Neil Diamond

Neil Diamond's 12 Songs was more than a stripped-down return to form; it was the artist boiled down to the primal from-the-gut with fists-clenched sense of yearning and angst that can turn any Neil Diamond karaoke party into a therapy session. This special edition spreads a mess of intimate demos and bonus cuts around, offering a deeper view of the already superb original album. "Delirious Love," plays like a lost folk-rock hand-clapper from '60s (is there any higher praise?), while Diamond sounds like a righteous, angry God on the early readings of "I'm On to You" and "What's It Gonna Be." Forget bedazzled shirts, Sat Night Live impersonations and ironic appreciation; Neil Rules!