Razzie Award , even though he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for the same role. Critic David Wild noted that

1638-459: A separate entrant. The inaugural year featured 120 inductees, many of whom had a professional partnership, such as Rodgers and Hammerstein . Burt Bacharach and Hal David followed in 1972. Betty Comden and Adolph Green were selected in 1980, and Leiber and Stoller were inducted in 1985. John Lennon and Paul McCartney were inducted in 1987. In the same year, Gerry Goffin , Carole King , Barry Mann , and Cynthia Weil were inducted into

1729-459: A single, but Diamond was no longer satisfied writing simple pop songs, so he proposed " Shilo ", which was not about the Civil War but rather an imaginary childhood friend. Bang believed that the song was not commercial enough, so it was relegated to being an LP track on Just for You . Diamond was also dissatisfied with his royalties and tried to sign with another record label after discovering

1820-493: A solo album, was the soundtrack to Jonathan Livingston Seagull . The film received hostile reviews and did poorly at the box office, and the album grossed more than the film did. Richard Bach, author of the best-selling source story, disowned the film, and he and Diamond sued Bartlett, though for differing reasons; in Bach's case, it was because he felt the film omitted too much from the original novella, whereas in Diamond's case, it

1911-581: A special edition with two bonus tracks, including one featuring backing vocals by Brian Wilson . The album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard chart, and received generally positive reviews; Erlewine describes the album as "inarguably Neil Diamond's best set of songs in a long, long time." 12 Songs also became noteworthy as one of the last albums to be pressed and released by Sony BMG with the Extended Copy Protection software embedded in

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2002-458: A standing ovation. He opened the show with a story about an ex-girlfriend who dumped him before he became successful. His lead-in line to the first song of the evening was, "You may have dumped me a bit too soon, baby, because look who's standing here tonight." He performed at Woburn Abbey on July 2, 1977, to an audience of 55,000 British fans. The concert and interviews were taped by film director William Friedkin , who used six cameras to capture

2093-568: A substantial number of hit songs across a lengthy career, and who, according to the Hall of Fame, "recognize the importance of songs and their writers". The Johnny Mercer Award is the highest honor bestowed by the event. It goes to writers already inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame for having established a history of outstanding creative works. The Patron of the Arts is presented to influential industry executives who are not primarily in

2184-694: Is clearly a brash young man and one with both the musical track record and the performance macho to bring it off...He needn't worry about comparisons with the likes of Garland and Kaye. After the Winter Garden shows, Diamond announced that he needed a break, and he engaged in no live performances until 1976. He used those four years to work on the score for Hall Bartlett 's film version of Richard Bach 's Jonathan Livingston Seagull and to record two albums, Serenade and Beautiful Noise . He said years later, "I knew I'd come back, but I wasn't sure when. I spent one year on each of those albums...I'd been on

2275-529: Is given to creators of an individual song that has influenced the culture in a unique way over the years. Created in 2011, The Visionary Leadership Award recognizes members of the Hall of Fame Board of Directors who have made a significant contribution in furthering the ongoing mission of the organization. Birdland (New York jazz club) Birdland is a jazz club started in New York City on December 15, 1949. The original Birdland, which

2366-516: Is just a cover for the lonely and insecure person underneath." Despite the controversy surrounding the film, the soundtrack was a success, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard albums chart. Diamond also won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score and a Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture . Thereafter, Diamond often included a Jonathan Livingston Seagull suite in his live performances, as he did in his 1976 Love at

2457-730: Is never mentioned in the lyrics, Universal Pictures, which had released E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and was the parent company of the Uni Records label (by then called MCA Records), for which Diamond had recorded for years, briefly threatened legal action against both Diamond and Columbia Records. Diamond's record sales slumped somewhat in the 1980s and 1990s, his last single to make the Billboard Pop Singles chart coming in 1986, but his concert tours continued to be big draws. Billboard magazine ranked Diamond as

2548-612: Is played at every home game of the Sydney Swans of the Australian Football League. It became the theme song of Red Sox Nation , the fans of the Boston Red Sox . The New York Rangers also adapted it as their own and played it whenever they were winning at the end of the third period of their games. The Pittsburgh Panthers football team also played it after the third quarter of all home games, with

