Celebrity responses to the coronavirus pandemic have been been all over the spectrum, from Josh Gad telling us it is okay to cry, to Gal Gadot and her squad singing “Imagine.” Phish frontman Trey Anastasio has already written, recorded and released three new tracks and none other than Charo has a suggestion in case of a toilet paper shortage.
The gold medal, however, goes to Neil Diamond.
The 79-year-old Brooklyn-born singer, songwriter, and actor (The Jazz Singer was very misunderstood!) checked in with us late Saturday via social media alongside his dog, Shamrock Diamond, near a roaring fire, ready for a singalong.
“I love ya, and I think if maybe we sing together, well, we just might feel a little bit better,” he reassured viewers likely unnerved by the unfolding crisis.
At first, you’d be forgiven if you thought the lyrics to “Sweet Caroline,” Diamond’s 1969 pop sensation (which was, yes, inspired by Caroline Kennedy), have been tweaked to represent the current Covid-19 menace. The opening couplet does have a bit of a creeping pandemic quality to it.
Where it began, I can’t begin to knowing/
But then I know it’s growing strong
These are, however, the correct lines. (And he’s singing about falling in love, not anything scary!)
The jokes begin a little later, with the “hands, touching hands” bit changed to “hands, washing hands” and the addition of “don’t touch meeeee … I won’t touch yoooooou!”
These are quality Dad jokes from Diamond, brought to you completely free of charge. The marvelous video is below. The ball is now firmly in his old high school classmate Barbra Streisand’s court to release “Don’t Breathe On My Parade.”
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