Neil Diamond pictured near his cabin in the Rockies.
Neil Diamond pictured near his cabin in the Rockies.
Veteran American pop giant Neil Diamond talks to Russell Baillie about his work ethic, his career renaissance and his upcoming shows in New Zealand
Having just turned 74, Neil Diamond is back on the road.
With his thirty second studio album, Melody Road, released late last year, the American pop godfather will be spending much of 2015 on tour through the United States before heading to New Zealand when he last played here four years ago.
Diamond's past decade has seen the veteran singer-songwriter's career on an upswing, with the albums since 2005's 12 Songs consistently finding their way into the US, UK, Australian and New Zealand top tens.
When TimeOut calls, Diamond is indeed sitting pretty. He's in the lounge of his undoubtedly plush Los Angeles home talking on the speakerphone. He's says the fire is going, his cat is stretched out before it and he's relaxing after yet another a day in the studio working on new songs ...
But you've just had an album out. Shoudn't you be on songwriting holiday?
Ha ha. I actually took a month away from writing. We have a little cabin in the Rocky Mountains and we spent a month away from everything. I don't think I even had a guitar which is pretty drastic for me because I need a guitar for me at all times. So I'm back here now in Los Angeles and I want to work. That's what my life is all about, it's all about music and creating music.
There's a dirt road on Melody Road's cover - you don't strike me as a dirt road kind of guy.
That road is actually on my property and it leads to my little cabin. I get away from everything and just become one with nature and enjoy my life and enjoy my wife and the quietness that you can get in a place like that
Do songs happen up there or do you have to be in the city for those?
No I write all over. I worked on a bunch of songs for the Melody Road album up there. It's the ideal place. Nobody can reach me. I'm in the middle of the mountains. They can't call. There is no internet. There's no distractions. That is the key to it for me.
So the neighbours leave you alone?
They do leave me alone. I just met a guy who is my neighbour across the road from me and has been for 20 years and I never met him before. I just met him last week and he turns out to be a real nice guy. I'm sorry I didn't say hello earlier. Everybody kind of keeps to themselves up there.
Did he realise who you are?
Yeah he realises who I am. We live on a fishing river and he's an expert fisherman so he's more important than I am in that area.
You've built up some career momentum on the last few albums. How come ?
I would say good management has a lot to do with that. You know you have to trust your manager and in my case I love my manager -- she's my wife [Katie McNeil] and she's a professional and I trust her completely. So it's taken a tremendous weight off my shoulders. I don't have to think about those business thing. I can depend on her and know that she is going to give it her best and that she is very good at what she does.
Does she drive a tough deal?
I think she drives a very fair deal. I think she's a very fair minded lady and I don't think she is tough at all unless the situation calls for it.
She does have my best interests at heart and I can take that off my mind and not let it worry me. I would much rather be worried about a song or a performance I am about to do, than delve into the business and changes that go on in the music business.
Talking of which, your latest record is on a different label. Was that significant?
That was a major change. I had been on Columbia Records for over 40 years and I just made the change because I thought "I wonder what it's like being with another record company. There really wasn't any other reason than that. I just thought I could see what is going on out there and see how it is different. I did know and had worked with the head of the new company, which is Capitol EMI and I'm very happy right now. But the change was pretty dramatic.
It's not just your new albums, it's your back catalogue as well.
My back catalogue and my forward catalogue. Yeah it's quite a change.
You departing Columbia after that long would have sounded some alarm bells.
They were not happy about me leaving but this happens and they invited me back. They said "you know when you get tired of this new label come back we want you". So it's nice to know
With the show you are bringing here this year, how much different will it be to the one you brought here in 2011? Will Melody Road be a big part of the show?
I do want to to do some of the Melody Road songs. I think some of them will lend themselves to live performance and of course I have to do all of my hits -- or as many as I can fit in or the audience is not going to be happy. My goal is to make the audience happy and keep them happy. I will be able to slip in a bunch of new songs but it is going to rely heavily on the songs that people know and love.
There must he an art to creating a setlist when you've got so many hits.
You know something? It's one of the blessings of my career and I don't ever take it for granted. Any song that I get tired of doing, is taken out of the show and given a rest for a while and it's nice to have a replacement that is all fresh that is full of vim and vigour and energy.
What songs have you left on the bench for the longest?
Well I don't want to criticise any of my songs because they are sensitive and they become insulted and bad luck and karma could enter into the picture. I didn't do Song Sung Blue my whole last tour and I might not have done it the tour before that because I just didn't feel like it. As I say fortunately I have other songs that I have wanted to do.
What drives you to keep writing. You could so easily rest on our laurels.
Well you know I've been writing since I was 16 years old so it's not like I could just drop it and walk away from it. It's part of how I express myself. It's like losing your memory for words or having your tongue removed. It wouldn't be me. I need the ability to put what I feel into my music. Sometimes it's good and sometimes it's not but it's me and always it's me. It's just the way it is.
It appears you've been so busy writing recording and touring of late, you've stopped shaving ...
I stopped shaving because my wife told me to stop shaving. She likes a beard and I didn't have a lot to say about that. And I ask her occasionally if she would mind if I took it off but she hasn't given me the okay yet. Still, a lot of time that could be spent shaving is now spent taking a bicycle ride or fishing or writing songs or being with my grandkids so I think it's a positive thing.
