Hot August Night...in March

On Wednesday, Mum and I went to see Neil Diamond in concert. Taking Mum to the concert was my Christmas present to her and a thank you for all her help and support.

... My brothers and sisters and I grew up listening to Hot August Night and all Neil Diamond's other records so I knew I would be able to sing along with Mum recalling the lyrics that are deeply ingrained in my subconscious. Because there are 7 of us (5 kids) in our immediate family, growing up we had the numbers for a party at any point in time and eventually as everyone grew and left the nest, the times that we could all be together in the same spot was occasion enough to celebrate - Add to this, that those times were usually the happiest occasions, like birthdays or Christmas. So on these occasions, post birthday cake cutting or later in the evening after Christmas lunch had been digested Mum or Dad would occasionally put on some of their favourite records (yes, records...it was the early 80s after all) which would always result in them dancing...and lots of laughing. Favourite songs would usually be repeated...numerous times...hence my ability to recall any number of Neil Diamond (and Hot Chocolate) hits word for word.

So on this occasion... Mum and I decided to catch the train to avoid possible delays in traffic which was a great idea in the end because, even though it took us an hour and a half to get there, we arrived just in time and were able to have a good chat and catch up on the way.

Sitting at the local train station waiting for our first train, Mum commented "I am so excited! I haven't been this excited since I went to see the Traveling Wilburys!" Bless....and I thought..."I haven't been this excited since I went to see...the Wiggles."

While we were on the train, Mum also told me about the time Neil Diamond first came to Australia back in 1974. My brother was 3 weeks old and she was devastated she couldn't go to see him but thought he'd surely be back the next year (his Hot August Night album was massive in Australia at that time - spending 29 weeks at number 1 on the album charts in 1973 and 1974)...fast forward 20 years...he finally came back to Australia for his second concert and so Mum flew my sisters up and took everyone to see him with her. The last time she saw him in concert was 6 years ago - she literally got the last tickets in the house so went alone but said she had a fantastic time because she was up so high in the grandstands (aka nose bleed territory) that the only people that could see her dance were the security guards - so she danced and sung her heart out. I love that about Mum, she is so young at heart (have I mentioned she has just taken up Zumba!?).

Let's just say the crowd was a bit more subdued this time..Neil is 70 after all so I guess that means most of his fans are now quite...mature...If I were given a dollar for every time a person commented that I must have been the youngest person there...well...I'd have $4. Of course there were people younger than me...not many though - mostly young children, brought along with their parents who had been brought along with their parents...but I actually had a fantastic time. When he sung Cherry Cherry, Mum and I were the first on our feet and you could see some people around us were so relieved. It's like we gave them permission to have fun again. There was a sweet couple in front of us who were bopping like crazy...just about bouncing out of their seats, so when they turned around and saw us dancing they jumped up too. Mum even commented that the old dear next to us started to bop her head at that point.

I've since uploaded Cherry Cherry, Hot August Night, Sweet Caroline and America onto my ipod and I know that now every time I listen to them, I'll not only think back to those days in the early 80s when I was a kid watching my parents rock and roll dance in the living room - laughing at the sight of it (not because the dancing was bad, but because when you're a kid you love to see your parents laugh and have fun) but I'll also think back to this great night out with Mum - a Hot August Night in March.