“Neil Diamond–The Roof Party” is the premiere of Neil Diamond’s tribute to the great songwriters of the 1960’s. So how appropriate that Neil takes us back to the 60’s not only with the music, but also with the all black attire that originated the Solitary Man. This is his shortest video, running only a half hour, but a delightful 30 minutes it is!! Neil does a very select set of songs from the album that parallels the video. He opens with the title track, “Up On The Roof,” leading into a rousing “River Deep-Mountain High.” The next two songs are duets that certainly highlight the video. First, the “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” duet with Linda Press which captures the enchanting charisma these two have shared for years on stage. Following is a bouncy “Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen,” with Neil Sedaka–a delightful teenybopper where the two Neils play a friendly game of give and take. Then on to a charming rendition of The Shirelles’ “Will You Love Me Tomorrow.” And of course a round of applause to the much-acclaimed Paul Schaffer and his band (along with a scattered member or two of Neil’s band) providing the background for the entire show. Also, nice touches are the excerpts of a backstage interview with Neil scattered throughout the video, giving details of his personal comments about the album.
To close the video, Neil breaks out the ol’ Everly Brothers Gibson to share one of his songs…”Cherry, Cherry”—a must if you are making a video dedicated to 1960’s classics!! (Reviewed by Kevin Plebanski)