2639-533: The 1930s. The approximately 1,600-seat Broadway venue provided an intimate concert setting not common at the time, with every performance reportedly sold out. It also made Diamond the first rock-era star to headline on Broadway. The review in The New York Times stated: Neil Diamond's one-man show seemed, on the face of it, to be a brash idea. One-man shows have traditionally been associated with talents like Judy Garland and Danny Kaye . But Mr. Diamond

2730-762: The Greek concert and for his show in Las Vegas that same year. Diamond returned to live shows in 1976 with an Australian tour, "The 'Thank You Australia' Concert", which was broadcast to 36 television outlets nationwide. He also again appeared at the Greek Theater in a 1976 concert, Love at the Greek . An album and accompanying video/DVD of the show includes a version of "Song Sung Blue" with duets with Helen Reddy and Henry Winkler , a.k.a. Arthur "The Fonz" Fonzarelli of Happy Days . He began wearing colorful beaded shirts in concert, originally so that everyone in

2821-522: The Holly Prize is a tribute to the legacy of Buddy Holly , a SHOF inductee. The award recognizes and supports a new "all-in songwriter" — an exceptionally talented and inspired young musician/singer/songwriter whose work exhibits the qualities of Holly's music: true, great and original. The Holly Prize is administered and juried by the SongHall. Announced in 2011, along with a collaboration between

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2912-567: The Hot 100. They appeared unannounced at the 1980 Grammy awards ceremony, where they performed the song to a surprised and rapturous audience. His last 1970s album was September Morn , which included a new version of "I'm a Believer". It and " Red Red Wine " are his best-known original songs made more famous by other artists. In February 1979, the uptempo "Forever in Blue Jeans", co-written and jointly composed with his guitarist, Richard Bennett,

3003-775: The Monkees . He wrote and recorded the songs for himself, but the other versions were released before his own. The unintended consequence was that Diamond began to gain fame as a songwriter. "I'm a Believer" became a gold record within two days of its release and stayed at the top of the charts for seven weeks, making it the Popular Music Song of the Year in 1966. " And the Grass Won't Pay No Mind " brought covers from Elvis Presley (who also interpreted "Sweet Caroline") and Mark Lindsay , former lead singer for Paul Revere &

3094-594: The Raiders . Other notable artists who recorded his early songs were Lulu , Cliff Richard and the English hard-rock band Deep Purple . In 1966, Diamond signed a deal with Bert Berns 's Bang Records , then a subsidiary of Atlantic . His first release on that label was "Solitary Man", which was his first true hit as a solo artist. Diamond followed with "Cherry, Cherry" and " Kentucky Woman ". His early concerts featured him opening for bands such as Herman's Hermits and

3185-611: The SHOF Board in recognition of his or her service to the songwriting community and the advancement of popular music. The Contemporary Icon Award was established in 2015 to recognize songwriter-artists who attained an iconic status in pop culture. In 2017, Pitbull was presented the Global Ambassador Award. The award is given to an individual "whose music has true worldwide appeal, crossing genre, cultural and national boundaries". First presented in 2004 as

3276-530: The SHOF. Motown 's Holland-Dozier-Holland team were honored the following year. Elton John and Bernie Taupin were among those chosen in 1992, and the pop music group the Bee Gees had all three brothers inducted in 1994. In 1995, Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe as well as Gamble and Huff were inducted. John Denver was inducted in 1996. The Eagles' Glenn Frey and Don Henley were co-inductees in 2000. Queen

3367-703: The Songwriters Hall of Fame and NYU Steinhardt's Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions, the NYU Steinhardt Songwriting Scholar Award is presented to a music composition student whose work holds great potential for success in the field, and embodies the art, craft, individuality and qualities of communication of the best songwriting. The Towering Performance Award is given in recognition of one-of-a-kind performances by one-of-a-kind singers that have recorded outstanding and unforgettable interpretations of songs that have become iconic standards. The Towering Song Award

