From the 1960s to the 1980s, Diamond was one of the more successful pop … The story of my life Is very plain to read It starts the day you came And ends the day you leave The story of my life Begins and ends with In early 1963, he was signed to a singles deal by Columbia Records, and on January 24, his 22nd birthday, had his first solo recording session, followed by a second session three months later. Ten of the firm's writers eventually collaborated on a song, appropriately called "Ten Lonely Guys," which Boone recorded, and which reached number 45 in the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1962. The Story Of My Life (Neil Diamond) Intro: C G7, C G7 C G7 G G7 C G7 C G F C The story of my life, is very plain to read; F G7 G Dm7 G G7 C G7 It starts the day you came, and ends the day you leave. (Although many accounts of his life repeat the erroneous story that he dropped out of NYU in 1962 just short of earning an undergraduate degree, biographer Rich Wiseman learned the truth by consulting the university's records.). Diamond returned to the record racks in the fall with the ballad "Stones," released in October, followed by an album of the same name in November. Neil Diamond: The stories behind his 10 best songs – Telegraph.co.uk ... with a lyrics that told a visual story of his upbringing. But his next career development involved his own performing. Soon, lawsuits were flying. "I Am...I Said" earned Diamond his first Grammy nomination, for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male. Check out The Story Of My Life by Neil Diamond on Amazon Music. Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter, born in Brooklyn, NY. All rights reserved. When song publisher Don Kirshner heard "Cherry, Cherry," he called Diamond into his office and asked if the songwriter had a similarly upbeat tune that could be used by the Monkees, a group put together for an upcoming TV series. Carlene Carter Revisits Her Childhood Musical Obsessions, Up on the Roof: Songs from the Brill Building. This association was over by the time Leiber and Stoller had one of their clients, Jay & the Americans, record "Sunday and Me," a song Diamond had written at Trio. Recently married to schoolteacher Jay Posner (with whom he had two daughters), Diamond kept plugging away, even opening his own tiny office above the jazz club Birdland in midtown Manhattan. Diamond quickly followed "Solitary Man" with his second Bang single, "Cherry, Cherry," released in July 1966, which gave him his first substantial hit, peaking at number six in October. At the same time, he had completed his recording contract, and he signed a new, lucrative one with Columbia Records. But Diamond's score, released as a solo album by him, was a hit. It was a troubled project, and by the time the movie was released in October 1973, both Diamond and Richard Bach, the book's author, were suing the film producer. Hot August Night marked Diamond's ascension to superstar status, and it also marked the end of a phase of his career. He also formed a duo with Jack Packer, a friend of his younger brother's, and as Neil & Jack they signed a publishing contract with Allied Entertainment Corporation of America and a recording contract with its subsidiary, Duel Records. While he was there, an assignment came in from Dot Records to submit a follow-up to Pat Boone's novelty hit "Speedy Gonzales." This resulted in the release of two singles, "You Are My Love"/"What Will I Do" in 1960 and "I'm Afraid"/"Til You've Tried Love" in 1961, Diamond's first commercially released recordings. It shot to number one, where it stayed seven weeks, becoming the biggest single of 1967. Reviews were awful, and the picture bombed. It also won Diamond the 1973 Grammy Award for Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or TV Special. Diamond played him "I'm a Believer," a song intended for his debut album. (In 1996, he reissued "What Will I Do" on his box set In My Lifetime.) A suave showman and versatile singer/songwriter who sold millions in every decade since the 1960s, penning American anthems along the way. His first project for the new label was a song score for the film version of the best-selling novel Jonathan Livingston Seagull. By the time "I'm a Believer" was released as the Monkees' second single in the fall of 1966, the group was a teenybopper phenomenon, and the disc had advance orders of over one million copies. Read Full Biography. An impassioned statement of emotional turmoil, the song was very much in tune with the confessional singer/songwriter movement of the time, and it became a major hit, peaking at number four in May, with even its B-side, "Done Too Soon" (previously released on Tap Root Manuscript), earning a chart placing. Tallyrand shopped both Diamond's songs and Diamond as a recording artist, and on January 6, 1966, it signed a contract with WEB IV, the company controlling the independent Bang Records label.