Neil Diamond vs. Jimmy Buffet

[bobzilla77]

I feel I should abstain as I have never listened to a Jimmy Buffet album start to finish.

Come to think of it, I don't think I have listened to a Neil Diamond album start to finish. I know nothing of his deep catalog except for "Porcupine Pie" whic I heard as a kid & it sounded so awful, it stuck in the brain. And I did hear his Rick Rubin album, a bit of it anyway, when it came out.

Anyway I do at least generally like Neil Diamond quite a bit (at his best in small doses), and don't really have any interest in hearing a third Jimmy Buffett song.

[bobzilla77]

I feel I should abstain as I have never listened to a Jimmy Buffet album start to finish.

Come to think of it, I don't think I have listened to a Neil Diamond album start to finish. I know nothing of his deep catalog except for "Porcupine Pie" whic I heard as a kid & it sounded so awful, it stuck in the brain. And I did hear his Rick Rubin album, a bit of it anyway, when it came out.

Anyway I do at least generally like Neil Diamond quite a bit (at his best in small doses), and don't really have any interest in hearing a third Jimmy Buffett song.

[Loki]

[George P. Smackers]

I don't think anybody has put in a word for Neil Diamond's voice yet, so I'll do it.

Yes, it's theatrical, but his big, booming baritone and over-emphatic delivery often win me over. I love "Dry Your Eyes" in The Last Waltz, I think it's the best part--maybe because he's a sort of underdog in that movie, the square among the hip kids. He's a bit of a badass in this clip. I love the swagger:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RurccWvJiS8

And the song is pretty great, the way he puts it over so deliberately: "And if you can't recall the sing-gah / Can you still recall the toonh?" Actually I find the lyrics in that song fairly powerful--and that goes for other ones too. "Girl You'll Be a Woman Soon," "Cherry Cherry," "Solitary Man," "I'm a Believer"-- his best songs are not just good, they're great.

[The Slider]

Anyone got a Jimmy Buffet best of they could stick in Drop Box for me?
There isn't one on Tym's Fuck Off collection.

I literally only know Margaritaville and Changes In Latitude.
I love both of them unconditionally and without reservation, but I suspect the well is not deep.

I at least *like* every ND song that has been held up as 2nd rate.
I doubt JB will get even close.

[sloopjohnc]

Neil Diamond has, at the very least, written some noteworthy songs. Jimmy Buffet has fans who call themselves Parrotheads.

I like to stick up for Ugly American Funtime Anti-Snob stuff around here because someone has to and I like some objectively bad things. But Buffet is a bridge too far.

Exactly.

I went with a friend to one of his shows because he said they were great. I hated it. Too much forced happiness. Then again, maybe folks were naturally happy, but it was too much for me.

[sloopjohnc]

.

[Bent Fabric]

Neil Diamond has, at the very least, written some noteworthy songs. Jimmy Buffet has fans who call themselves Parrotheads.

I like to stick up for Ugly American Funtime Anti-Snob stuff around here because someone has to and I like some objectively bad things. But Buffet is a bridge too far.

Exactly.

I went with a friend to one of his shows because he said they were great. I hated it. Too much forced happiness. Then again, maybe folks were naturally happy, but it was too much for me.

I knew a guy - quadriplegic, wheelchair bound for life, basically not someone who can leave very many places without some rather crucial assistance. HIS narrating of getting dragged to (and - moreso than you or I - stuck at) a Buffet show that he most certainly did not end up enjoying one bit...as a sort of palpable "this is my absolute worst case scenario as a disabled person", it was a powerful and evocative story, and when I have occasion to "consider the Buffet concert" (i.e. annually), this is where my mind's eye goes rather automatically.

[Mike Boom]

... me and the Missus are going to see Neil tonight in Dallas.
I have seen him before many years ago and I recall it was pretty great.

[sloopjohnc]

Neil Diamond has, at the very least, written some noteworthy songs. Jimmy Buffet has fans who call themselves Parrotheads.

I like to stick up for Ugly American Funtime Anti-Snob stuff around here because someone has to and I like some objectively bad things. But Buffet is a bridge too far.

Exactly.

I went with a friend to one of his shows because he said they were great. I hated it. Too much forced happiness. Then again, maybe folks were naturally happy, but it was too much for me.

I knew a guy - quadriplegic, wheelchair bound for life, basically not someone who can leave very many places without some rather crucial assistance. HIS narrating of getting dragged to (and - moreso than you or I - stuck at) a Buffet show that he most certainly did not end up enjoying one bit...as a sort of palpable "this is my absolute worst case scenario as a disabled person", it was a powerful and evocative story, and when I have occasion to "consider the Buffet concert" (i.e. annually), this is where my mind's eye goes rather automatically.

If I'm going to listen to a funny C&W artist, I'd pick Jerry Jeff Walker anyway.

[BARON CORNY DOG]

I had the exact same thought about this, actually. If I'm in the mood for "that sort of thing," I'll take "Sangria Wine" or "Gettin' By" or whatever.