3458-607: The Starlight Award, the prize was renamed in 2006 as the Hal David Starlight Award in honor of the SHOF Chairman's longtime support of young songwriters. Award recipients are gifted songwriters who are at an apex in their careers and are making a significant impact in the music industry via their original songs. The Howie Richmond Hitmaker Award is given to musical artists who have had

3549-470: The US, came during the traditional eighth-inning singalong of "Sweet Caroline", which had by that time become an anthem for Boston fans. On April 28, 2008, Diamond appeared on the roof of the Jimmy Kimmel building to sing "Sweet Caroline" after Kimmel, who had been singing the song dressed as Diamond, was "arrested" for impersonating the singer. Home Before Dark was released May 6, 2008, and topped

3640-527: The Vietnam Vets Welcome Home concert, he was asked to perform it live. At the time, a national poll found the song to be the number-one most recognized song about America, more than "God Bless America". It also became the anthem of his world tour two weeks after the attacks on America on September 11, 2001, when he changed the lyric at the end from; "They're coming to America", to "Stand up for America!" Earlier that year he performed it after

3731-456: The Who . As a guest performer with The Who, he was shocked to see Pete Townshend swinging his guitar like a club and then throwing it against walls and off the stage until the instrument's neck broke. Diamond began to feel restricted by Bang Records because he wanted to record more ambitious, introspective music, such as "Brooklyn Roads", starting in 1968. Berns wanted to release "Kentucky Woman" as

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3822-786: The album charts in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. On June 29, 2008, Diamond played to an estimated 108,000 fans at the Glastonbury Festival in Somerset, England on the Concert of a Lifetime Tour; technical problems, including the sound cutting out, marred the concert. In August, Diamond allowed cameras to record his entire four-night run at New York's Madison Square Garden; he released

3913-521: The audience could see him without binoculars. Bill Whitten designed and made the shirts for Diamond from the 1970s until approximately 2007. In 1974, Diamond released the album Serenade , from which " Longfellow Serenade " and "I've Been This Way Before" were issued as singles. The latter had been intended for the Jonathan Livingston Seagull score, but Diamond had completed it too late for inclusion. That same year he appeared on

4004-403: The causes of this early nomadic life as a songwriter was his songs' wordiness: "I'd spent a lot of time on lyrics, and they were looking for hooks, and I didn't really understand the nature of that", he says. He was able to sell only about one song a week during those years, barely enough to survive. He found himself only earning enough to spend 35 cents a day on food (equivalent to $ 3 in 2023). But

4095-511: The ceremony was officially announced to take place on June 16, 2022, at its longtime location, the Marriott Marquis New York’s Times Square. The Abe Olman Publisher Award is given to publishers who have had a substantial number of songs that have become world-renowned and who have helped to further the careers and success of many songwriters. The Board of Directors Award is presented to an individual selected by

4186-410: The club was operated by Oscar Goodstein, who took tickets and tended the bar. In the late 50s, he moved his post to the back hallway where he could compare the trays from the kitchen with the order tickets. Some lucky few could spend the wee hours chatting with him and reading letters musicians like Charlie Mingus sent to him. Goldstein called Mingus a prolific writer. The name was carried through into

4277-409: The crowd cheering, "Let's go Pitt". The Carolina Panthers played it at the end of every home game they won. The Davidson College pep band likewise played it in the second half of every Davidson Wildcats men's basketball home game. A more severely stripped-down-to-basics album, 12 Songs , produced by Rick Rubin , was released on November 8, 2005, in two editions: a standard 12-song release, and

4368-536: The disc. (See the 2005 Sony BMG CD copy protection scandal .) In 2007, Diamond was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame . On March 19, 2008, it was announced on the television show American Idol that Diamond would be a guest mentor to the remaining Idol contestants, who would sing Diamond songs for the broadcasts of April 29 and 30, 2008. On the April 30 broadcast, Diamond premiered

4459-470: The early 1969 follow-up Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show at American Sound Studios in Memphis with Tommy Cogbill and Chips Moman producing. In mid 1969, Diamond moved to Los Angeles. His sound mellowed with such songs as " Sweet Caroline " (1969), " Holly Holy " (1969), " Cracklin' Rosie " (1970) and " Song Sung Blue " (1972), the last two reaching No. 1 on the Hot 100. "Sweet Caroline"

