"Love on the Rocks"
Single by Neil Diamond
from the album The Jazz Singer soundtrack
B-side"Acapulco"
ReleasedOctober 1980
Recorded1980
GenrePop, soft rock, country
Length3:40
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Bob Gaudio
Neil Diamond singles chronology
"Dancing in the Street"
(1980) 		"Love on the Rocks"
(1980) 		"Hello Again"
(1981)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Billboard(unrated)[1]

"Love on the Rocks" is a song written by Neil Diamond and Gilbert Bécaud that appeared in the 1980 movie The Jazz Singer and was performed by Diamond on the soundtrack album to the film. It was also released as a single and reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks in January 1981. The song also made it to #3 on Billboard's US Adult Contemporary chart.[2][3] Billboard rated it as the #26 pop single overall for 1981.[4] It performed less well in the UK, reaching only #17.[5]

Background and recording

"Love on the Rocks" was one of five collaborations between Diamond and Bécaud for The Jazz Singer.[6] It began as "a bit of a lark", a "reggae-tinged" number called "Scotch on the Rocks" for Bécaud's drink of choice.[6] (A demo recording of this version was released on Diamond's career retrospective In My Lifetime in 1997.) The writers saw its potential and it was rewritten as a more serious ballad.[6]

In The Jazz Singer, English actor and singer Paul Nicholas, playing a loutish Billy Idol-like singer, performs a punk/new wave version of the song to the chagrin of Diamond's character, Jess Rubin.[7]

Reception

Billboard critic Vicki Pipkin called "Love on the Rocks" a "powerful ballad in true Diamond style."[8] Billboard also called the song "one of Diamond's more powerful readings" and "a beautiful ballad featuring Diamond's patented smoky vocals.[9][10] Record World said it has "enough drama and tension in each line to fill an entire album."[11] Neil Diamond biographer Laura Jackson describes the lyrics as taking "a sometimes cynical look at a man who is trapped in a relationship and is disillusioned with life."[3] Allmusic critic Johnny Loftus calls it a "lite FM favorite" and "classic, raw-throated Neil."[12] Author T. Mike Childs rated it as a "terrific" ballad.[13] Pittsburgh Press music editor Carl Apone claimed that Diamond was at his best in The Jazz Singer in the songs "Hello Again" and "Love on the Rocks."[14]

Personnel

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Later interpretations

Soon after the release of the Diamond recording, "Love on the Rocks" was covered by Millie Jackson on her 1981 album Just a Lil' Bit Country, and Gladys Knight performed the number on the Tom Jones show, a rendition released on the album Great Solo Performances by Guest Artists from the Tom Jones Show, Vol. 1 in 1997.[25] Co-writer Bécaud recorded the song in French as L'Amour est mort on his 1981 eponymous album.[26] The Darkness paid tribute to Neil Diamond's "Love on the Rocks" with their own 2003 song "Love on the Rocks with No Ice."[27]

References

  1. ^ "Review: Neil Diamond – Love on the Rocks" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 44. 1 November 1980. p. 91. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 30 May 2020 – via American Radio History.
  2. ^ "The Jazz Singer Awards". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  3. ^ a b Jackson, L. (2005). Neil Diamond: His Life, His Music, His Passion. ECW Press. pp. 164, 171. ISBN 9781550227079.
  4. ^ "Pop Singles". Billboard Magazine. December 26, 1980. p. YE-9. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  5. ^ "Neil Diamond". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  6. ^ a b c Wild, David (2008). He Is... I Say: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Neil Diamond. Da Capo Press. p. 151. ISBN 9780306817847.
  7. ^ Goldsmith, Melissa U. D.; Willson, Paige A.; Fonseca, Anthony J. (2016). "The Jazz Singer". The Encyclopedia of Musicians and Bands on Film. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 164. ISBN 9781442269873.
  8. ^ Pipkin, V. (December 20, 1980). "No Jazz Heard in 'Jazz Singer' Film". Billboard. p. 20. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  9. ^ "Spotlight". Billboard. November 15, 1980. p. 90. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  10. ^ "Top Single Picks". Billboard. November 1, 1980. p. 91. Retrieved 2023-01-21.
  11. ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. November 1, 1980. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-02-22.
  12. ^ Loftus, J. "The Jazz Singer". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  13. ^ Childs, T.M. (2004). The Rocklopedia Fakebandica. Macmillan. p. 121. ISBN 9780312329440.
  14. ^ Apone, C. (December 19, 1980). "Neil Diamond's Music Is Highlight of Updated 'Jazz Singer'". Pittsburgh Press. p. 18. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  15. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  16. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1981-01-31. Retrieved 2017-04-04.
  17. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Love on the Rocks". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
  18. ^ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  19. ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  20. ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, January 24, 1981
  21. ^ "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 27, 1980". Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  22. ^ "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1981". Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  23. ^ Musicoutfitters.com
  24. ^ "British single certifications – Neil Diamond – Love on the Rocks". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  25. ^ "Great Solo Performances by Guest Artists from the Tom Jones Show, Vol. 1". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  26. ^ "Gilbert Bécaud - Gilbert Bécaud". Discogs. 1981. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  27. ^ Edwards, G. (2006). Is Tiny Dancer Really Elton's Little John?. Random House. p. 124. ISBN 9780307346032.
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