Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Editorial: Diamond will sparkle as Mission headliner

By Mark Story
Hawkes Bay Today·
25 Oct, 2017 07:55 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Singer-songwriter Neil Diamond will attract a full muster at the Mission Concert, writes Mark Story. Photo / Supplied

Singer-songwriter Neil Diamond will attract a full muster at the Mission Concert, writes Mark Story. Photo / Supplied

The zesty four-chord intro to Cherry Cherry constitutes an indelible chapter of my university years.

Neil Diamond's energised but uncomplicated (able to be strummed/sung by students slightly under the weather) lyrics are just one of his hallmarks.

Of all the artists emulated by those who enjoyed picking up a guitar in their varsity days, I'm guessing Diamond was the most covered. (I'm eternally grateful there were no cellphones back then able to record said covers).

Read more: Neil Diamond to take Mission stage at last
Mission Concert's Neil Diamond show has people buzzing

But I'm a sucker for ballads, and consequently this enduring Brooklyn balladeer.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

No one does the genre better: Introspection, slow sentiment and a short-versed narrative punctuated with heartfelt refrains. As is sometimes said, he's the soundtrack of many people's lives.

Congratulations should go to the Mission Estate team and promoters. The securing of this act for next year's concert is quite the coup. They've secured an intergenerational performer with an appeal that's sure to pack the paddock come March 17.

The Greenmeadows venue now boasts two marquee billings in as many consecutive years.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

That's a nice hustle, given the event weathered some lean years between 2014 and this year's Dixie Chicks act. The once-fading lustre is again shining.

My one regret is that Barbra Streisand won't be at Diamond's side to perform the pair's ageless duet You Don't Bring Me Flowers.

Still, we're in for some veritable foot tappers from a consummate showman. Here's to a superb St Patrick's Day that'll boast a beautiful noise and much red, red wine among the vines.

Discover more

Entertainment

$22K of Neil Diamond tickets bought illegally

02 Nov 05:58 PM
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay Today

A farming mother thought her sore leg was a sports injury - it was a potentially terminal cancer

16 Jun 06:00 PM
Premium
Hawkes Bay Today

Big venues, big money: The young golf champ hitting the Australian PGA tour

16 Jun 05:00 PM
Premium
Editorial

Editorial: Unique road-cone hotline for those feeling too safe

16 Jun 05:00 PM

How one volunteer makes people feel seen

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

A farming mother thought her sore leg was a sports injury - it was a potentially terminal cancer

A farming mother thought her sore leg was a sports injury - it was a potentially terminal cancer

16 Jun 06:00 PM

Alicia Brough was fighting fit – now she is fighting for her life.

Premium
Big venues, big money: The young golf champ hitting the Australian PGA tour

Big venues, big money: The young golf champ hitting the Australian PGA tour

16 Jun 05:00 PM
Premium
Editorial: Unique road-cone hotline for those feeling too safe

Editorial: Unique road-cone hotline for those feeling too safe

16 Jun 05:00 PM
Napier's only surviving CBD pharmacy raided for third time in 10 weeks - again for perfumes

Napier's only surviving CBD pharmacy raided for third time in 10 weeks - again for perfumes

16 Jun 03:39 AM
Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka
sponsored

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP