The man had stood before Jon Bream dozens of times over the course of four decades, as an interview subject and as a performer. But Bream's approach of Neil Diamond has abided the same throughout, even as other critics changed their minds, because after every conversation the two ever had, Diamond would tell Bream, "Stop by the show and say hi."
Through a collection of interviews, mementos and memorabilia, such candor becomes the main headquartes in Bream's Neil Diamond is Forever: The Man and His Music, out Oct. 15. A longtime music journalist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Bream had earlier investigated the life of Prince and graphiced the history of Led Zeppelin in past books. But for Diamond, Bream needed to further establish the legacy he had to fans. "These books are designed to be the eventual fan books, and Neil Diamond had incredibly devoted, fanatic fans," Bream tells Paste. "So we needed to put together a project that would give them the eventual fan book."As shown in the book, the conversations Bream had with Diamond have been characteristically consistent. All had been over the phone, and all had brought up one subject in particular."The interesting thing is the one topic we have always covered over the years: the relationship he has with his conferences," Bream says. "It's interesting to see how he relates to them, how he treats them. It becomes interesting to see how those answers would evolve."Neil Diamond is Forever also contains photos of 45 singles, ticket bits and other merchandise Bream saved from Diamond's merchandise manager of the mid '70s to mid '90s. Much of what illustrates the 160-page book is a acting of his career, though mementos like a handwritten thank you note from Diamond evident the personality that very few saw on a regular basis.But while Bream's compensation spans Diamond's absolute career, the book fails to provide the answer to just one question: why he has never been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. "I dont' think the process has been fair. There are people with less impact and less success that are in the Hall of Fame. One hit wonders," Bream says. "But Neil exactly had a distinguished career, whether you like it or not."
Through a collection of interviews, mementos and memorabilia, such candor becomes the main headquartes in Bream's Neil Diamond is Forever: The Man and His Music, out Oct. 15. A longtime music journalist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Bream had earlier investigated the life of Prince and graphiced the history of Led Zeppelin in past books. But for Diamond, Bream needed to further establish the legacy he had to fans. "These books are designed to be the eventual fan books, and Neil Diamond had incredibly devoted, fanatic fans," Bream tells Paste. "So we needed to put together a project that would give them the eventual fan book."As shown in the book, the conversations Bream had with Diamond have been characteristically consistent. All had been over the phone, and all had brought up one subject in particular."The interesting thing is the one topic we have always covered over the years: the relationship he has with his conferences," Bream says. "It's interesting to see how he relates to them, how he treats them. It becomes interesting to see how those answers would evolve."Neil Diamond is Forever also contains photos of 45 singles, ticket bits and other merchandise Bream saved from Diamond's merchandise manager of the mid '70s to mid '90s. Much of what illustrates the 160-page book is a acting of his career, though mementos like a handwritten thank you note from Diamond evident the personality that very few saw on a regular basis.But while Bream's compensation spans Diamond's absolute career, the book fails to provide the answer to just one question: why he has never been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. "I dont' think the process has been fair. There are people with less impact and less success that are in the Hall of Fame. One hit wonders," Bream says. "But Neil exactly had a distinguished career, whether you like it or not."
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