4550-593: The end in a rendition of Bob Dylan 's " I Shall Be Released ". Diamond was paid $ 650,000 (about $ 3.5 million in 2023) by the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, to open its new $ 10 million Theater For the Performing Arts on July 2, 1976. The show played through July 5 and drew sold-out crowds at the 7,500-seat theater. A "who's who" of Hollywood attended opening night, ranging from Elizabeth Taylor to Chevy Chase , and Diamond walked out on stage to

4641-653: The event so that a proper celebration could take place. New 2020 inductees would include Mariah Carey , Chad Hugo , the Isley Brothers , Annie Lennox , Steve Miller , Rick Nowels , William “Mickey” Stevenson , Dave Stewart and Pharrell Williams . Additionally, Jody Gerson of Universal Music Group will be given the Abe Olman Publisher Award and Paul Williams is set to receive the Johnny Mercer Award. On March 8, 2022,

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4732-646: The feature of caged finches inside the club. The venue attracted other jazz musicians who also made recordings there. This includes Art Blakey 's February 1954 gigs resulting in the A Night at Birdland albums, most of John Coltrane 's Live at Birdland , the Toshiko – Mariano Quartet's Live at Birdland , and Count Basie 's Basie at Birdland . Dizzy Gillespie , Thelonious Monk , Miles Davis , Louie Bellson , Bud Powell , Johnny Smith , Stan Getz , Lester Young , and many others made appearances. George Shearing 's standard " Lullaby of Birdland " (1952)

4823-705: The few remaining jazz clubs in the area. Johnnie Garry , the production coordinator and historian for the Jazzmobile project, managed the club in the early 1960s. In June 1964, Birdland filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in New York Federal Court. Goodstein was president of the club at the time. Creditors included Goodstein himself ($ 22,490), NLP Restaurant ($ 12,275), and saxophonist Gerry Mulligan ($ 3,500), who had been booked through International Talent Associates . In an effort to stem losses in 1964, Birdland began to feature jazz artists that played

4914-542: The film showed that Diamond was open about his religion: "Who else but this Jewish Elvis could go multi-platinum with an album that featured a version of ' the Kol Nidre ?'" Diamond later told the Los Angeles Times , "For me, this was the ultimate bar mitzvah ." Another Top 10 selection, " Heartlight ", was inspired by the blockbuster 1982 movie E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial . Though the film's title character

5005-616: The film's finale. An abbreviated version played over the film's opening titles. The song was also the one he was most proud of, partly because of when it was later used: national news shows played it when the hostages were shown returning home after the Iran hostage crisis ended; it was played on the air during the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty ; and at a tribute to slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. , as well as

5096-432: The first time. Diamond was also backed by a 35-piece string orchestra and six backing singers. After the first night, one leading newspaper called it "the finest concert in Greek Theater history." I have a love-hate relationship with songwriting. I love it because it's so satisfying...when it works. I hate it because it forces you to dig inside yourself. It is without question the most difficult thing I do. Performing, on

5187-418: The front of Erasmus High and smoked cigarettes." Also in their class was chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer . After his family moved to Brighton Beach , he attended Abraham Lincoln High School and was a member of the fencing team. Also on the team was his best friend, future Olympic fencer Herb Cohen . For his 16th birthday, he received his first guitar. When he was 16 and still in high school, Diamond spent

5278-420: The heritage and legacy of a spectrum of the most beloved English language songs from the world's popular music songbook. It not only celebrates these established songwriters, but is also involved in the development of new English language songwriting talent through workshops, showcases, and scholarships. There are many programs designed to teach and discover new English language songwriters. Nile Rodgers serves as

5369-478: The jazz critic Leonard Feather . On August 25, 1959, Miles Davis was beaten by a New York City policeman on the sidewalk in front of Birdland, during a performing engagement at the club. During the 1950s, Birdland also became a fashionable place for celebrities to be seen, with Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner , Gary Cooper , Marlon Brando , Marilyn Monroe , Sugar Ray Robinson , Marlene Dietrich , Joe Louis , Judy Garland and others as regulars. Irving Levy

5460-466: The line: "Ladies and gentlemen, as you know, we have something special down here at Birdland this evening"; Pee Wee Marquette's opening announcement from Art Blakey's first Birdland album in 1954. Their second album " Broadway & 52nd " (1997) was named in reference to the location of Birdland. Weather Report released their most commercially successful hit entitled " Birdland " on the album Heavy Weather in 1977. The Manhattan Transfer recorded

5551-639: The most profitable solo performer of 1986. He released his 17th studio album in 1986, Headed for the Future , which reached number 20 on the Billboard 200 . Three weeks later he starred in Hello Again , his first television special in nine years, performing comedy sketches and a duo medley with Carol Burnett . In January 1987, Diamond sang the national anthem at the Super Bowl . His "America" became

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5642-464: The movie received poor reviews, the soundtrack spawned three top-10 singles, "Love on the Rocks", "Hello Again", and " America ", the last of which has emotional significance for Diamond. "'America' was the story of my grandparents," he told an interviewer. "It's my gift to them, and it's very real for me ... In a way, it speaks to the immigrant in all of us." The song was performed in full by Diamond during

5733-630: The movies and from famous Brill Building-era songwriters. He also released two Christmas albums, the first of which peaked at No. 8 on Billboard's Album chart. Diamond also recorded two albums of mostly new material during this period. In 1992, he performed for President George H. W. Bush 's final Christmas in Washington NBC special. In 1993, Diamond opened the Mark of the Quad Cities (now the iWireless Center) with two shows on May 27 and 28 to

5824-534: The music business but are great supporters of the performing arts. The Pioneer Award was established in 2012 to recognize the career of a historic creator of an extensive body of musical work that has been a major influence on generations of songwriters. Named for the former President of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award is given to individuals or teams who are recognized as having done

5915-576: The organization's chairman. The Hall of Fame was formed in 1969, and in 2010, an exhibit was put on display online inside the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live in Los Angeles . The Hall has no permanent place of residence, and because the awards are not televised, there would be no other digital recording of the event for posterity. There are numerous examples of collaborating songwriters being inducted in unison, with each person being considered

6006-618: The original Birdland. The Birdland Big Band was created in 2006. Birdland was frequented by many of the writers of the Beat generation . Reference to Birdland is made in Jack Kerouac 's novel On the Road : "I saw him wish a well-to-do man Merry Christmas so volubly a five-spot in change for twenty was never missed. We went out and spent it in Birdland, the bop joint. Lester Young was on

6097-437: The other hand, is the most joyful and happiest thing I do. The bigger the audience the more anticipation, the more excitement. Neil Diamond, 1977 In August 1972, he played again at the Greek, this time doing ten shows. When the show was first announced, tickets at the 5000-seat theater sold out rapidly. He added a quadraphonic sound system for his performance to create full surround sound. The performance of August 24, 1972,

6188-461: The performance. In 1977, Diamond released I'm Glad You're Here with Me Tonight , including " You Don't Bring Me Flowers ", for which he composed the music and on the writing of whose lyrics he collaborated with Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman . Barbra Streisand covered the song on her album Songbird , and later, a Diamond-Streisand duet was recorded, spurred by the success of radio mash-ups. That version hit No. 1 in 1978, his third song to top

6279-457: The privacy that he had above the Birdland Club allowed him to focus on writing without distractions. "Something new began to happen. I wasn't under the gun, and suddenly interesting songs began to happen, songs that had things none of the others did." Among them were " Cherry, Cherry " and " Solitary Man ". "Solitary Man" was the first record that Diamond recorded under his own name which made the charts. It remains one of his personal favorites, as it

6370-594: The resulting DVD in the US in 2009, one year to the day of the first concert. Hot August Night/NYC debuted at No. 2 on the charts. On the same day the DVD was released, CBS aired an edited version, which won the ratings hour with 13 million viewers. The next day, the sales of the DVD surged, prompting Sony to order more copies to meet the high demand. On August 25, 2008, Diamond performed at The Ohio State University while suffering from laryngitis. The result disappointed him as well as his fans, and on August 26, he offered refunds to anyone who applied by September 5. Diamond

6461-439: The rights to his Bang-era master tapes. In March 1968, Diamond signed a deal with Uni Records ; the label was named after Universal Pictures , the owner of which, MCA Inc. , later consolidated its labels into MCA Records (now called Universal Music after merging with PolyGram in 1999). His debut album for Uni/MCA was in late 1968 with Velvet Gloves and Spit , produced by Tom Catalano , which did not chart, and he recorded

6552-429: The road six years. I had a son 2½ and I felt he needed me more than the audience did. So for four years I devoted myself to my son Jesse." He also said he needed to get back to having a private life, one where he could be anonymous. In 1973, Diamond switched labels again, returning to Columbia Records for a million-dollar-advance-per-album contract (about $ 6.9 million per album in 2023). His first project, released as

6643-564: The single "Clown Town" / "At Night"; Billboard gave a laudatory review to "Clown Town", and Cashbox was complimentary to both sides, but it still failed to make the charts. Columbia dropped him from their label and he went back to writing songs in and out of publishing houses for the next seven years. Diamond wrote wherever he could, including on buses, and used an upright piano above the Birdland Club in New York City. One of

6734-478: The stand, eternity on his huge eyelids." Birdland is also referenced in Emmett Grogan 's novel Ringolevio. "From the get-go, Birdland became one of his favourite haunts." George Shearing 's jazz standard " Lullaby of Birdland " (with lyrics later added by George David Weiss ) refers to the club. Sarah Vaughan 's 1954 version was a hit. In 1993, Us3 released the single " Cantaloop ", which opens with

6825-517: The summer after graduation working as a waiter in the Catskills resort area. There he first met Jaye Posner, who would years later become his wife. Diamond next attended New York University as a pre-med major on a fencing scholarship, again on the fencing team with Herb Cohen. He was a member of the 1960 NCAA men's championship fencing team. Often bored in class, he found writing song lyrics more to his liking. He began cutting classes and taking

6916-463: The theme song for the Michael Dukakis 1988 presidential campaign. That same year, British band UB40 's reggae interpretation of Diamond's ballad "Red Red Wine" topped the Billboard Pop Singles chart and like the Monkees' version of "I'm a Believer", became better known than Diamond's original version. During the 1990s, Diamond produced six studio albums. He covered many classic songs from

7007-660: The train up to Tin Pan Alley , where he tried to get some of his songs heard by local music publishers. In his senior year, when he was just 10 units short of graduation, Sunbeam Music Publishing offered him a 16-week job writing songs for $ 50 a week (equivalent to about $ 510 per week, in 2023), and he dropped out of college to accept it. Diamond was not rehired after his 16 weeks with Sunbeam, and he began writing and singing his own songs for demos. "I never really chose songwriting", he says. "It just absorbed me and became more and more important in my life." His first recording contract

7098-664: The venue in 1949 from Joseph "Joe the Wop" Catalano. They adopted the name "Birdland" to capitalize on the profile of Charlie "Yardbird" Parker . The club was originally scheduled to open on September 8, 1949, but this was moved back to December 15 following difficulties in getting a liquor license. The opening night was "A Journey Through Jazz", consisting of various styles of the music up to that point, played by Maxie Kaminsky , Hot Lips Page , Lester Young , Charlie Parker , Harry Belafonte , Stan Getz , and Lennie Tristano , in that order. Parker played very few jobs at Birdland. This

7189-465: Was Diamond's first major hit after his slump. In 2007, Diamond said he had written "Sweet Caroline" for Caroline Kennedy after seeing her on the cover of Life in an equestrian riding outfit, but in 2014 he said in an interview on the Today show that it was written for his then wife, Marcia. He could not find a good rhyme with the name "Marcia" and so used the name Caroline. It took him just one hour in

7280-662: Was about his early years as a songwriter, even though he failed to realize it at the time. He describes the song as "an outgrowth of my despair". Diamond spent his early career in the Brill Building . His first success as a songwriter came in November 1965 with " Sunday and Me ", a Top 20 hit for Jay and the Americans . Greater success followed with " I'm a Believer "; " A Little Bit Me, a Little Bit You "; "Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)"; and "Love to Love", all performed by

