Neil Diamond has made a brief return to the live stage over the weekend, performing a version of his signature song ‘Sweet Caroline’ for a group of brave US firefighters.
Earlier this year, Neil Diamond announced his immediate retirement from the world of performing, citing his recent diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease as the reason for his decision.
“It is with great reluctance and disappointment that I announce my retirement from concert touring. I have been so honored to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years,” said Neil Diamond in a statement. “My sincerest apologies to everyone who purchased tickets and were planning to come to the upcoming shows.”
“I plan to remain active in writing, recording and other projects for a long time to come.”
Now, one of these ‘other projects’ appears to have included performing a spontaneous concert for a group of first responders in the US.
https://www.facebook.com/LakeChristineFire/videos/917312061790052/
As Fox 31 Denver reports, Neil Diamond appeared appear before a group firefighters on Friday night, as a thank you to those currently battling the Lake Christine Fire in the US state of Colorado.
Visiting the incident command post with his wife, Katie McNeil, Diamond first joked with firefighters about them doing their best to save his own home, which is in close proximity to the fires.
“Thank you all,” Diamond continued. “I want to take you all home, I want to give you a kiss, I want to make dinner for you, and I just want to say thank you from the people of this area for coming down and this town has not been this happy since… I don’t know.”
“I’ve been here for 20 years and you’ve made everybody happier,” he concluded. “The heaviness on our hearts is gone and we know the cavalry is here and we say thank you to each of you for making this trip.”
https://www.facebook.com/LakeChristineFire/videos/916794348508490/
Soon, Diamond jumped into a rendition of ‘Sweet Caroline’, which was met with widespread singalongs, rapturous applause, and countless people filming the song on their mobile phones.
Sadly, Neil Diamond’s retirement from touring meant that Australians were unable to see the musical icon perform his previously-scheduled shows in the country earlier this year.
While it doesn’t seem very likely that he’ll reverse this decision and grace us with his presence, we can at least look upon videos such as this and feel glad that the legendary performer still has the same zest for music that he has always held.
Check out Neil Diamond’s ‘Sweet Caroline’:
