It is that wonderful time of the year again, and this 2020, it’s going to mean so much more.
It’s been a difficult one. Let’s hope this song makes it on those playlists of people enjoying the Christmas holiday season.
The season of love. And that means everyone who’s come and gone in our lives.
Neil Diamond‘s “Christmas Prayers” is a song for those who are missing someone for the holidays. His musical career started in the mid sixties and has spanned decades. Neil is well known and well beloved as you’ll see.
It’s a profoundly heartfelt tune. Neil sings about loved ones who are no longer with us, and those who are still here. Go around and hug everyone. 2020 has shown us that life is short and unpredictable. Go on!
A part of it goes,
“Grandmas, grandpas, fathers, mothers
Friends I’ve loved dear
Sisters, brothers, sons and daughters I once played with
Aunts and uncles I once stayed with”
Chokes you up, doesn’t it?
Christmas is about family.
When you gather in one house, when meals are served and drinks are downed, stories are shared about the past year and the many others that have made an impact in your lives.
Let’s not forget those who’ve lost loved ones because of the virus. And those who’ve lost jobs or the opportunity to travel. Remember them when you dine with your family. Say a prayer for them.
This is such a beautiful song.
Neil’s voice is still a gem. He sings it from the heart, pouring all his emotions and all his love into it.
“You’re in my Christmas prayers
And in my Christmas dreams
In every Christmas story told
In every song I sing”
You can sing it too.
How did the song come about?
It was Neil’s wife. When she was grieving over the passing of her grandmother, she asked Neil to try and write something.
“It came out of my wife Katie’s heart and mind, she was feeling blue about the loss 20 years ago of her grandmother, and it all came up about two Christmases ago. And she asked, or maybe I volunteered, to try and write something that would make her feel a little bit better. I did and I liked the song a lot and I was in the studio with a group of musicians.”
A gem from a diamond.
This song came out before he announced his retirement due to the onset of Parkinson’s disease. But we all know that he still sings. You cannot take the music out of Mr. Diamond.
He’s got pictures of loved ones around the studio as he sings. Christmas decors abound and the band’s doing a fantastic job as always. It’s got that bittersweet, melancholic vibe to it.
A time to reflect.
The song is a treat to listen to. It reminds the listener once more of the important matters in life. Family, love, goodness. Christmas comes around at the end of the year. Similarly, at the end of the day, and after many years, what matters in the end is what this song is about.
Treasure those around you as you listen to Neil’s beautiful song below!
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