 Pop singer Neil Diamond was born on January 24, 1941 in Brooklyn, N.Y. After receiving a guitar for his 16th birthday, Diamond began composing music as a hobby. While attending NYU on a fencing scholarship, the young musician dropped out to work as a professional songwriter for $50 a week. After struggling for several years, Diamond found steady work at Bang Records in 1965, where he penned hits like "Solitary Man," "I Got The Feeling (Oh No, No)" and the No. 1 Monkees single "I'm a Believer." His own debut album, The Feel of Neil Diamond, was largely ignored, but after switching to MCA, Diamond built up a large, loyal following during the late '60s. Producing a string of pop hits like "Sweet Caroline," "Holly Holy," "Cracklin' Rosie," and "Song Sung Blue," Diamond's landmark 1972 live album Hot August Night established him as a major performer in adult pop, both as a recording artist and as a live performer (perhaps even more so). Columbia stole Diamond away later that year, signing him to a controversial multi-million dollar deal. His first Columbia album, 1973's Jonathan Livingston Seagull soundtrack, went double platinum and won him a Grammy. After taking a few years off to spend time with his family, Neil Diamond returned in 1976, selling out shows worldwide and releasing several platinum albums in a row; he also gained a reputation as an excessive, nightclub-style performer, hamming it up for audiences thousands strong. Though often ridiculed by rock audiences, Diamond remained a powerful commercial force into the '80s. His 1978 duet with Barbra Streisand, "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" reached No. 1, and his soundtrack for 1980's The Jazz Singer, in which Diamond also starred, spawned three Top 10 singles and sold five million copies. Though he had few hit singles in the '80s and '90s, album after album continued to go platinum, and Diamond remained a top concert draw for years. His most recent album, 1996's long-awaited Tennessee Moon, marked a departure from Diamond's usual pop style to country, reaching No. 3 in the country charts. In the past 15 years, Neil Diamond songs became hits for modern bands, including UB40 ("Red Red Wine") and Urge Overkill ("Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon"). Three Chord Opera, Diamond's latest album, was released in the summer of 2001 on Columbia Records. In 2005, Neil Diamond fans, which are among the most loyal and intense in all the world, pack his concerts to sing along to all the hits.
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