7371-405: Was because he felt the film had butchered his score. "After 'Jonathan,'" Diamond declared, "I vowed never to get involved in a movie again unless I had complete control." Bartlett angrily responded to Diamond's lawsuit by criticizing his music as having become "too slick...and it's not as much from his heart as it used to be." Bartlett also added, "Neil is extraordinarily talented. Often his arrogance

7462-449: Was billed as "Neil and Jack", an Everly Brothers -type duet with high school friend Jack Packer. They recorded the unsuccessful singles "You Are My Love at Last" with "What Will I Do", and "I'm Afraid" with "Till You've Tried Love", both records released in 1962. Cashbox and Billboard magazines gave all four sides positive reviews, and Diamond signed with Columbia Records as a solo performer later in 1962. In July 1963, Columbia released

7553-678: Was honored as the MusiCares Person of the Year on February 6, 2009, two nights before the 51st Annual Grammy Awards . Long loved in Boston, Diamond was invited to sing at the July 4, 2009, Independence Day celebration. Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame ( SHOF ) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer , music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman , and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work represent and maintain

7644-673: Was located at 1678 Broadway , just north of West 52nd Street in Manhattan , was closed in 1965 due to increased rents, but it re-opened for one night in 1979. A revival began in 1986 with the opening of the second nightclub by the same name that is now located in Manhattan's Theater District , not far from the original nightclub's location. The current location is in the same building as the previous headquarters of The New York Observer . Irving Levy (1923–1959), Morris Levy , and Oscar Goodstein – along with six other partners – purchased

7735-428: Was named in the club's honor. The club's original master of ceremonies, the diminutive, four feet tall Pee Wee Marquette , was known for mispronouncing the names of musicians, if they refused to tip him. The disc jockey Symphony Sid broadcast live on WJZ early in the club's existence. Later broadcasts organized in the 1950s with the musicians’ union were relayed across network radio with announcers and guests like

7826-463: Was not because his drug addiction caused problems for the management, but (according to Gene Ramey ) Goodstein said, "He was continually wanting money." Ramey had persuaded Goodstein to let Parker perform at Birdland with his band on a pair of Monday nights in 1954. The neon sign at the front of the club read, "Birdland, Jazz Corner of the World". The venue seated 500 people and had bandstand space for

7917-447: Was recorded and released as the live double album Hot August Night . Diamond recalled: " Hot August Night captures a very special show for me. We went all out to really knock 'em dead in LA." Many consider it his best work; critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine called Hot August Night "the ultimate Neil Diamond record... [showing] Diamond the icon in full glory." The album became a classic, and

8008-497: Was released as a single from You Don't Bring Me Flowers , Diamond's album from the previous year. In 1979, Diamond collapsed on stage in San Francisco and was taken to the hospital, where he endured a 12-hour operation to remove what turned out to be a tumor on his spine. He said he had been losing feeling in his right leg "for a number of years but ignored it". When he collapsed, he had no strength in either leg. He underwent

8099-495: Was remastered in 2000 with additional selections. In Australia, which at the time was said to have the most Neil Diamond fans per capita of any country, the album ranked No. 1 for 29 weeks and stayed in their top 20 bestsellers for two years. In the fall of 1972, Diamond performed for 20 consecutive nights at the Winter Garden Theater in New York City. That theater had not staged a one-man show since Al Jolson in

8190-434: Was stabbed to death at the club on Sunday, January 26, 1959 (after midnight January 25) while the group of trombonist Urbie Green was performing. The body was discovered in the rear of the club, near the service area. The stabbing had apparently occurred unnoticed by the patrons. Irving's younger brother, Morris, took over Irving's role in the club, and from 1959 through the early 1960s, the club enjoyed great success as one of

8281-557: Was the first rock band to have all their band members inducted in 2003. Five members of Earth, Wind & Fire were in the class of 2010. Four members of Kool and the Gang were honored in 2018. Through 2019, 461 individuals were inducted into the SHOF. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , the 2020 Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony was postponed until 2022. The Songwriters Hall of Fame president and CEO, Linda Moran , chose to move

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