Diamond Is Forever
Neil Diamond’s first No. 1 single (at least as listed in Billboard magazine) was “Cracklin’ Rosie” in 1970, not “Song Sung Blue,” as Diamond recalls in the story.
I was program director at CKLW in Detroit from 1967 to 1970. Our music director was Rosalie Trombley. She was always eager to add Neil’s records to the playlist, and we did.
Neil and Rosalie developed a professional high regard for each other. The “Rosie” in “Cracklin’ Rosie” was his dedication to her.
In 1984, Roz Wyman, chairperson for the Democratic National Convention, and I visited Bill Graham to enlist him to produce the entertainment for the party’s San Francisco convention.
He told us that only one entertainer would inherit the special “stratospheric” position belonging to Sinatra: Neil Diamond.
PAUL DREW
Los Angeles
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