Neil Diamond Concert

   In October 2008 I was lucky enough to win 2 tickets to the Neil Diamond concert in Orlando, Florida.  Thank you so much, Gather, for this incredible opportunity to see him live and in action!  My husband and I had a fabulous time, and I'd love to share how our evening went with my Gather friends.

   We headed off to the Amway Arena once my husband got off of work and the kids were settled with Grandma and their aunt for the evening.  We had a little trouble finding the place, but once we got there we headed over to the box office and asked for our tickets.  There they were, and when we asked the cashier if she could tell us where our seats were, she said, "Wow!  These are great seats!"  Now, you know that means good seats indeed if someone working there gets excited for you.

   We did try to grab a bite to eat before the show, but the only thing within walking distance was a hotel and the bar there was overflowing with people!  We settled for some Subway mini subs and popcorn once we were settled inside.  Our seats were in the first section above the floor, catty-corner to the stage.  Really nice, as you can tell from the photos we were able to take!  I didn't think we'd have such a great view of the stage.  It was an awesome surprise.  We found out from others around us that those seats were going for $120 per person!

   Before the show, they were playing some of his classic, well-known hits over the sound system, but the display screens were showing the cover of his new album.  Of course, the vendors were all busy selling Neil Diamond merchandise.  During the show, he took some time to tell about how he visited Texas after the latest hurricane hit there, and saw a flooded area that used to be a large neighborhood.  He found out these displaced people of average income were now living out of their cars or in make-shift shelters.  100% of the profits from sales at this concert tour will be going to help those families rebuild their homes and their lives!  He said he figures he has been blessed with enough money and nice things and if he could help out even a little with the help of his fans that would be something good he could do for these people.  I was impressed!

   We knew the show was about to start when we saw the sound techs climbing up to their perches above the stage.  And then the band came out and began warming up and setting up their instruments.  Next came the fanfare that introduced the star performer himself, and Neil Diamond was on stage!  He performed for a good 2 hours, with no intermission.  No opening act, just him.  The guy has more energy and stamina than I do, that's for sure!  Some people who have been to several of his shows said he does this because so many older folks come to the shows that he doesn't want them to have to move around and be inconvenienced with an intermission, or to sit any longer than necessary.  I think that's pretty thoughtful.

   He did a bunch of the classics, of course.  When the crowd got really into "Sweet Caroline", he said, "Well, okay, let's do it again then!" and we did another couple of refrains.  He also did a few songs from the new album, Home Before Dark (which Gather also sent me, along with Celine Dion's latest release -- thanks again, Gather!).  I was particularly touched by "Brooklyn Roads", during which a video montage of his childhood photos and home videos was playing on the monitors around the arena.  It was neat to see him as a young man who obviously was raised in a very loving family.  They didn't have much but they had a lot of love for each other!

   He was an outstanding performer and kept the crowd engaged through both slower songs and more fast-paced numbers.  His band is really talented and I bet several of them have been with him for years.  I definitely would go to another one of his shows in the future.