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Producer Rick Rubin brings out best in singer-songwriter
Published on Sunday, May 04, 2008
HOME BEFORE DARK Neil Diamond
Columbia
Producer Rick Rubin was a crucial figure in country icon Johnny Cash's late-career resurrection, stripping his music down to its essence and steering him toward unusual but rewarding material. Rubin does some pretty amazing things as well with pop vocalist Neil Diamond on their second collaboration, Home Before Dark.
Comparing Cash to Diamond is like comparing apples to oranges, if you're being kind, or the Beatles to the Monkees if you're not. The Man in Black will always be considered the more serious artist, while Diamond is seen as a relative lightweight.
Whatever your perspective, you'd be foolish not to recognize Diamond's skills as a master craftsman in the art of pop songwriting. In that area, he has few peers.
As capable as he is of writing and singing some great tunes, too often Diamond leans so heavily on the vocal histrionics and saccharine sentimentality that he undermines much of his work. He happily leaves behind most of those mannerisms on Home Before Dark, which is filled with emotion but performed with great finesse and restraint by Diamond and a choice crew of musicians.
His band includes guitarist Mike Campbell and keyboardist Benmont Tench of Tom Petty's band the Heartbreakers. The 67-year-old Diamond plays guitar throughout the album and sings his self-penned material in a voice that's become a bit deeper and grainier over the years but is still in remarkable shape.
Diamond's previous work with Rubin, 2005's 12 Songs, contained some fine moments, but Home Before Dark is far more powerful, from the gripping duet with Dixie Chick Natalie Maines, Another Day (That Time Forgot), to the poignant, complex title track. With their intimate tone and mostly acoustic instrumentation, the songs have a warm feel, with no overproduction or over-emoting in sight.
Diamond's lyrics are mostly serious as he takes stock of life, but he also makes room for lighter moments. The best is the blues-infused, cautionary tale Don't Go There, which will win you over with an outstanding combination of clever lyrics and a subtle, just-about-perfect arrangement.
— Martin BandykeDetroit Free Press
HOME BEFORE DARK Neil Diamond
Columbia
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