“I know every song you lead me to is gonna be my friend.”

Every morning when I wake up, one of the first things I think about is what I’m in the mood to listen to. I quickly go through the events of my day. Do I need something up-beat to get me up and at ‘em, or do I have a few mellow hours to drink coffee and read blogs? Am I planning on lighting a candle or getting dressed immediately or making my bed? Is it raining or overcast or sunny?

I literally think through all of these things within the first few moments of being awake. I’m not officially awake until my glasses are on my face, a mug of coffee is in my hand and there are tunes playing.

It’s not often that an album comes along that I could listen to in the morning, at lunch time and before bed.

But good news. Now there is one.

Melody Road by Neil Diamond, his first studio album in six years. (available on Amazon / iTunes)

The minute I started listening to the first song, the title track, Melody Road, I was absolutely sold. When the fourth song, Something Blue, came on… and I realized that I wished it was summer so I could run through a field of tall grass with this song playing through the sky. Listen:
(AM I RIGHT OR WHAT?!) But then I hear “Ooo Do I Wanna Be Yours” (track 7) and I want to lay on my bed and stare at the glow in the dark stars on my ceiling because for real:

“I had a dream we were out on a meadow.
Just you and me, lying out in the sun.
I knew that somebody would soon come to get you.
I was hoping that maybe I could be the one.

Ooo do I wanna be yours..
and now everywhere I go I go having you on my mind
and all I wanna know is ooo do you wanna be mine?”

It is so true it hurts. You know? Easily my favorite song on the album, which is a hard choice because they are all SO GOOD. But what else would you expect from a legend like Neil Diamond? Here’s the thing. I have to get myself a guitar and the physical copy of this cd because the booklet COMES WITH THE CHORDS TO THE SONGS. I mean, I only know like 3 chords but I want to be able to lay on my bed and play these songs all day long.

If you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna go put Ooo Do I wanna Be Yours on repeat and journal my little heart out.

I participated in the Neil Diamond Melody Road album review program as a member of One2One Network. I was provided a free album to review but all opinions are my own.