Home Before Dark | 
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| Artist: Neil Diamond
Label: Sony
Category: Music
List Price: $13.97
Buy New: $5.50
You Save: $8.47 (61%)
New (70) Used (31) from $5.39
Rating:  86 reviews
Sales Rank: 350
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.1
Dimensions (in): 5.3 x 4.8 x 0.4
MPN: 715465
UPC: 886971546521
EAN: 0886971546521
ASIN: B0015D3Z3A
Release Date: May 6, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Still in the original plastic wrap. Perfect Condition. Sticker on back.
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| Tracks:
| • | If I Don't See You Again | | • | Pretty Amazing Grace | | • | Don't Go There | | • | Another Day (That Time Forgot) with Natalie Maines | | • | One More Bite Of The Apple | | • | Forgotten | | • | Act Like A Man | | • | Whose Hands Are These | | • | No Words | | • | The Power Of Two | | • | Slow It Down | | • | Home Before Dark |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk
Remarkably Home Before Dark is the first US chart topping album of Neil Diamond's forty year career. It appears to repeat the formula behind 2006's acclaimed 12 Songs--relatively understated arrangements and a subtle Rick Rubin production. But Diamond, though sixty-seven years old and the oldest recipient of a Number One so far, is no Johnny Cash, turning his unique voice to some well chosen contemporary material. Instead Home Before Dark is a collection of new Diamond songs, and though they might not match the boomers in his back catalogue they are hardly stripped back. These are songs designed to fill large venues alongside the showstoppers in Diamond's still energetic live show. "Pretty Amazing Grace" is in the great tradition of Diamond songs that defy their corniness with sheer catchiness, as is "One More Bite of the Apple" while "Don't Go There" features bracing backing vocals and a delightfully dated wobbly guitar hook. The duet with Natalie Maines, "Another Day (That Time Forgot)", would fit comfortably on American country radio while "The Power of Two" sounds like another hit in waiting. In fact this is more a conventional Diamond collection than a Rick Rubin production, dominated by lightly understated country rock arrangements played by a crack team including Smokey Hormel, Heartbreakers Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell and the usually experimental Matt Sweeney. This is a charming and consistently solid set, though Home Before Dark does lack the unexpected intensity that made 12 Songs stand out so. -—Steve Jelbert
Product Description
Home Before Dark is the long awaited new album from legendary artist Neil Diamond. Home Before Dark was produced by legendary producer Rick Rubin who also produced Neil's critically acclaimed 12 Songs.
Bonus DVD includes Neil in the studio performing songs.
The songs are:
1. Pretty Amazing Grace
2. If I Don't See You Again
3. Forgotten
4. The Boxer (bonus track...this song is not on the album)
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| Customer Reviews:
Pretty amazing!!! September 3, 2008
Nse Ette (Lagos, Nigeria)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'm pretty new to Neil Diamond's music. In fact, before this CD, all I'd heard by him was "You don't bring me flowers" with Barbra Streisand. Blame that on radio in Nigeria.
I decided to get this CD as I love Jakob Dylan's new CD "Seeing things" as well as Johnny Cash's American IV and V CDs which were all produced by Rick Rubin. Like those CDs, this was also produced by Rubin and is the same principle; stripped spare songs with strong songwriting and a laid back air. It also apparently gave Diamond the first US #1 album of his career and topped the UK charts as well.
Opening cut "If I don't see you again" sets the tone for the most part; gently strummed guitars, some organ and piano, and Diamond's gently caressing (faintly husky) vocals above it all. "Another day (that time forgot)" features Dixie Chick Natalie Maines duetting.
With music this stripped, the songwriting has got to be strong and for the most part, it is. Other standouts are the Blues-ey "Don't go there", the melodic "Forgotten", the sombre hymn-like country twang of "Act like a man", the sweet "The power of two", the slow burning Blues-tinged "Slow it down", and the title track "Home before dark", sparse yet powerfully introspective. According to Diamond, this song tells the story of his life, his journey, his search.
My favourite though (like with most people) is the lilting acoustic "Pretty amazing grace" with allegorical (Biblical) lyrics. Beautiful beyond description! Songs like this show where acts like Dire Straits, Chris Rea or even Paul Weller get their inspiration from. This album is worth it for this song alone.
 neil diamond August 23, 2008
Randy K. Jensen (Omaha Nebraska)
0 out of 4 found this review helpful
actually this was more of a musical album with back ground voice noise not singing he's just getting old like many artist he should write for a younger protege(sp)'
Diamond Strikes Gold with his first #1 Album! August 17, 2008
Steven Hedge (Somewhere "East of Eden")
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Neil Diamond has been around for 40 years and I've been a fan of his for about as long as that. This CD is a quiet introspective collection of songs that won't disappoint his legion of fans.
I don't normally review CD's, as I just don't have the gift to explain how songs move me; it's all so personal and the words just escape me most of the time. I'm glad I waited to review this new CD though, as I honestly didn't like it much when I first heard it. It's the kind of CD that has to grow on you and you have to get use to the fact it isn't the rock side of Diamond that so many love. These are all personal songs with both subtly and intensity and you don't quite catch that on the first hearing of it.
An obviously favorite for most Diamond fans will be "Pretty Amazing Grace" which is the single he promoted when he appeared on American Idol last season (May 2008). I love that song and bought the CD on the power of that one single, but over time I've come to love other songs on the album even more. My favorite is the long (7 + minutes) of the first song "If I Don't See You Again" and followed closely by "Don't Go There" which is rather hypnotic and playful in tone. The duet with Natalie Maines on "Another Day" is just plain beautiful music. The most interesting song on the album for me was "One More Bite of the Apple" and for the life of me, I can't explain why that is so.
Some may think because Diamond has strayed from some of his more rock roots (America, Cracklin Rosie, Cherry Cherry, Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show, etc.) that he has lost his voice with age, but let me assure that after seeing him in concert at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia on August 9, 2008 that Neil Diamond has NOT lost an ounce of his voice at all. In fact, I was blown away at just how energetic and powerful he and his voice still are at 67 years old. He is just ageless. My family originally had seats in the upper decks of the concert hall, but A staff member came up to us, a family of four, and said, "Neil hates to see holes in the floor seats, so how would you like to have front row seats?" We were dumbstruck! We ended up in the front, on the floor seats, right in front of his microphone. What a way to introduce my kids, who love Diamond's music, to their very FIRST concert of a famous singer.
We will never forget that night and my only disappointment was that Diamond didn't sing "Hello Again" from The Jazz Singer which was the first movie I took my wife to see and that song became our wedding song as your best friend should always be your spouse and that is what that song is about.
Oh, well, I digress here. See why I don't write about CD's often. I just go all over the place. Anyhow, any Neil Diamond fan will want to buy this album, but just know that it may take some time to appreciate its power.
A more mature Diamond August 13, 2008
Shelley Criss (Jasonville, IN)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'd thought I'd "outgrown" listening to Neil Diamond, having gone to several concerts in the 1980's. A friend purchased the album for me, as I didn't even realize he was still composing and recording. I don't think I would have enjoyed this album near as much back then as I do now. It's definitely a more mature Diamond, with more mature lyrics. Many of the songs are appealing to me as someone who's now in my 40's.
 Strong colection of playful and introspective acoustic rock August 12, 2008
Cat Prince Chunk (New York)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
While the great '12 Songs' was all Neil Diamond the serious and introspective songwriter,Home Before Dark has some lighter moments too that are plain fun to listen to.Such as "Who's Hands Are These","Forgotten","The Power of Two" and "Don't Go There".The serious songs are also very good-especially "If I Dont See You Again" and the moving duet with Natalie Maines.
Neil Diamond really is on top of his singer-songwriter game with the two Rick Rubin produced gems.Both albums are a must if you like acoustic guitar rock.
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