Neil Diamond Previews 6-CD Set With Unreleased ‘The Ballad Of Saving Silverman’

Neil Diamond has unveiled the previously unreleased song ‘The Ballad Of Saving Silverman.’ The track is available for streaming and for immediate download with the digital album preorder of Capitol/UMe’s 6-CD Neil Diamond 50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition, out on 30 November.

The tune has a fascinating back story in that Diamond previously kept its existence secret. He appeared in the 2001 movie comedy Saving Silverman, which was about a group of ardent fans of the singer who try to keep their friend from marrying the wrong woman. But unbeknown to everybody, Diamond had written the perfect theme, in a song that sums up the film and even has a spoken-word bridge in it.

“I didn’t ask anybody about it or tell anybody about it, but I wrote this song while we were doing the movie,” Diamond says. “I liked it a lot, but I thought maybe [the movie] needed a little something from the heart, rather than being clever.” Instead, the Diamond song used in the film was ‘I Believe in Happy Endings,’ which he wrote specifically for it, and which was featured alongside his classic songs ‘Cherry, Cherry,’ ‘Hello Again’ and ‘Holly Holy.’

After the film came out, Diamond played ‘The Ballad Of Saving Silverman’ for director Dennis Dugan, who said it was likely that he would have used the song if he’d known about it. “But it was already too late,” says the star, “and I just kept it in my drawer for safekeeping until now.”

The Neil Diamond 50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition spans the singer-songwriter’s entire, unique career, with 115 tracks overall set in a hard-cover book. It contains scores of Diamond’s most beloved hits as well as demos, rarities and 15 previously unreleased tracks. They include the newly-unearthed ‘Sunflower,’ written and recently updated by Diamond and originally recorded by Glen Campbell.

Neil Diamond’s 6CD 50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition is released on 30 November. Buy it here.

Format: UK English