Rick Rubin has been around. From rap and hip hop (LL Cool J), hardcore rock (Red Hot Chili Peppers, System of a Down), to the sound of legends (Johnny Cash, Tom Petty, Mick Jagger) Rubin has lent his skill as a producer to a variety of sounds. (Rumor has it, he is producing the Dixie Chicks, next). Rubin's got an eye and ear for what rings resoundingly for each artist, no matter the genre. He was apparently eager to get Neil Diamond back in the studio to find the songwriter again. Diamond's songwriting skills have disappeared over the decades as he's turned to sequins, larger than life stages, big, big orchestras and an audience that has aged and aged.

I've never been a big fan of Neil Diamond. I recognize that he has talent (sort of like Manilow)but he seems lazy....simplistic lyrics and big arrangements, the same themes over and over. It blew me away when I first heard some noise about "12 Songs", and Diamond returning to his roots.

A friend convinced me to buy by saying it was the best CD he's heard this year. He wasn't far from wrong. Rubin apparently hammered it home to Diamond that what was real was his own guitar and some time taken to really focus and write the songs. And what they've achieved together is a CD that is surprisingly focused and thoughtfully written, and well-performed. Of course, you can get me to buy just about anything that features legends Billy Preston on the Hammond and Larry Knechtal on piano; but the real gem is the acoustics of Diamond's sound and the rasp and reality of his voice. Rubin adds musicians from Tom Petty's Heartbreakers and gives us a really strong sound. There are no bad songs in this collection.

There are two bonus tracks: "Men Are So Easy" (a ballad that's not a favorite of mine, because they aren't easy) and an alternate version of "Delirious Love" with guest artist Brian Wilson, who gives the tune an authentic Beach Boys feel.

The highlights?

"Oh, Mary" and "Hell Yeah", the first two tunes, seem to be gtting the most attention. "Hell Yeah" asks the question, "Will you ever take a chance?"...much as Rubin and Diamond did here...and the answer, most assuredly is "Hell, Yeah." There are some acoustic riffs in both songs that are as old as time, and as exciting as if they were fresh and new again. Rubin allows Diamond to raise the temperature in "Hell Yeah", making it a personal anthem....where he "finally got it right".

The CD lights up on track "6" with "Delirious Love". I prefer the first version, Diamond alone with no other voices, to the echo sounds of Brian Wilson in the extra cut...this too, would be picked out by anyone as a Diamond song, but unlike some of his 80's stuff, this song really does have heat, as well as some delicious guitar playing. "I'm On To You" is the lament of a man with a cheating lover....Diamond gets a jazz beat going in the song, and it's a nice flow from "Delirious Love". "I'm On To You" could be a jazz standard in the hands of a number of performers. Diamond goes country in the next track, "What's It Gonna Be", and again, the topic is a cheating love. The back to back positioning of both songs, with such different genres, sharing one topic, is pretty strongly indicative of Rubin's fine hand in the production.

In "Man of God" and "Create Me", Diamond returns to his spiritual roots. Preston is in evidence on the Hammond in "Man of God", on the opening riff, and particularly in the center break. Spanish guitar adds to the drama of "Create Me". It's a powerful ballad, not one of my favorites, but musically rich and full of the escalating word tracks that Diamond gave the world on "You Don't Bring Me Flowers".

The liner notes are Diamond's own words about this recording experience and a lot of black and whites of Diamond working in the studio. Would that they would have included the lyrics instead.

Certainly one of the year's best, and perhaps the best "comeback" album I've heard in a long, long while. Even if you're not a Neil Diamond fan!

A few years ago, when I wrote a review for "Three Chord Opera", I had said that Neil Diamond had recaptured some of his former glory with that disc. Little would I know that in 2005, he would release "12 Songs", which would surpass anybody's expectations and instantly become one of the best in his entire discography.

Like many, I awaited "12 Songs" with much anticipation, because of the collaboration with uber-producer Rick Rubin. Surely the lyrics would be solid; that has always been Mr. Diamond's strength. But, Mr. Rubin would challenge Mr. Diamond from a musical sense, force him to step outside of his creative comfort zone, and produce a disc that would ultimately be much more intimate, raw, and uncluttered than we have grown accustomed to. Mission accomplished.

