Home Before Dark is Neil Diamond's second collaboration with producer Rick Rubin.
It follows the fine but ill-fated 12 Songs, which was sabotaged by Sony's "Rootkit" program scandal: a nefarious bit of "copy protection" software that invaded the operating system of PCs and wreaked havoc.
12 Songs had to be recalled from store shelves just as Diamond received better reviews than he had in a decade.
Sony reissued it in 2007, but the damage was done.
Diamond, disappointed but undaunted, sought out Rubin.
Rubin enlisted Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench and lead guitarist Mike Campbell, studio guitarist/bassist Smokey Hormel, and former Chavez guitar slinger Matt Sweeney.
There are no drums.
David Campbell did some skeletal string arrangements, but that's it.
In addition, Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks duets on the track "Another Day (That Time Forgot)." Home Before Dark is a more exposed Diamond than listeners have ever heard.
He's out there, bashing on his guitar and singing from a position of extreme vulnerability; he's on a wire without a net.
His musicians understand what is so dynamically and poetically evident in the songs, and use painterly care in adorning them.
Diamond is not a young man anymore and, thankfully, he doesn't write like one -- though he sounds lean and hungry for something just out of reach.
"Forgotten" has a rock & roll progression worthy of his Bang singles.
Its lyric reflects the travails of a protagonist whose heart bears hurt without the grace and wisdom that age is supposed to bring.
The grain in his voice is fierce; it quavers just a bit in the refrain, and Sweeney's electric guitar nails it to the wall.
It follows "One More Bite of the Apple," another rollicking rocker, but this one is about reuniting with his true beloved -- songwriting itself.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | If I Don't See You AgainNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 07:13 | 16 MB | 37 MB |
| 2 | Pretty Amazing GraceNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 04:53 | 11 MB | 27 MB |
| 3 | Don't Go ThereNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 06:04 | 13 MB | 33 MB |
| 4 | Another Day (That Time Forgot)Neil Diamond | Neil Diamond, Natalie Maines | Play | 06:12 | 14 MB | 32 MB |
| 5 | One More Bite of the AppleNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 06:39 | 15 MB | 32 MB |
| 6 | ForgottenNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 04:22 | 10 MB | 24 MB |
| 7 | Act Like a ManNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 04:04 | 9 MB | 21 MB |
| 8 | Whose Hands Are TheseNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 03:11 | 7 MB | 15 MB |
| 9 | No WordsNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 04:49 | 11 MB | 28 MB |
| 10 | The Power of TwoNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 04:35 | 10 MB | 25 MB |
| 11 | Slow It DownNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 04:55 | 11 MB | 25 MB |
| 12 | Home Before DarkNeil Diamond | Neil Diamond | Play | 06:00 | 13 MB | 27 MB |
| 63 mins | 144 MB | |||||
| 63 mins | 331 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bernie Becker | Engineer |
| 2 | Charlie Bisharat | Concert Master |
| 3 | Philip Brossard Jr. | Assistant Engineer |
| 4 | David Campbell | Horn Arrangements, Leader, String Arrangements, Woodwind Arrangement |
| 5 | Mike Campbell | Guitar, Guitar (Bass) |
| 6 | Nathan Campbell | French Horn |
| 7 | Lindsay Chase | Production Coordination |
| 8 | Sam Cole | Production Coordination |
| 9 | Larry Corbett | Cello |
| 10 | Rose Corrigan | Bassoon |
| 11 | Jesse Diamond | Photography |
| 12 | Neil Diamond | Composer, Guitar, Liner Notes, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 13 | Andrew Duckles | Viola |
| 14 | Earl Dumler | Horn (English), Oboe |
| 15 | Greg Fidelman | Engineer |
| 16 | Chuck Findley | Trumpet |
| 17 | Armen Garabedian | Violin |
| 18 | M.B. Gordy | Timpani |
| 19 | Gary Grant | Trumpet |
| 20 | Julian Hallmark | Violin |
| 21 | Dan Higgins | Flute |
| 22 | Chris Holmes | Assistant Engineer |
| 23 | Steven Holtman | Trombone |
| 24 | Smokey Hormel | Guitar, Guitar (Bass) |
| 25 | Suzie Katayama | Orchestra Contractor |
| 26 | Larry Klimas | Flute |
| 27 | Jason Lader | Engineer |
| 28 | Michael Lau Robles | Design |
| 29 | Natalie Maines | Primary Artist |
| 30 | Donald Markese | Flute (Alto) |
| 31 | Mary Maurer | Art Direction, Design |
| 32 | Vlado Meller | Mastering |
| 33 | Joe Meyer | French Horn |
| 34 | Jim Monti | Assistant Engineer |
| 35 | Dana Nielsen | Engineer, Mixing |
| 36 | Jonny Polonsky | Guitar |
| 37 | Linda Press | Vocals (Background) |
| 38 | William Frank "Bill" Reichenbach Jr. | Trombone |
| 39 | Michele Richards | Violin |
| 40 | Rick Rubin | Producer |
| 41 | Mark Santangelo | Mastering |
| 42 | Andrew Scheps | Engineer |
| 43 | Robert Shulgold | Flute |
| 44 | Rudy Stein | Cello |
| 45 | David R. Stone | Bass |
| 46 | Matt Sweeney | Guitar |
| 47 | Benmont Tench | Keyboards |
| 48 | Julia Waters | Vocals (Background) |
| 49 | Maxine Willard Waters | Vocals (Background) |
| 50 | Ralph Williams | Clarinet |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |