12 Songs

iTunes Review

Long ago dubbed "the Jewish Elvis," Neil Diamond earned the moniker for his love of sequined jumpsuits and musical melodrama. But Diamond is also similar to Presley in that his earliest work — the lean, hungry songs he wrote in the '60s and early '70s — stands as his best. Producer Rick Rubin was determined to help Diamond rediscover his voice and, similar to the reinvention Rubin engineered for Johnny Cash during the '90s, the two largely shine working together on 12 Songs. Mostly stripped down to acoustic guitars and keyboards, these dozen songs don't giveDiamond's baritone much room to posture or preen. This is clearly a testament to Rubin and the sympathetic supporting cast, which includes Heartbreakers Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench, Tom Waits sideman Smokey Hormel, and keyboard king Billy Preston. Especially powerful are the Brill Building pop confection "Save Me a Saturday Night," the piano stomp and slide-guitar frenzy of "Delirious Love," and an acoustic guitar and Hammond organ meditation, "Man of God." 12 Songs isn't perfect but this is the best Diamond album since his epochal Hot AugustNight.