Universal Music Group (UMPG) has acquired Neil Diamond’s entire musical catalog song catalog, which encompasses all the artist’s recordings, including 110 unreleased tracks, an unreleased album, and archival long-form videos for an undisclosed amount.
Videos by American Songwriter
Diamond’s recorded work as a songwriter spans his own hits like “Sweet Caroline,” “Song Sung Blue” and “Cracklin’ Rosie,” as well as covers of his songs by other artists, including “Red Red Wine” by UB40, “I’m a Believer” by The Monkees, Johnny Cash’s version of “Solitary Man,” and Urge Overkill’s rendition of “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon,” which was prominently featured on the 1994 soundtrack for the film Pulp Fiction.
The 1977 song “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers,” written by Diamond with Marilyn and Alan Bergman, also had an extra life on the charts. Diamond recorded his solo version, and friend Barbra Streisand covered the song a year later. A duet was pieced together with the two artists singing, and the song went to No. 1.
Diamond released his 32nd album Melody Road in 2014, followed by Acoustic Christmas in 2016. In 2018, Diamond revealed that he had Parkinson’s disease and was retiring from touring. By 2020, Diamond released another album Classic Diamonds, featuring new vocals along with orchestral interpretations of some of his biggest hits reimagined with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Similar to Sting’s recent deal with Universal and Bruce Springsteen’s with Sony, the acquisition of Diamond’s material unites both ends of his work under a single company; copyrights for his recordings and songwriting, covering the lyrics, melodies, and structural elements of his compositions are separate.
“After nearly a decade in business with UMG, I am thankful for the trust and respect that we have built together and I feel confident in the knowledge that… the global team at UMG will continue to represent my catalog and future releases with the same passion and integrity that have always fueled my career.”
Photo: Capitol Records