Much of the advance press and thinking was that "12 Songs" would hearken back to Mr. Diamond's early days, when he reeled off acoustic hits such as "Cherry Cherry" and "Solitary Man". I thought that a much more apt comparison would be that this would be similar to his output around the time of the "Stones" and "Moods" albums, where his songwriting had matured, but the acoustic element was still very much present. I would like to think that I was right, judging from this collection of songs.

The tracks on "12 Songs" are somewhat varied in terms of theme and presentation, and remain strong throughout the disc. The sparseness and simplicity of the production - combined with Mr. Diamond's reflective, introspective lyrics - provide a lot of punch. As much as I have tried to find a clunker or two in the song, I honestly have not been able to identify any. From the opening chords of the hypnotic "Oh Mary" through the lighthearted closing track "We" (as well as the two bonus tracks for those with the Digipak edition), the listening ride is fun.

There are several standout tracks. "Hell Yeah" seems very much to me like Mr. Diamond's "I Am, I Said" for the 21st century. "Evermore" is as beautiful and striking a ballad as Mr. Diamond has produced since "Play Me" - even evoking memories of that classic song with the use of strings accompanying the tune. "Save Me A Saturday Night" is a wonderful love song in the simplicity of Mr. Diamond's message. "Man Of God" is a strong spiritual that continues his pattern in recent discs of including at least one semi-religious track. Late in the disc comes "Face Me", which again echoes the lyrical style and musical arrangements of the "Stones" and "Moods" era. For those with the Digipak version, the bonus track "Men Are So Easy" is amazingly strong, making me wonder why it was left off the standard version of this disc.

Of course, for those with the Digipak version, there is the evaluation between takes of "Delirious Love", a fun rocker with a good, classic shuffle beat. The bonus version that was enhanced with vocals and arrangements from the great Brian Wilson is very enjoyable, though the added production does make it feel more like a Beach Boys/Brian Wilson song than a Neil Diamond song. So, it is probably best that this take was a bonus track, leaving the simple acoustically-driven track on the standard disc; to have used the Brian Wilson track would have been a jarring distraction from the overall flow of "12 Songs".

All in all, "12 Songs" is a remarkable disc, and puts the Neil Diamond fan on notice that, at age 64, he is not done yet. One hopes that his collaboration with Mr. Rubin lasts for a while and results in several discs, because the results are outstanding. Neil Diamond fans will, of course, love this disc, as with most all of his output over the year. However, I would strongly recommend this to those who have not listened to Neil Diamond before. I would also recommend this to those who have drifted away and become slightly disenchanted with Mr. Diamond's music over the years. Give "12 Songs" a spin in your player. I don't think you will be disappointed.

This is a wonderful, heart-felt CD offering that gets Neil back to his "unplugged" roots. His body of work is truly amazing. More than a dozen of Top 10 hits, songs written for and covered by other musicians and groups, and to this day, one of the few artists who can still sell-out arenas across the country. So with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominations just out today. One has to ask, why Neil Diamond is not already in the Hall of Fame? Since his first LP came out in 1963, he has theoretically been "eligible" for induction since 1988. And I don't want to hear that he's not "rock and roll" enough ... but "jazz legend" Miles Davis is? This is one of the biggest travesties going down! As Heather McCartney's t-shirt espoused at her Dad's belated induction in 1999 ... "It's About F-ing Time!" When is Neil's time?

Having been a Neil Diamond fan for many years, I must admit I've been disappointed in recent albums. But this goes back to the days of Play Me and I Am I Said. Rarely do I buy an album where I like more than one or two songs. This, however, is the exception...I like them all. My two favorites are Save Me a Saturday Night and Delirious Love. This is the perfect CD to listen to on the long commute to work.

I saw a segment on CBS Sunday Morning about this album and thought that it would be great as a gift for a relative. The relative loved it, but when we listened to it together I realized that I did too! This album is not like the Neil Diamond of the 70's and 80's... take a listen to see what I mean.

As for the Digi-Pak with bonus tracks, I like having the extra 2 songs, but I don't see the point of the digital part. I thought this meant I would get to download the album (I did pay for it!), but it was only a streaming segment that was available for only 2 weeks - what is the point of that?